Microwave Techniques, a wholly-owned subsidiary of The Elmet Group Co., announced it has entered into a definitive license agreement with Brookhaven Science Associates (BSA), operator of Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL), for the ARC Sentry arc detector technology.
The agreement grants Microwave Techniques a non-exclusive copyright license to manufacture and commercialize the ARC Sentry system.
The ARC Sentry is an arc detection platform designed to protect critical RF infrastructure from damage caused by arcing in high-power environments. The system, originally developed for the 2nd generation National Synchrotron Light Source II (NSLS-II), detects optical evidence of arc propagation and issues an interlock signal to stop propagation before hardware damage occurs.
“Integrating the ARC Sentry technology into our product offering strengthens our ability to provide comprehensive RF protection and monitoring solutions for demanding industrial, scientific, and medical applications,” said Henry Fries, Vice President of Engineering at Microwave Techniques. “This agreement allows us to leverage innovative R&D to deliver the next generation of high speed protection equipment to our global customer base.”
Key technical features of the ARC Sentry platform include:
- Scalable Architecture: Multi-channel system supporting up to 24 channels for comprehensive monitoring of waveguide and coaxial systems
- SMA Fiber Optic Pickups: Can be used with small waveguide sizes and restrictive spaces
- Rapid Detection: Optimized to identify an arc and trigger a protective shutdown in less than 3 microseconds
- Reduced False Alarms: High speed sampling rate with successive events prior to triggering an alarm
- Integrated Interface: Includes proprietary Graphical User Interface (GUI) and control software for real-time system configuration and signal evaluation.
Under the terms of the agreement, Microwave Techniques will manage the engineering, fabrication and global sales of the licensed products.