Atec BGL User Manual

BGL

Battery Ground-Fault Locator

■

Locates ground faults on floating
battery systems

■

Operates on live battery systems

■

Multiple fault detection and tracking

■

Automatic operation

■

Battery operated

BGL

Battery Ground-Fault Locator

DESCRIPTION

The Battery Ground-Fault Locator (BGL) simplifies the
tracking of ground faults on floating dc-powered control
systems.

It features automatic operation, can be used on live battery
systems and has the unique capability of detecting,
tracking and locating multiple faults on a battery system
without having to resort to sectionalizing.

This is accomplished by injecting a low- amplitude 25
Hertz test signal on either the positive or negative side of
the power bus and tracking the signal with one of several
available clamp-on sensor pr

A fault simulator also is provided with the instrument,
allowing the periodic verification of the resistance and
capacitance ranges of the BGL.

APPLICATIONS

The BGL allows tracking and locating of ground faults on
live or dead battery systems. Its locating ability is only
limited by the accessibility of the battery cable.

The instrument can make measurements in the presence of
dc current (up to 20 amperes) and ac ripple (charging
current up to 0.5 ampere).

The BGL is useful for locating grounds on any type of
battery system, including those in r
utilities as well as UPS and continuous process systems.

The BGL operates on battery systems that are either
floating or grounded through a resistor. Operators can

obes.

efineries, mines and

determine both the direction and magnitude of faults,
allowing them to ignore high-impedance faults and
concentrate on serious faults.

The BGL is designed to work on battery systems up to 260
volts dc. The instrument even operates in the presence of
surge-suppression capacitors, effectively ignoring them. It
is only sensitive to the power dissipated in the grounding
resistance, hence the resistive paths to ground.

An additional feature of the BGL is its ability to measure
battery system total capacitance to ground, or the
capacitors of any branch of the system. This allows the
operator to deter
resistance range and provides the user with information on
the battery system.

PRINCIPLE OF OPERATION

The instrument operates by injecting a 25 Hertz signal
between the battery system and the ground. The resulting
current is tracked by a clamp-on current probe. The
magnitude of the injected signal is only 3.5 volts and will
not cause any inter
protective relays on the system.

The instrument’s circuitry measures the 25 Hertz power
dissipated in the grounding resistance and calculates the
value of the grounding resistance from knowledge of the
applied voltage.

This method allows the instrument to ef

fects of charging current due to capacitance on the

the ef
battery system or surge suppression capacitors that may be
installed on the system.

mine the maximum practical fault-

ference with the operation of sensitive

fectively eliminate

attery Ground-Fault Locator

B

BGL

The wide dynamic range of the instrument allows the

perator to simultaneously track two or more ground

o
faults that may be different in value. The injected signal is
low enough in amplitude that it should not interfere with
the operation of relays, even of the sensitive variety, under
normal operation.

EATURES AND BENEFITS

F

■

Reads resistance directly (1 ohm to 100 kilohms)

■

ocates single or multiple ground faults

L

■

perates on floating or resistance-grounded battery

O
systems

■

Operates on live battery systems

■

Operates in the presence of surge-correction capacitors

■

Fused output leads for maximum user safety

■

Battery operated with internal automatic charger

■

Measures capacitance

■

Lightweight and portable

■

Tough polyethylene plastic sealed enclosure that
provides high shock and vibration resistance

ORDERING INFORMATION

Item (Qty) Cat. No.

Battery Ground-Fault Locator

120 volt, 60 Hz 835140

240 volt, 50 Hz 835140-1

220 volt, 60 Hz 835140-2

120 volt, 50 Hz 835140-3

Included Accessories

Clamp-on current sensor, 33 ft (10 m),
2 in. (50 mm) opening – max dc current: 20 A [1] 835142

Fault simulator [1] 835145

Output lead extension, 14.9 ft (4.5 m) [1] 835144

Output lead, 6.6 ft (2 m) [1] 835143

Power cord, ac 17032

Instruction manual [1] AVTM835140

Optional Accessories

Mini clamp-on current sensor, 0.5 in. (127 mm)
opening – max dc current: 5 A 835146

Busbar clamp-on sensor, 2 x 4 in. (50 x 101 mm)
opening – max dc current: 50 A 835147

SPECIFICATIONS

Input (specify one)

120 V, 60 Hz, 30 VA OR 240 V, 50 Hz, 30 VA

Battery

Lead-acid rechargeable

Resistance Range

1 Ω to 100 kΩ

Capacitance Range

1 to 100 µF

Accuracy

±15% to ±40%

Accuracy depends on resistance/capacitance load

Injected Signal

25 Hz nominal, 3.5 V rms maximum, 110 mA maximum

Maximum Ripple Current

0.5 A (ac)

Environmental

Operating Temperature

32 to 122° F (0 to 50° C)

Storage Temperature

-40 to +149° F (-40 to +65° C)

Relative Humidity

Up to 80%

Dimensions

13 H x 14 W x 10 D in. (330 H x 356 W x 254 D mm)

Weight

25 lb (11.3 kg)

UK

Archcliffe Road, Dover
CT17 9EN England
T [phone]
F [phone]
[e-mail]

UNITED STATES

onze Way

4271 Br
Dallas, TX 75237-1019 USA
T 1 800 723 2861 (USA only)
T [phone]
F [phone]
[e-mail]

OTHER TECHNICAL SALES OFFICES

Täby SWEDEN, Norristown USA,
Sydney AUSTRALIA, T
Trappes FRANCE, Kingdom of BAHRAIN,
Mumbai INDIA, Johannesburg SOUTH
AFRICA, and Chonburi THAILAND

onto CANADA,

or

TEMENT

A

ISO ST

Registered to ISO 9001:2000 Cert. no. 10006.01

BGL_DS_en_V11

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