B&B Electronics Manufacturing: USB Isolators Protect Equipment from Surges

March 30, 2012
B&B Electronics Manufacturing Co., Inc., a leading developer of rugged wireless and wired M2M connectivity solutions for harsh environments, has expanded its family of USB isolators.

Designed to isolate and protect connected equipment from surges, spikes and electrostatic discharges carried on USB cable, the new one-port Ulinx UHR401 and two-port Ulinx UHR402 USB isolators also protect themselves by virtue of their tough construction.  Unlike consumer-grade USB hubs, Ulinx hubs are built to withstand industrial networking hazards like shock, drop, vibration, electromagnetic interference (EMI) and temperature extremes.  They are equipped with high retention ports that hold USB cables firmly in place to eliminate data loss, and in extreme cases, the risk for fire caused by loose cables and arcing. 

Applications would include industrial control and manufacturing, remote sensing and remote metering, instrumentation, point-of-sale, test and measurement, laboratory information systems (LIMS) and medical applications requiring 60601-1 certification.
The Ulinx UHR401 and UHR402 are rated for a temperature range of -40 to 80°C. They provide Level 4 ESD protection (15 kV air, 8 kV contact) as well as 4 kV isolation between the upstream and downstream USB ports. Downstream ports provide full 500 mA power to connected devices.  The high retention ports hold cables so firmly that it requires 3.2 lbs of force to dislodge one. The Ulinx UHR401 and UHR402 are shipped with an external power supply that has US, EU, and UK blades. An optional locking barrel plug can be purchased separately.
The UHR401 is priced at $169.  The UHR402 is priced at $179. Both models carry a five-year warranty.