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CH

Chuck Harris

Tue, Jun 21, 2005 4:52 PM

Alberto di Bene wrote:

Sounds like a dip packaged reed relay.

-Chuck

It could be, but does it exist a reed relay with 4 positions ? The two
switches in the 59307A are single pole, 4-way each.

73 Alberto I2PHD

Certainly is doable. Take 4 normally open, single pole reed relays,
connect one side of each reed together, stuff them into a package, and
you have a SP4T switch.

HP loved little relays, they put them in a lot of gear. Relays are
reliable, very low on resistance, very high off resistance, and switch
quickly enough for light duty applications, such as front panel controls...

-Chuck

Alberto di Bene wrote: >>Sounds like a dip packaged reed relay. >> >>-Chuck > > > It could be, but does it exist a reed relay with 4 positions ? The two > switches in the 59307A are single pole, 4-way each. > > 73 Alberto I2PHD Certainly is doable. Take 4 normally open, single pole reed relays, connect one side of each reed together, stuff them into a package, and you have a SP4T switch. HP loved little relays, they put them in a lot of gear. Relays are reliable, very low on resistance, very high off resistance, and switch quickly enough for light duty applications, such as front panel controls... -Chuck

TV

Tom Van Baak

Tue, Jun 21, 2005 4:59 PM

Sounds like a dip packaged reed relay.

-Chuck

It could be, but does it exist a reed relay with 4 positions ? The two
switches in the 59307A are single pole, 4-way each.

The 59307A is a dual 4-to-1 switch. Each switch
is made from two TO-5 sized relays; the first relay
is SPDT and decides outputs 1 & 2 or 3 & 4. The
other relay is DPDT and decides relay 1 & 4 or
2 & 3. The total of 10 BNC connectors and 4 relays
are mounted on a compact PCB limiting the net
path to a inch or two max. It's a very clean design
and I can see why it goes from DC to 500 MHz.

The relays look special; probably not reed; just
very tiny. You can hear a solid mechanical click
as they are activated.

For the work John mentioned the GPIB-controlled
59307A is ideal and also dirt cheap on the surplus
market.

/tvb
http://www.LeapSecond.com

> > Sounds like a dip packaged reed relay. > > > > -Chuck > > It could be, but does it exist a reed relay with 4 positions ? The two > switches in the 59307A are single pole, 4-way each. The 59307A is a dual 4-to-1 switch. Each switch is made from two TO-5 sized relays; the first relay is SPDT and decides outputs 1 & 2 or 3 & 4. The other relay is DPDT and decides relay 1 & 4 or 2 & 3. The total of 10 BNC connectors and 4 relays are mounted on a compact PCB limiting the net path to a inch or two max. It's a very clean design and I can see why it goes from DC to 500 MHz. The relays look special; probably not reed; just very tiny. You can hear a solid mechanical click as they are activated. For the work John mentioned the GPIB-controlled 59307A is ideal and also dirt cheap on the surplus market. /tvb http://www.LeapSecond.com

PK

Poul-Henning Kamp

Tue, Jun 21, 2005 9:16 PM

In message 42B83636.4050809@usa.net, Alberto di Bene writes:

Brooke Clarke wrote:

A PIN diode is great for switching RF frequencies above the diode's

lifetime. But not so good at switching DC coupled signals.

The FET type switches, like the MAX458 are designed for switching DC

coupled signals.

Does anybody know what the HP 59307A uses ? It can switch from DC to 500
MHz and the measured DC resistance is on the order of 0.2 ohm. Looking
into the unit reveals that the switching device is shaped like a fat IC,
thermally coupled with the back panel.

Mostly it uses reed-relays I think.

--
Poul-Henning Kamp | UNIX since Zilog Zeus 3.20
phk@FreeBSD.ORG | TCP/IP since RFC 956
FreeBSD committer | BSD since 4.3-tahoe
Never attribute to malice what can adequately be explained by incompetence.

In message <42B83636.4050809@usa.net>, Alberto di Bene writes: >Brooke Clarke wrote: > >> A PIN diode is great for switching RF frequencies above the diode's >lifetime. But not so good at switching DC coupled signals. >> The FET type switches, like the MAX458 are designed for switching DC >coupled signals. > >Does anybody know what the HP 59307A uses ? It can switch from DC to 500 >MHz and the measured DC resistance is on the order of 0.2 ohm. Looking >into the unit reveals that the switching device is shaped like a fat IC, >thermally coupled with the back panel. Mostly it uses reed-relays I think. -- Poul-Henning Kamp | UNIX since Zilog Zeus 3.20 phk@FreeBSD.ORG | TCP/IP since RFC 956 FreeBSD committer | BSD since 4.3-tahoe Never attribute to malice what can adequately be explained by incompetence.

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