Times

Duty cycle (ED)

Duty cycle is the time between switching on and switching off the current.

Cycle time

Cycle time is the sum of the duty cycle and the break without any current. For DC-solenoids, the cycle time is limited to max. 5 minutes. If you assume that the maximum cycle time of 5 minutes = 300 seconds, the max. duty cycle is as follows:

5%ED             =          15 seconds

15%ED           =          45 seconds

25%ED           =          75 seconds

40%ED           =          120 seconds

100% ED        =          continuous operation, unlimited duty cycle

Relative duty cycle

The relative duty cycle (ED) is the duty cycle ration to the cycle time, which is usually provided as a percentage. The duty cycle is specified in the tables with 5%, 15%, 25%, 40% and 100%. 100% ED corresponds to continuous operation. The solenoid can thus remain switched on for an unlimited time.

Switching frequency

The switching frequency is used to describe the maximum possible number of switching operations per hour. These values are also standardised. Kuhse DC solenoids are tested for a switching frequency of 240 switching operations/h.

Example for the ED calculation

Duty cycle 9 seconds                        9 x 100
Cycle time 20 seconds                         20        = 45%ED

The solenoid must be designed for continuous operation 100% ED accordingly.