Design and Fabrication of a Tandem, Five Megamapere Initiate Switch for the Battery Upgraded Supply

The authors report on the design, fabrication, and component testing for the tandem initiate switch system for the battery upgraded supply, in which each armature is rated for a 3 s rise to 2.5 MA peak current (2.8 MA fault), followed by a 5 s dwell before end-of-test interruption. The two switches are ganged on a common (but insulated) shaft, which contains an adjustable coupling for jitter control and is actuated by a fast axial hydraulic actuator. Special design features of this switch system include an externally adjustable radial spring, linear shaft bearings, safety interlocks, and temperature instrumentation. Full-scale component tests were designed and are being conducted to verify radial contact force, temperature distribution under full action, mechanical stability under full force, proper velocity profile for the full switch assembly, and elimination of jitter