(Click images for a PDF version of the Product Specifications of the RuggedCom RuggedSwitch™ RS900 (470k), RuggedMC™ RMC30 (442k) and RuggedMC™ RMC40 (395k))

RuggedCom is the leading developer and supplier of substation hardened networking and communications devices. RuggedCom’s full range of product offerings include substation hardened Ethernet switches, routers (cyber security appliances), serial device servers, and media converters. Originally designed to meet the same standards as mission critical protective relaying devices, RuggedCom products provide a level of ruggedness and reliability that exceeds industry standards such as IEC 61850 and IEEE 1613.

RuggedCom introduced the world's first IEC 61850-3 compliant Ethernet switch suitable of electric utility substation environments, introduced the world's first IEEE 1613 Class 2 error free communications devices, has the world's fastest network fault recovery, and introduced the world's first fully managed IP67 rated Ethernet switch.

Canada-based RuggedCom Inc.'s expertise is in designing and manufacturing ruggedized communication equipment for harsh environments. With regional offices in 10 different locations in the United States and Europe, RuggedCom's business spreads across 25 countries through its distributors and sales representatives.

The company offers Ethernet switches, routers, serial servers, and media converters designed for the substation automation industry. It has the largest installed base of Ethernet switches in the utility market worldwide. It is one of the preferred vendors for Siemens in their IEC 61850 substation implementations.

RuggedCom was the first to introduce IEC 61850 compliant switches and also the first to qualify as an IEEE 1613 Class 2 device capable of error-free performance under electromagnetic interference (EMI) stress as defined by the prescribed IEEE 1613 suite of destructive type tests.

RuggedCom's Ethernet family, named RuggedSwitch, was introduced in 2002 and these fiber optical switches fully comply with the IEC61850 EMI and environmental requirements. EMI stress refers to the EMI phenomena that occur in substations. These switches incorporate a technology called Zero Packet Loss (ZPL) technology. ZPL ensures no data loss, errors, or delays when exposed to EMI stress.

The devices in high voltage substations may experience high levels of EMI because of the nature of substations and the interference of multiple phenomena. This EMI environment can cause errors in electronic communications and has the potential to corrupt data memory, or in worst case scenarios, it may cause permanent equipment damage. In addition, many substations are not designed to have environmentally controlled spaces and as a result the equipment used in these environments should withstand wide temperature variations (ranging between minus 40 degrees C and 85 degrees C). Also, internal fans are not allowed in industrial grade equipment as they lower the overall reliability of the device. In addition, these devices must also deal with high levels of humidity (more than 95%) and vibration not commonly found in office environments.

The family of products designed by RuggedCom has demonstrated their performance in the above challenging environments. Some of the unique features of the Ethernet family of switches include widest specifications for harsh environments (for example, wider temperature range and higher immunity to EMI); dual redundant and integrated power supplies for higher reliability, availability and uptime; and fastest network fault recovery with enhanced Rapid Spanning Tree Protocol (eRSTP), with less than 5 ms recovery for fault tolerant and mission critical systems.

The recently introduced standard, IEC 61850, names two application domains such as station bus and process bus. The former refers to an application domain where relays and RTUs would connect to the LAN. The latter refers to devices such as current transformer/voltage transformer merging units that provide sampled measured values of current and voltage through the LAN. The company's switches meet the above two applications domains.

(Click images for a PDF version of the Product Specifications of the RuggedCom RuggedSwitch™ RS900 (470k), RuggedMC™ RMC30 (442k) and RuggedMC™ RMC40 (395k))

For more information about RuggedCom, please visit www.RuggedCom.com