Pickering announces miniature, cost-effective relays used extensively in PXI switching matrixes
Series 117 reed relays offer high performance and reliability at a competitive price point. Pickering Electronics, the reed relay company which has pioneered miniaturisation and high performance for over 50 years, has announced that its two-pole single-in-line (SIL) 117 series reed relay is being extensively used in large switching matrixes due to a combination of small size, performance and cost.
All models in the 117 series are rated at 100V and can a carry up to 0.5A signal current and switch 5W of signal power. Versions are available that support 3V coil drives for systems working at low supply voltages. The two pole version has a footprint of just 10.16mm x 3.81mm, while the single pole device occupies just 6.86mm x 3.81mm – just 38% and 26% respectively of the board area required for industry-standard SIL relays.
The 117 series reed relays are constructed using Pickering Electronics SoftCenter® technology with an integral magnetic screen, ensuring that the relays exhibit excellent reliability and avoid magnetic interaction issues when closely packed together. Devices are also priced very competitively, and it is this combination of attributes – size, performance and price – that suit them so well for use in high volumes in PXI and other switching matrix solutions.
Pickering Interfaces is a provider of such test and measurement solutions and uses 117 series reed relays extensively in many of its products, including the BRIC™ high-density, fully scalable, integrated PXI large matrix modules with built-in high-performance analogue bus. 
Available in 2, 4, or 8 slot 3U versions, rated at up to 150V, 1A and 20W, these units rely on Series 117 high-reliability instrument- grade reed relays to deliver the performance required by demanding applications in defense, automotive and semiconductor manufacturing industries. Comments Pickering Interfaces’ CEO, Keith Moore: “We have been able to maximise switches density of our products without compromising reliability or performance in large part because of the benefits offered by the Series 117 relay family.”
