USB isolators protecting field computers

B&B Electronics has expanded its family of USB isolators with the small-form-factor UH201 USB Port Guardian.

Designed with field technicians in mind, this unit protects PCs, laptops, and netbooks from the surges, spikes, electrostatic discharges, and ground loops that can occur when connecting such portable devices to equipment in the field. Measuring only 2.0 x 1.0 x 0.5 inches (5.0 x 25 x 1.2 cm), and packaged in an over-moulded enclosure that protects the circuit board, the USB Port Guardian is small enough to tuck into a pocket or a laptop bag, yet tough enough to stand up to repeated use in harsh environments.

The UH201 USB Port Guardian provides up to 2 kV of protection on the USB line and up to 4 kV ESD contact protection. The isolator is bus powered, has male and female type A USB connectors, and provides 400 mA downstream power when connected to a high-power USB port. Its high-speed digital isolation chip electrically separates the technician’s PC from the remote I/O device, while allowing full-speed USB 2.0 communications at 12 Mbps – the top of the line for USB isolation products. The isolator also operates reliably over a wide temperature range -40 to +85°C.

Applications include any situation in which a technician must obtain data from equipment in the field, as in industrial control and manufacturing, remote sensing and remote metering, instrumentation, point-of-sale, test and measurement, laboratory information systems (LIMS) and more.