Designing for Small Spaces

A bistable latching solenoid was designed to lock and unlock individual server trays in the server cabinet.

Server Room Large

Customer Problem

A producer of modular computing servers needed a means of ensuring that technicians could physically identify which specific server needed maintenance. A given installation could involve hundreds or even thousands of individual servers. With so many servers in any single installation, it was possible that a technician may inadvertently remove and service the wrong server. A device was needed that would lock the individual server trays in the cabinet and unlock only the trays holding the faulty servers.

The TLX Solution

TLX Technologies developed a bistable latching solenoid that could be mounted in the small amount of space available in the server cabinet. The steel server tray was used as part of the magnetic circuit to help keep the solenoid as small as possible. Latching technology was utilized so that only a short pulse of current was needed to unlock or relock the server tray, minimizing power consumption and heat generation.

Bistable Latching Solenoid

Bistable Latching Solenoid

Stroke
5 mm ± .20 mm
Supply voltage
12 Vdc
Coil resistance at 20°C
8.0 Ω
Operating temperature range
15°C to 45°C (59°F to 113°F)
Duty cycle
10% max.

All TLX components are customized to fit system requirements, meaning technical specifications are unique to each customer and design. Examples given on our website are for illustration purposes only.

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