Basler Electric BE1-BPR Breaker Protection Relay

independently from the breaker failure function.

Three major factors should be considered when establishing a reclosing philosophy.

• Desired number or reclosure attempts.

• Time delay between breaker opening and reclosure.

• Supervisory control.

The first major factor is the desired number of reclosure attempts. Where most faults are attributable to

heavy tree exposure, as in distribution networks, multiple reclosure attempts are common. This is

possible because of low voltage levels and is desirable considering customer inconvenience during

outages. BE1-BPR relays are programmable for up to three reclosure attempts per sequence. This allows

tailoring of the reclosing sequence to the specific needs of the circuit.

The second major factor is the time delay between breaker opening and reclosure. On sub-transmission

and distribution networks, it is necessary to ensure that motors are no longer running and that local

generation is off-line prior to attempting reclosure. At the same time, a rapid reclosure minimizes damage,

ionization, and system shock in transmission networks. After the first reclosure attempt, additional

attempts are generally delayed to allow for de-ionization of the interrupter. BE1-BPR relays have three

reclosing shots and each shot has a programmable time delay. Three outputs are available. They are

CLOSE, RECLOSE FAIL, and LOCKOUT.

A third major factor to be considered in reclosing is supervisory control. Supervisory control allows the

operator to maintain control of the system at all times. BE1-BPR relays have two supervisory inputs

(WAIT and LOCKOUT). WAIT stops the reclose sequence at any point and allows the sequence to

continue when the WAIT input is removed. LOCKOUT drives the reclose function immediately to lockout

status and takes precedence over all other inputs.