ABB Triconex Power Solution: SS832 Voting Unit for Critical Control

Description:
The ABB SS832, with the part number 3BSC610068R1, is a high-reliability Power Voting Unit designed for ABB’s Tricon (formerly Triconex) triple-modular redundant (TMR) safety instrumented systems. This critical module is responsible for receiving, supervising, and distributing redundant power to the three separate main processor modules within a Tricon controller chassis. It ensures that any single point of failure in the power supply path does not compromise the availability or safety integrity of the entire control system.
Application Scenarios:
In the safety instrumented system (SIS) of a gas compressor station, a single undetected power failure could prevent the execution of a critical emergency shutdown. The Tricon controller managing this SIS is built on TMR architecture, with three identical main processor modules (A, B, C) voting on all decisions. The ABB SS832 3BSC610068R1 Power Voting Unit sits at the heart of this chassis. It receives three independent, isolated 5V DC power feeds—one from each of the system’s three redundant power supplies. The SS832 continuously monitors the voltage and health of each feed. It performs a hardware-based 2-out-of-3 (2oo3) voting logic on these inputs. Only if at least two of the three power inputs are healthy will it distribute clean, voted power to each main processor. If one power supply fails, the SS832 seamlessly isolates that faulty input and continues operation using the two good ones, with zero interruption to the controllers. This ensures the TMR system remains fully functional and within its Safety Integrity Level (SIL) rating, even during a power supply fault.