Issues with Spellman DF3 Power Supply

This forum is for specialized infomation important to the construction and safe operation of the high voltage electrical supplies and related circuitry needed for fusor operation.
Post Reply
User avatar
john_auerbach
Posts: 8
Joined: Mon May 23, 2022 5:05 pm
Real name: John Auerbach

Issues with Spellman DF3 Power Supply

Post by john_auerbach »

Hey everyone,

My name is John and I am a 4th year undergraduate who inherited much of my current system from a recent graduate named Anže (also a member of the forum) to conduct some ion propulsion experiments in the chamber. At the moment, I am trying to reconstruct the old setup on my own, and everything seems to be working perfectly except our Spellman DF3 power supply; I haven't been able to get it to turn on at all.

I have it fed with a proper 220V, and the interface I have it wired to registers when I turn the CB1 circuit breaker on/off (along with an audible click from the relay), so it's definitely receiving power from the line input and connecting to the interface. However, the front panel display remains off when I press CONTROL POWER ON. In the past, we had similar problems, as Spellman devices often require a connection between two pins on the back of the device to close an interlock, but I have the pins wired to a relay contact and the system will not turn on even when the switch is closed.

I discharged the power supply and checked all the fuses, but couldn't find anything wrong with them. I'll go ahead and check the voltage to the CPU's to see if anything is blown between them, and if that doesn't work I'll go back through the manual (attached below) a bit more and see if I can find anything else. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!
Attachments
DFFFMAN (1).pdf
(1.2 MiB) Downloaded 183 times
User avatar
Bob Reite
Posts: 576
Joined: Sun Aug 25, 2013 9:03 pm
Real name: Bob Reite
Location: Wilkes Barre/Scranton area

Re: Issues with Spellman DF3 Power Supply

Post by Bob Reite »

Did you jumper all the pins as described in the manual for "local control"? If you did that, do any of the "status" lights glow? If so which ones?
The more reactive the materials, the more spectacular the failures.
The testing isn't over until the prototype is destroyed.
User avatar
john_auerbach
Posts: 8
Joined: Mon May 23, 2022 5:05 pm
Real name: John Auerbach

Re: Issues with Spellman DF3 Power Supply

Post by john_auerbach »

Hey Bob, I added jumpers between pin 20 and pins 2, 3, and 5, as well as one between 1 and 11, but I cannot find a bulb for the failsafe interlock lamp - though I think it should be operating properly with the other connections. I'll try adding a resistor in place of the bulb.
User avatar
john_auerbach
Posts: 8
Joined: Mon May 23, 2022 5:05 pm
Real name: John Auerbach

Re: Issues with Spellman DF3 Power Supply

Post by john_auerbach »

A quick update; I had been trying to jumper the pins at the end of a cable attached to the system, but after testing them with a multimeter I noticed that the pins on the male and female ends were not lined up for some reason (it was a custom made by somebody else). I wired them directly on the back of the supply and it's up and running. Thank you!
User avatar
john_auerbach
Posts: 8
Joined: Mon May 23, 2022 5:05 pm
Real name: John Auerbach

Re: Issues with Spellman DF3 Power Supply

Post by john_auerbach »

So I've gotten the power to turn on and have everything wired to go, but when I depress "X-RAY ON," the lamp does not remain on, and voltage does not begin to ramp up to the preset values. I don't receive any errors on the front panel either.

On page 4 of the manual, it says "The X-ray on lamp utilizes a sensing circuitry for detecting proper operation of the lamp for the indicator. If the X-ray on lamp is not functioning, the power supply will not generate high voltage. If the X-ray on lamp is depressed and the indicators do not illuminate, the lamps are defective and should be replaced in order to generate high voltage. Control power and X-ray off lamps are also dual type lamps for added reliability."

Only the X-RAY ON lamp illuminates when I depress it, not the front panel indicators. After opening the front panel, I noticed that the a handful of of the indicator lamps had no voltage across them. One of the two X-RAY OFF lamps appears to be dead, and the INTLK CLOSED indicator is not lit up either, though it theoretically should be. Do I need to replace these lamps or could there be a different cause?
User avatar
Bob Reite
Posts: 576
Joined: Sun Aug 25, 2013 9:03 pm
Real name: Bob Reite
Location: Wilkes Barre/Scranton area

Re: Issues with Spellman DF3 Power Supply

Post by Bob Reite »

Replace any lamps that test open and try again.
The more reactive the materials, the more spectacular the failures.
The testing isn't over until the prototype is destroyed.
User avatar
Richard Hull
Moderator
Posts: 14991
Joined: Fri Jun 15, 2001 9:44 am
Real name: Richard Hull

Re: Issues with Spellman DF3 Power Supply

Post by Richard Hull »

Universal Voltronics used to feed their "HV ON" indicator lamp power through to the HV output relay. Burned out bulb? No HV output.

Richard Hull
Progress may have been a good thing once, but it just went on too long. - Yogi Berra
Fusion is the energy of the future....and it always will be
The more complex the idea put forward by the poor amateur, the more likely it will never see embodiment
User avatar
Anze A Ursic
Posts: 157
Joined: Thu Mar 10, 2022 9:28 pm
Real name: Anze A Ursic

Re: Issues with Spellman DF3 Power Supply

Post by Anze A Ursic »

John, two quick things; the cable I built for that power supply is does not have the same pinout on both ends, so one end is supposed to go into the DF3 and the other into the control box I built.

Second, a resistor will not work in lieu of a bulb. It HAS to be a bulb for the X-ray on indicator, I have tried doing the resistor trick too but it doesn't work. We have bulbs in our lab room, ask Dr. B.

For reference, John is working on the system I posted about last weekend, I was going to private message him via Snapchat but I think other people might find this stuff useful, especially with the bulb stuff.
Post Reply

Return to “High Voltage - Fusor Input Power (& FAQs)”