With the expansion in the use of DC power systems and increased need for system maintenance, the development of measurement devices for maintenance requires high stability. Of the different kinds of DC current measurement devices, the single-shot measurement device causes the input signal of the current measuring unit to initially generate a high inrush current. The high inrush current flows into the signal processor of the meter, shortening the life of the internal fuses and causing failure. Therefore, in this study, the I2t value for increasing the durability of the fuse is designed using the available wire diameter. Operating characteristics for 210~400% over-current of the rated current, which is relatively low over-current, are realized by the plating of low melting tin metal. As a result, a method of designing a fuse element for a DC power supply, which improves the safety of the DC current measurement device by blocking the failure caused by the inrush current, is presented.
Recently, inverter control systems have attracted immense attention to increase the energy efficiency. However, such systems use repeated on/off high currents for linear operation control, instead of the prevalent step variable current control method. Hence, there arise concerns of personal and property damage, especially due to the durability, explosive characteristics, and operating speed of the fuse, which is responsible for safety and is one of the internal components using current control. Therefore, in this paper, we propose an IEC60127-4 SMD sub-miniature fuse, consisting of Ag-Cu alloys and ceramic powder for arc soothing. The IEC60127-4 SMD sub-miniature fuse has high durability and cut-off capacity, and operates safely in dangerous circumstances caused by the inverter control system.