ODES High vs Low Burden Relay Applications

TonyZhang
Sep 5
2 min read

In protection and control circuits, relay input characteristics—known as burden—directly affect circuit stability and immunity to disturbance. Depending on their ability to withstand capacitive discharge currents, relays are classified as High Burden or Low Burden types.

Definition: Burden refers to the power consumption and loading effect of a relay on its secondary source. In practice, it is measured by how the relay performs under capacitive discharge.

Technical Characteristics

Schematic Diagram of ODES High Burden Relay

High Burden Relays

Standard compliance: ESI 48-4 EB2.
Typical use: Long trip circuits where the signal source is far from the relay.
Performance:
Value: Increased drive power requirement enhances immunity to long-cable capacitance and transient disturbances.
Role: Complements Low Burden tripping relays to form a complete breaker tripping solution.

Low Burden Relays

Standard compliance: ESI 48-4 EB1.
Performance: Withstands discharge of a 1 μF capacitor charged to 120% of rated voltage without pickup.
Value: Compact design, suitable for general control and signaling circuits.

Application Value

High Burden: Ensures reliable breaker tripping in long-distance, high-capacitance, and transient-rich environments.
Low Burden: Stable performance for general control circuits in conventional applications.

The distinction between High and Low Burden lies in their ability to handle long-cable capacitance and transient interference. Engineering design should align relay selection with circuit importance, signal distance, and disturbance environment:

Critical or long-distance tripping circuits → High Burden
General control circuits → Low Burden

At ODES, we focus not only on relay parameters but also on how devices perform in real engineering conditions. From 750 kV breaker applications to high-density distribution panels, ODES provides standardized, adaptable, and validated Burden solutions.