ELECTRONIC TEST STATION

Electronic Test Station:

electronic test station

This is how the TECA Model AHP-1800CPV got its start. An aerospace contractor was interested in a large cold plate for the testing of electronic components. At the time our largest standard cold plate was the AHP-1200CPV. The client requested a larger plate. We added an accessory plate which was 12×18 inches (pictured).

This solution worked well, and we followed it by designing three new products:
AHP-1800CPV, AHP-2700CPV, and the AHP-5400CPV. These products have larger plates, ideal for working with multiple components or larger sized DUTs.

At TECA, we listen to our customers’ needs and push the limits of our designs- this is how we innovate! https://www.thermoelectric.com/about-teca/

QUICK COOLING OF A LOAD FROM 100 °C

Quick Cooling of a load from 100 °C

quick cooling quick cooling

 

A company specializing in hydrogen fuel cell technology required fast cooling of a fixture. The fixture is bonding multiple thin materials and can be heated up to 100 °C. The fixture needed to be cooled to the point where it could be handled by technicians—within a 5 minute time frame. Using two AHP-1200CP Cold Plates from TECA, the customer has created a system where a heat sink is cooled on one AHP-1200CP Cold Plate while a hot fixture is sandwiched between a second AHP-1200CP Cold Plate and a pre-cooled heat sink.

The customer reports being very happy with the TECA Cold Plates—the system is cooling in about 4 minutes!  The AHP-1200CP Cold Plate is an economical, easy to use product when maximum cooling is required, without a temperature controller. 120 VAC, 240 VAC and 24 VDC versions are available.

TITER PLATE COOLING

Titer Plate Cooling:

titer plate cooling AHP-300CP

The WWW brings many to TECA’s door. These particular customer requirements were filled by an AHP-300CP Peltier cold plate. He needed to control the temperature of a 96 well titer plate in a new product design. But he needed just a few things the standard unit didn’t provide and he didn’t need some that it did provide. He wanted a 24 VDC heat cool system with continuous fan operation and a custom tap pattern on the cold plate.

In short order the TECA sales team assigned a preliminary part number, passed the requirements through to engineering and together the first units were modified and shipped. This gave the customer plenty of time to work with the solid state cold plates and refine his requirements into the custom design he uses today.

The AHP-300CP series is now replaced by a newer and more efficient model the AHP-470CP series.

LOW TEMPERATURE CASCADE

Low Temperature Cascade

low temperature cascade

 

A cascade sandwich is what we called this that day, built using two AHP-300CP cold plates. The customer needed a fairly large mass cycle between two extremes. The mass and size of the load were limiting factors. The pictures and assembly look crude, and it was, but they were also effective.

It was determined that a final design based on standard components would be successful and it was.

The AHP-300CP series is now replaced by a newer and more efficient model the AHP-470CP series.

COLD PROBE

Cold Probe Medical Application:

cold probe

A Medial Doctor was interested in a Peltier based “Cold Probe” to anesthetize the skin prior to treatment. He wanted an instrument that ran on batteries based around the Otoscope or the Ophthalmoscope with interchangeable heads. It was a medical application, a prototype and a long shot one at that.

He came to TECA with some rather limiting criteria to do a big job considering the load human skin presents. We did our best and gave the good Doctor his cold probe. We designed it, packaged it, powered it and built it. But not many folks really needed it. Not a complete market success but a technical one.

CUSTOM COLD PLATE

Custom Cold Plate Application:

custom cold plate

The people at MIT who wanted a custom cold plate with plain black anodized cold plate never did tell us what it was for. We think maybe they are using it to calibrate or adjust infra red temperature detectors. We could be wrong. They might have thought it just looked cool.

For whatever reason, they told us what they wanted and we did our best to meet their requirement.

AVIONICS

Avionics cooling application:

avionics cold plate
avinoics TE cold plate

 

A branch of the US military had an overheating problem with a high-tech radio inside the wing of a fighter aircraft. TECA developed a custom, high-performance cold plate that withstand the shock, vibration, and G forces created by one of the most technically advanced aircraft.

In order to assure maximum strength with minimum weight, TECA’s Advanced Machining Center machines the finned heat sinks for each cooler from a single blocks of material

PORTABLE MEDICINE COOLER

Portable Medicine Cooler:

Portable medicine cooler needed for carrying emergency intravenous solutions, all components must be enclosed within the case. TECA designed a custom thermoelectric (peltier) based cold plate built into a Pelican™ Box.

portable medicine cooler portable medicine cooler box

 

TECA is developing this product for a new customer. We have taken a standard Pelican™ Box and configured a battery powered thermoelectric cooling system which is installed totally inside. This cooled box is for the purpose of transporting up to 4 liters of emergency intravenous solutions safely.

There are fitted compartments inside as well for transporting other necessary items for patient care. Since nothing is exposed or protruding from the box, our customer has ended up with a good looking and very rugged, functional thermoelectric product.

FLOW CHEMISTRY / OEM PRODUCT

Flow chemistry/OEM products application:

flow chemistry, cascaded thermoelectric cold plate

A European company specializing in equipment for the continuous flow chemistry market required extreme temperatures for a new product. Integrating a customized version of TECA’s Liquid Cooled Cascaded Cold Plate made the customer’s product possible: they are able to reach temperatures from minus 70 °C to plus 80 °C.

The customer reports that their new continuous flow reactor allows for the use of flow chemistry in many applications, achieving quicker results safely and with better control.

BEVERAGE COOLER

Beverage Cooler application:

beverage cooler system beverage cooler TE cooler

 

The beverage cooler application challenge was to keep concentrated beverage container located next to a hot water tank cool in a high volume OEM application. TECA has the flexibility and resources to manufacture custom OEM thermoelectric cooler (peltier coolers) assemblies intended for use as part of a customer machine, apparatus, or system. This OEM assembly is made by TECA in production runs in the thousands. It is not ours, so to protect the privacy and identity of our customers we can’t give too many details here.

This assembly is part of a beverage service product which is shipped worldwide by a well known consumer products company. TECA furnishes the cooling “engine” which refrigerates the beverage product to be dispensed, and the OEM builds finished machinery in their own plants.

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