Distributed Active-Redundant Architecture (DARA)

In the below video Mike Elms, Managing Director of Centiel UK explains the purpose of a UPS, the meaning of True Modular and Centiel’s innovative technology Distributed Active-Redundant Architecture (DARA).

Thanks to our extensive failure analysis research and insights gathered from over 25 years of field experience working with a large number of data centres and other critical environments, our power protection solutions have reached the highest levels of availability to reduce downtime risk, avoid costly errors, and increase energy efficiency. To respond to highest availability requirements i.e. to eliminate risks that may cause computer downtime of business-critical applications, CENTIEL has developed a new series of fault-tolerant, Three-phase, modular UPS-systems called CumulusPower™. Unlike traditional centralised parallel multi-module systems, the advanced CumulusPower™ technology combines a unique Intelligent Module Technology (IMT), with a fault-tolerant parallel architecture, called Distributed Active-Redundant Architecture (DARA), thereby fulfilling the highest availability and reliability requirements.

The Distributed Active-Redundant Architecture of the CumulusPower™ product line is designed to respond to the highest availability requirements, through the implementation of the “democratic” majority load transfer decision-making in the event of a critical failure, and correct management of the load sharing to avoid crosscurrents between modules. The communication between the logic circuits of the modules is accomplished by means of a fault-tolerant dual communication BUS. In the event of a critical failure, every module will decide, by means of its logic circuit, whether the load should remain on the inverter or be transferred to the bypass. The load transfer will be conducted depending on the decision made by the majority of the modules. In order to avoid crosscurrents between the modules, a master-slave load sharing technique is adopted. The frst module becomes the master which provides the load value to be shared by the rest of the modules (slaves). If the master fails, the next module will automatically become the leading master.