User Manual

1 General Information

1.1 Product Overview

The 8600 Series DC Electronic Loads are versatile instruments used for static and dynamic

testing of DC power supplies, batteries, DC-to-DC converters, and battery chargers. Other

applications include fuel-cell and photovoltaic cell test.

The DC load can be used in one of the following operation modes: constant voltage (CV),

constant current (CC), constant resistance (CR), or constant power (CW). A wide range of

dynamic loading applications can be simulated through user-programmable slew rates, load

levels, duration, and conducting voltage. The DC load can be remotely programmed via the USB,

GPIB, or RS-232 serial interface. Versatile triggering options allow the dynamic load behavior to

be synchronized with other events.

A battery test mode is provided that will measure the ampere-hour (Ah) characteristic of a

battery. Shorts can be simulated by either the front panel or custom programming. The DC

source or other components can be protected from excessive voltage, current, or power, which

will cause the DC load to shut down if excessive levels or reverse polarity are detected.

Features:

 CC/CV/CR/CW operating modes

 High Resolution Display

 Transient mode up to 25 kHz

 List mode function

 Measurement speed up to 50 kHz

 Remote sense function

 Built-in battery test function

 OCP and OPP auto test function

 CR-LED function

 Store/recall up to 100 setups

 RS232/USBTMC/GPIB interfaces

 Analog current control and monitoring

 Adjustable slew rate in CC mode

 OVP/OCP/OPP/OTP and reverse voltage protection