BUENA PARK, Calif.-- BUENA PARK, Calif. - Leach International has introduced a Ground Fault Interrupt (GFI) feature that can be incorporated into many of the company's relays, contactors and control devices. The addition of this new GFI circuitry enables devices in aircraft and military vehicle electrical systems to quickly interrupt and isolate potentially dangerous electrical ground faults that could cause significant damage to wiring and equipment.

Incorporating the GFI feature into a component's assembly significantly reduces contact release time with no degradation to performance, while providing added protection to wiring and equipment. Leach accomplished this reduction in release time through the use of a proprietary circuit design.

Miniaturization techniques and specialized magnetic material allow Leach to incorporate the GFI feature into existing products with little impact to their size. For example, adding the GFI feature to the Leach H contactor increases the unit's height by only .40 inches and its weight by just two ounces. A single multi-layer PCB holds all protection circuit components (other than the current transformer). The GFI-enhanced contactor maintains the same interface and footprint as an original H contactor, so existing units easily can be retrofitted with those featuring GFI.