The design of primary and secondary power distribution systems for modern ground and aerial platforms faces many challenges. These requirements include the need to increase power for C 2 I and other equipment; Improve reliability and system availability; Reduce weight, volume, and thermal footprint; And the ability to reduce load, as well as the ability to achieve system prediction and diagnosis. Compared with electromechanical circuit breakers and relays, solid-state power controllers (SSPCs) have many functional and performance advantages. SSPC provides precise measurement, digital processing, low loss switching (controlling rise and fall time to reduce EMI emissions), very fast short-circuit protection, and I 2 t overload protection. I 2 t protection can protect the circuit, load, and SSPC itself from overheating, while reliably avoiding "interference tripping" when switching to capacitive or incandescent loads.

Relays and circuit breakers have reliability issues as they are prone to arcing, oxidation, corrosion, and welding; And issues related to moving parts. The latter includes contact bounce and difficulty in operating in high vibration, dust, or sandstorm environments. Compared to electromechanical switches, SSPC has an advantage in reliability (MTBF) of an order of magnitude or higher, improving the availability of vehicles and systems. Compared to electromechanical circuit breakers and relays, SSPC improves electrical energy efficiency by providing lower power consumption, higher power weight, and higher volume density. Through bus or network connection, SSPC provides real-time feedback to the vehicle diagnostic computer. The data reported from SSPC can be used for system level diagnosis and prediction, enabling state based predictive maintenance to improve availability and ongoing task readiness. The reported data, including the status of SSPCs on board, allows the management computer to pre determine pending faults in generators, batteries, wiring, connectors, and loads.