The Need for Bidirectional Protection

Hybrid PV systems with battery storage require breakers that can interrupt current flow in both directions during:

• Grid faults
• Battery overcurrent
• Inverter failures

Design Solutions

1. Polarity-Independent Contacts: Symmetrical contact arrangements for bidirectional interruption.
2. Active Current Limiting: Pre-insertion resistors to suppress peak fault currents.

Case Study

A 500kWh solar+storage project in California used 1500V bidirectional breakers to reduce downtime during fault isolation.