Control Board
5-4
Force EZ-C Series Service Manual
REM Alarm Activation
The REM Alarm indicator flashes red, a tone sounds, and the generator stops
producing output power when either of the following occurs:
•
The measured resistance is below 5 ohms or above 135 ohms, the limits of the
standard range of safe resistance.
•
An increase in contact resistance is greater than 40% from the initial
measurement (baseline resistance).
The REM alarm indicator remains illuminated red until you correct the condition
causing the alarm. Then, the indicator illuminates green and the generator enables
RF output.
Electrodes Without the REM Safety Feature
When you use a patient return electrode that does not have the REM safety
feature, the REM system does not monitor the patient contact area. It monitors
only the pin-to-pin resistance at the connector and can detect broken wires or
connectors in the return electrode cord.
The REM indicator does not illuminate green when you connect a patient return
electrode without the REM safety feature. Instead, the generator extinguishes the
indicator light. If the generator detects a break in continuity between the electrode
and the generator, the REM alarm indicator illuminates red.
When resistance between the patient return electrode receptacle pins exceeds 20
ohms, the REM Alarm indicator flashes red, a tone sounds twice, and the
generator disables RF output. The REM Alarm indicator remains illuminated red
until you correct the condition causing the alarm. Then, the generator
extinguishes the red indicator light and enables RF output.
Control Board
Refer to Section 10,
Service Parts
, for components and the
Schematics
Supplement
for the board drawing and schematic.
The Control board contains the circuitry that controls the generator, including the
indicators and switches on the Display board and the RF output stage on the
Power Supply/RF board. Firmware on the Control board performs many
diagnostic and initialization routines. It also reports errors as alarm numbers on
the front panel. For a complete list of alarm numbers, refer to Section 7,
Responding to System Alarms
.
The Control board interfaces with the Power Supply/RF board through a 96-pin
card edge connector. It interfaces with the Display board through a 64-pin ribbon
cable.
