In the field of environmental reliability testing, countless engineers have faced a tricky challenge: carefully developed product prototypes, complete machines, and even system-level equipment cannot fit into standard-sized rapid temperature change test chambers due to their excessive dimensions. From meter-long power battery packs and full-rack AI servers to aerospace cabin sections and other large components, the limited volume of standard chambers has become the biggest bottleneck hindering test progress.
"Cannot test, no way to test, or outsourcing testing is expensive and untrustworthy" — this is the real dilemma of testing large test pieces. With more than 20 years of experience in custom non-standard solutions, Lab Companion offers a straightforward solution: no compromise on "standard sizes", only reliable "tailor-made" adaptations to ensure accurate testing for every large test piece.
I. Why Do Large Test Pieces Require a "Walk-In" Chamber?
As the name suggests, a walk-in rapid temperature change test chamber is a large environmental testing chamber that people can easily enter. It breaks the limitations of traditional test chambers' "open door - place sample - close door" mode, creating an exclusive testing space that can accommodate complete machines, full racks, and even small equipment, perfectly meeting the testing needs of large test pieces.
Which products urgently need walk-in testing solutions?
• New Energy Field: Power battery packs (often over 1.5m×1m×0.5m in size), energy storage container modules
• AI Computing Infrastructure: Full-rack GPU servers, liquid-cooled cabinets (over 42U in height)
• Automotive Electronics: Complete automotive cockpit domain controllers, on-board charger assemblies
• Military and Aerospace: Missile cabin sections, satellite components, airborne radar radomes
• Large Industrial Equipment: Wind power converters, rail transit traction converters
These products share common characteristics: large size, heavy weight, and high heat generation. Ordinary rapid temperature change chambers cannot accommodate them at all; even if barely fit, they will seriously affect the uniformity of the temperature field and the authenticity of the temperature change rate, failing to meet the strict testing standards.
II. Lab Companion's Walk-In Rapid Temperature Change Chamber: Spacious, Testable, and More Accurate
To address the pain points of testing large test pieces, Lab Companion has launched the Walk-in Series of rapid temperature change test chambers, with a volume range of 1000L~10000L (1m³~10m³), which can be further expanded to larger non-standard sizes according to customer needs. This is not a simple scaling up of standard chambers, but a comprehensive redesign from structure, refrigeration, air duct to control system to ensure uncompromised testing performance.
1. "Custom-Made" Sizes, No Limitations in Adaptation
Lab Companion's technical team will accurately design the internal net size of the chamber based on the core needs provided by the customer, such as the maximum size of the test piece, placement method (single/multiple pieces), and access method (forklift, trolley, hoisting). For extra-long test pieces over 4 meters, a through-type or double-door structure can be customized to realize assembly line testing where the test piece enters from one end and exits from the other. For extra-high test pieces, a top hoisting port or side large flip door can be designed to completely solve the core problem of "cannot be placed in or taken out".
2. Split Structure: Quiet Operation, Convenient Maintenance Without Interrupting Work
Walk-in chambers are large in size. If the refrigeration unit is integrated on the top or side of the chamber, it will not only increase the chamber height but also generate severe operating noise and affect heat dissipation efficiency. Lab Companion adopts a split structure design, where the refrigeration unit is independently placed outdoors or in a dedicated machine room and connected to the chamber through thermal insulation pipelines. The advantages are obvious:
• Quiet and Comfortable: Noise sources such as compressors and fans are far away from the operation area, greatly reducing laboratory noise and ensuring a comfortable operating environment.
• Efficient Maintenance: When maintaining the refrigeration system, there is no need to empty the test pieces in the chamber, realizing simultaneous testing and maintenance without delaying production progress.
• Stable Refrigeration: The unit is placed outdoors or in a well-ventilated area, with better heat dissipation conditions, effectively ensuring stable and long-lasting refrigeration efficiency.
3. Special Optimization of Air Duct System, ±1.5℃ Uniform Temperature Field Even in Large Spaces
The core technical difficulty of large walk-in chambers lies in ensuring temperature uniformity in large spaces — excessive space is prone to air short-circuiting, resulting in the phenomenon of "hot corners and cold center" and affecting the accuracy of test data. Lab Companion adopts a multi-point three-dimensional air supply design, arranging multiple adjustable air outlets on both sides or the rear of the chamber, combined with high-power centrifugal fans and deflectors to form a forced convection cycle, ensuring uniform coverage of the temperature field. Test data shows that under full load conditions, the temperature uniformity of Lab Companion's walk-in rapid temperature change chamber is ≤±1.5℃ (better than the industry's common ±2℃ standard), and the temperature fluctuation is ≤±0.5℃, fully complying with the strict requirements of various industry standards such as GJB and IEC for testing large test pieces.
4. Uncompromised Rapid Temperature Change: 5~15℃/min, Accurate Even Under Load
Most large environmental chambers on the market can only achieve constant temperature or slow temperature change, while Lab Companion's walk-in series comes standard with rapid temperature change function, with a temperature change rate of 5℃/min, 10℃/min, 15℃/min (measured under full load). This is due to Lab Companion's self-developed high-power two-stage compression refrigeration system and efficient heat exchanger design. Even if a large number of metal test pieces are stacked in the chamber (such as 1000kg aluminum ingots as simulated load), the equipment can still stably maintain the set temperature change rate, completely avoiding the industry pain point of "fast under no load, slow under full load" and ensuring the authenticity and effectiveness of test data.
5. Wide and Expandable Temperature Range, Adapting to Extreme Testing Needs
Under standard configuration, the temperature range of Lab Companion's walk-in rapid temperature change chamber covers -70℃~+150℃, which can meet the testing needs of most industries. If customers have special scenario requirements (such as polar environment simulation, high-temperature aging testing), it can be customized and expanded to -100℃~+200℃; for scenarios requiring extremely fast cooling (such as HASS screening), a liquid nitrogen auxiliary refrigeration system can also be equipped to increase the cooling rate to more than 30℃/min, fully adapting to various extreme testing scenarios.
III. More Than "Large", It Also Combines Intelligence and Safety
Large test pieces are often expensive, and the safety of the testing process is one of the customers' core demands. Lab Companion's walk-in series is equipped with multiple safety protection systems to fully protect the safety of test pieces and personnel:
• Independent Studio Over-Temperature Protector: Completely separated from the control circuit, it cuts off the heating power supply in milliseconds once over-temperature occurs, eliminating potential safety hazards.
• Multiple Compressor Protections: Comprehensive monitoring of various abnormalities such as high pressure, low pressure, overload, phase loss, and oil pressure difference to ensure stable operation of the equipment.
• Dual Over-Temperature Protection for Heating System: Prevents continuous heating caused by breakdown of solid-state relays, further improving equipment safety.
• Safety Door Lock Design: Cannot be opened from the inside during testing (to prevent accidental door opening), and is equipped with an internal emergency unlocking device to balance safety and emergency response.
• Smoke Alarm and Automatic Fire Extinguishing (Optional): For flammable test pieces such as lithium batteries, it can be directly connected to the fire protection system to achieve early risk detection and disposal.
In terms of intelligence, Lab Companion's walk-in chamber is equipped with the Q8 series large-screen controller, supporting multi-segment program editing, real-time display of temperature and humidity curves, and storage of 100,000 test data points. Data can be exported to PDF/Excel format via USB or Ethernet, perfectly meeting the data traceability requirements of CNAS laboratories. It also supports 4G remote monitoring, allowing engineers to check the equipment operation status, receive alarm information, and even modify test parameters remotely anytime and anywhere, greatly improving testing efficiency.
IV. Real Case: 20m³ Walk-In Rapid Temperature Change Chamber for an Aerospace Institute
Take the 20m³ walk-in rapid temperature change chamber customized by Lab Companion for an aerospace research institute as an example. This equipment is used for the full-machine temperature cycle screening (ESS) of satellite cabin components, with clear core customer requirements:
• Internal Dimensions: 3.5m (length) × 2.5m (width) × 2.3m (height)
• Temperature Range: -55℃~+85℃
• Temperature Change Rate: Average 10℃/min throughout the process
• Test Piece Parameters: Maximum weight 800kg, self-heating about 8kW
After on-site survey and accurate calculation of heat load, the customized solution finally delivered by Lab Companion includes: split refrigeration unit (placed in an outdoor dedicated machine room), air distribution of multi-point side wall air supply + top air return, electric sliding door (convenient for forklift access), anti-static floor and multi-point grounding terminals in the chamber, as well as remote monitoring and data traceability system.
After delivery, the equipment has been operating stably for 18 months with zero failure rate. Under full load, the measured temperature change rate reaches 10.2℃/min, and the temperature uniformity is ≤±1.2℃, exceeding customer expectations. The test director of the institute commented: "Previously, we could only disassemble the cabin into components for separate testing, which was time-consuming and labor-intensive and could not simulate the full-machine thermal effect; Lab Companion's walk-in solution allowed us to achieve ESS screening at the full cabin level for the first time, increasing testing efficiency by more than 3 times."
V. From "Cannot Test" to "Test Freely", Lab Companion Breaks the Limitations of Large Test Piece Testing
Lab Companion deeply understands that behind every large test piece lies a major responsibility related to product reliability, customer trust, and even public safety. Therefore, we refuse to limit customers' testing needs with "standard sizes". Instead, based on more than 20 years of experience in non-standard customization, we use flexible, accurate, and reliable customized solutions to adapt to the testing needs of every large product, making testing of large test pieces no longer limited and helping customers achieve product quality upgrading.
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