The Siemens 3RK1322-0BS12-1AA0 is an AS-i compact reversing starter in an IP65 enclosure — a self-contained motor starting and protection unit that bolts directly onto the machine frame, not inside a control cabinet. It's a reversing starter, meaning it can run a motor forward and reverse without external contactors, and it uses solid-state switching and solid-state motor protection rather than electromechanical overload relays. The solid-state design means no moving contacts to wear out in the switching path, and the motor protection is electronic — adjustable over the 2 to 5.95 A full-scale range, covering motors from 0.75 kW up to 2.2 kW at 400 V AC-3 duty.
Where it goes and what it does
This starter lives on the machine, not in a panel. The IP65 rating means it's sealed against dust and low-pressure water jets — it can sit on a conveyor frame, a packaging machine, or a palletizer where washdown happens. No separate enclosure needed. Communication is over AS-interface (AS-i), not PROFIBUS DP, so it talks directly to an AS-i master on the same two-wire flat cable that also carries its 24 VDC control power. Two integrated inputs let you wire limit switches or sensors directly into the starter without a separate I/O block. The main power connection uses tab terminals — quick-connect spade lugs, not screw clamps — which is standard for this class of distributed starter. That means the wiring harness is typically pre-made with mating tabs, so a field swap is a plug-in rather than a re-termination.
That's a high SCCR for a compact starter — it won't force an upstream breaker upgrade in most industrial panels. The setting range of 2 to 5.95 A covers common European 0.75 kW to 2.2 kW motor frames at 400 V. If your motor nameplate full-load current falls inside that window, the electronic overload is adjustable to match — no heater elements to swap.