A DC regulated power supply is an electronic device capable of converting alternating current (AC) into a stable DC output. It consists of a number of major components, including a transformer, rectifier, filter, voltage regulator, and so on. The functions and principles of these components are described in detail below.
First is the transformer. The transformer is mainly used to adjust the incoming AC power to a suitable voltage level. A transformer mainly consists of a main coil and several secondary coils. The main coil receives the incoming alternating current and produces the desired output voltage at the secondary coils by the principle of electromagnetic induction. The output voltage can be adjusted by changing the ratio of turns between the main coil and the secondary coils.
Next is the rectifier. Rectifiers are used to convert alternating current into direct current. The generation of DC can be achieved by using diodes. A diode is a semiconductor device that has the property of allowing current to pass in only one direction. After the AC current is fed into the rectifier, it is filtered out in one direction by the unidirectional conduction property of the diode, resulting in a current waveform with a single direction.
Then comes the filter. The function of the filter is to filter out the fluctuating components of the rectified DC current so that the voltage can be more stable. A filter usually consists of a capacitor and an inductor. Capacitors are able to store charge and release electricity when the direction of current changes, thus smoothing current fluctuations; inductors are able to resist current changes, making current fluctuations smoother. By choosing the parameters of capacitors and inductors reasonably, effective filtering of current fluctuations of different frequencies can be realized.
Finally, the voltage regulator. Voltage regulators are mainly used to keep the output voltage at a stable level. Voltage regulators can be realized by using a voltage feedback loop. The voltage feedback loop compares the output voltage with a reference voltage and adjusts the output voltage according to the comparison. Based on the working principle of the feedback loop, voltage regulators can be categorized into two types: linear regulators and switching regulators.
Linear regulators control the output voltage by adjusting the resistance of a variable resistor or variable inductor according to the feedback voltage. Linear regulators have the advantage of reliable operation and stable output voltage, but the efficiency is relatively low.
Switching regulators, on the other hand, utilize the switching characteristics of a controllable switching device, such as a transistor or MOSFET, to adjust the output voltage. The advantages of switching regulators are high efficiency and small size, but the stability of the output voltage may be limited by the characteristics of the switching device.
In addition to the above major components, DC regulated power supplies include a number of other auxiliary components such as overcurrent protectors, overvoltage protectors, and output terminals. The overcurrent protector is used to cut off the power supply when the output current exceeds the set value to protect the load and power supply from damage. The overvoltage protector is used to cut off the power supply when the output voltage exceeds the set value to prevent damage to the load. The output terminals are used to connect the loads and supply stable DC power to the loads.
In summary, a DC regulated power supply consists of a transformer, rectifier, filter, voltage regulator and other auxiliary components. These components work together synergistically to convert the incoming AC power into a stabilized DC power output. DC regulated power supplies are widely used in various fields, such as electronic equipment, communication equipment, laboratory testing and so on.
