SMPS

CVT

UPS

 If there is any one component that is absolutely vital to the operation of a computer, it is the power supply. Without it, a computer is just an inert(Unable to move or act) box full of plastic and metal.

 The power supply converts the alternating current (AC) line from your home to the direct current (DC) needed by the personal computer.

 The power supply is visible from the back of many systems because it contains the powercord receptacle(That which is used for receiving and containing something) and the cooling fan.

 Power supplies, often referred to as "switching power supplies", use switcher technology to convert the AC input to lower DC voltages. The typical voltages supplied are: 3.3 volts 5 volts 12 volts

 The 3.3- and 5-volts are typically used by digital circuits, while the 12-volt is used to run motors in disk drives and fans. The main specification of a power supply is in watts. A watt is the product of the voltage in volts and the current in amperes or amps.

Switcher Technology
Prior to 1980 or so, power supplies tended to be heavy and bulky. They used large, heavy transformers and huge capacitors (some as large as soda cans) to convert line voltage at 220 volts and 50 hertz into 5 volts and 12 volts DC.

 In the previous slide picture, you can see three small transformers (yellow) in the center.
To the left are two cylindrical capacitors. The large pieces of aluminum are heat sinks. The left heat sink has transistors attached to it. These are the transistors in charge of doing the switching -- they provide high-frequency power to the transformers. Attached to the right heat sink are diodes that rectify AC signals and turn them into DC signals.

 A switcher power supply draws only the power it needs from the AC line. The typical voltages and current provided by a power supply are shown on the label on a power supply.

 Switcher technology is also used to make AC from DC, as found in many of the automobile power inverters used to run AC appliances in an automobile and in uninterruptible power supplies.

 Switcher technology in automotive power inverters changes the direct current from the auto battery into alternating current. The transformer uses alternating current to make the transformer in the inverter step the voltage up to that of household appliances (220 VAC).

Power Supply Standardization

there have been at least six different standard power supplies for personal computers. Recently, the industry has settled on using ATXbased power supplies. ATX is an industry specification that means the power supply has the physical characteristics to fit a standard ATX case and the electrical characteristics to work with an ATX motherboard.

 PC power-supply cables use standardized, keyed connectors that make it difficult to connect the wrong ones.

 Also, fan manufacturers often use the same connectors as the power cables for disk drives, allowing a fan to easily obtain the 12 volts it needs.

Power Supply Wattage

A 400-watt switching power supply will not necessarily use more power than a 250-watt supply. A larger supply may be needed if you use every available slot on the motherboard or every available drive bay in the personal computer case.

 It is not a good idea to have a 250-watt supply if you have 250 watts total in devices, since the supply should not be loaded to 100 percent of its capacity.

some power consumption values (in watts)

Power Supply Problems

The PC power supply is probably the most failure-prone item in a personal computer. It heats and cools each time it is used and receives the first in-rush of AC current when the PC is switched on.

Power Supply Improvements

Recent motherboard and chipset improvements permit the user to monitor the revolutions per minute (RPM) of the power supply fan via BIOS and a Windows application supplied by the motherboard manufacturer. New designs offer fan control so that the fan only runs the speed needed, depending on cooling needs.

Advanced power management (APM)

Advanced power management (APM) is an API (application programming interface) developed by Intel and Microsoft and released in 1992 which enables an operating system running an IBM-compatible personal computer to work with the BIOS (part of the computer's firmware) to achieve power management. Firmware: firmware is a term often used to denote the fixed, usually rather small, programs and/or data structures that internally control various electronic devices.

APM defines five power states for the computer system:

The APM specification defines system power states and device power states. Full On: The computer is powered on, and no devices are in a power saving mode. APM Enabled: The computer is powered on, and APM is controlling device power management as needed.

 APM Standby: Most devices are in their low-power state, the CPU is slowed or stopped, and the system state is saved. The computer can be returned to its former state quickly (in response to activity such as the user pressing a key on the keyboard). APM Suspend: Most devices are powered off, but the system state is saved. The computer can be returned to its former state, but takes a relatively long time. (Hibernation is a special form of the APM Suspend state). Off: The computer is turned off.

SMPS
Electrical energy is use to drive the computer system. This is in the form of a SMPS or source is SMPS. The basic function of the power supply is to convert the type of electrical power available at the wall socket to the type the computer circuitry can use. The power supply in a conventional desktop system is designed to convert either 120-volt (nominal) 60Hz AC (alternating current) or 240V (nominal) 50Hz AC power into +3.3V, +5V, and +12V DC (direct current) power.

 Power supplies, often referred to as "switching power supplies", use switcher technology to convert the AC input to lower DC voltages. The typical voltages supplied are: 3.3 volts - used by digital circuits 5 volts - used by digital circuits 12 volts - run motors in disk drives and fans.

 Step Down Transformer: Step down transformers are designed to reduce electrical voltage. Their primary voltage is greater than their secondary voltage. This kind of transformer "steps down" the voltage applied to it. Step down transformers convert electrical voltage from one level to a lower level. Rectifier: A rectifier is an electrical device that converts alternating current (AC) to direct current (DC), also known as rectification. Filter: To further reduce the ripple in DC Voltage, filter is used. Regulator Circuit: A voltage regulator is an electrical regulator designed to automatically maintain a constant voltage level.

CVT
Constant voltage transformer is generally known as CVT. The power supplies prepared with help of CVTs are known as CVT power supplies. These supplies were discovered in 1960 but were rarely used because of their weight and noisy operation as the CVTs used in those supplies were having two transformers, one choke and one capacitor. Around 1970, single transformer type CVT was designed and was commercialized to prepare CVT power manufactured because the number of devices / equipment used on these supplies was limited. However, now-a-days a large number of devices / equipments(like TV, Computers, etc) are required to be operated oon CVT power supplies. Therefore, demand of CVT power supplies has been increased to large extent.

 Construction of CVT: in CVT the primary and secondary windings are wound separately from each other. These windings are wound at different portions of the transformer core. To set up field in between the coils, a separate shunt path is provided between coils that is primary and secondary. Working: when AC supply is connected across primary, voltage increases from zero. This sets up a flux around primary. In beginning, the total flux produced by primary passes through lower part of core over which secondary is wound. As a result e.m.f. induced in the secondary increases. Because of this heavy current, voltage rises in the secondary, lower part of the core restricts primary flux to come down. This is the reason that primary flux finds another path through the shunt. This increase in the voltage can also be compensated by providing a feedback coil in secondary circuit.

UPS
To give supply to some of the critical loads such as computers used for controlling important processes, some medical equipment, etc., it is necessary to use Uninterruptable Power Supply. These power supplies provide protection against power line overvoltage and under voltage conditions. They also remove the line noise and harmonic disturbances. Block diagram of an uninterruptable power supply is as below:

 Rectifier: a rectifier is used to supply power to the inverter and to keep battery bank charged. The rectifier may be a bridge rectifier. Battery bank: sealed maintenance free batteries or conventional lead-acid batteries are used for UPS applications. When the supply goes off, battery bank supplies power to the load. When the mains or AC power is restored, the battery bank in a UPS is brought back to its fully charged state by the help of a charger or rectifier circuit. Inverter: it is an electronic circuit which converts DC power into AC power. Filter: the filter gives the pure sinusoidal output. Static transfer switch: the function of static transfer switch is to transfer load from UPS to the line or from Line to the UPS. Under normal conditions, the load is supplied by the line. When the mains goes off , the static transfer switch transfers load to UPS.

 There are 2 types of uninterruptable power supplies: On-line ups: in this case, whether the main power is ON or OFF the inverter is ON all the time and supplies the AC output voltage to the load.when the main supply goes off, the ups supplies power only until the batteries get discharged. Once the main power resumes, the batteries will get charged again. The switching time of these supplies is considered to be zero. The running time of the inverter is low nearly 10 to 30 minutes. Off-line ups: in this case, the inverter is OFF, when the main power is ON and the output voltage is derived directly from the mains. The inverter turns ON only when the main supply goes off and the ups supplies power only until the batteries get discharged. Once the main power resumes, the batteries will get charged again. The switching time of these supplies is less than 5 ms. The running time of these inverter is also low nearly 10 to 30 minutes.

 ADDITIONAL READING IS STRONGLY RECOMMENDED