BatteryCharger&UPS

Glossary
ABCEFGHILMNOPRSTUVW

ABNORMALFAILURE.An
artificiallyinducedfailureofa
component,usuallyasaresultof
"abnormals"testingforregulatory
agencysafetycompliance.For
instancemanuallyshorting
componentstoseetheeffecton
thesafetyofthepowersupply.
AC(AlternatingCurrent)An
electricalcurrentthatperiodically
reversesdirection.
AMBIENTTEMPERATURE.The
temperatureoftheenvironmentin
theproximityofthepowersupply.
AMPAmpere,quantitativeunitof
measurementofelectricalcurrent
equalto1coulombofchargeper
second.
BLACKOUTAtotallossof
electricalpower,asopposed
tobrownout.
BANDWIDTH.Arangeof
frequenciesoverwhichacertain
phenomenonistobeconsidered,
forexamplenoisebandwidth.
BRIDGECONVERTER.ADCto
DCconvertertopology
(configuration)employingfour
activeswitchingcomponentsina
bridgeconfigurationacrossa
powertransformer.Thishaslower
lossesthanabridgerectifier.
BROWNOUT.Areductionofthe
ACmains'distributionvoltage,
usuallycauseddeliberatelybythe
utilitycompanytoreducepower
consumptionwhendemand
exceedsgenerationordistribution
capacity.
BURNIN.Operatinganewly
manufacturedpowersupply,
usuallyatratedload,foraperiod
oftimeinordertoforce
componentinfantmortalityfailures

orotherlatentdefectsbeforethe
unitisdeliveredtoacustomer.
CAPACITIVE
COUPLING.Couplingofasignal
betweentowcircuits,dueto
discreteorparasiticcapacitance
betweenthecircuits.Forexample,
thewindingsofatransformerare
notonlymagneticallycoupled,but
alsocapacitivelycoupleddueto
theircloseproximity..
CONVERTER.Anelectricalcircuit
whichacceptsaDCinputand
generatesaDCoutputofa
differentvoltage,usuallyachieved
byhighfrequencyswitchingaction
employinginductiveand
capacitivefilterelements.
CRESTFACTOR.InanAC
circuit,CrestFactoristhe
mathematicalratioofthepeakto
RMSvaluesofawaveform.Crest
factorissometimesusedfor
describingthecurrentstressin
ACmainssupplywires,sincefor
agivenamountofpower
transferred,theRMSvalue,and
hencethelosses,becomegreater
withincreasingpeakvalues.Crest
Factorgivesessentiallythesame
informationasPowerFactor,and
isbeingreplacedbyPowerFactor
inpowersupplytechnology.
CURRENTTheflowofelectricity
expressedinamperes.Current
referstothequantityorintensity
ofelectricityflow,whereasvoltage
referstothepressureorforce
causingtheelectricalflow.
CURRENTMONITOR.Ananalog
powersupplysignalwhichis
linearlyproportionaltooutput
currentflow.Usuallyonlyfeasible
forsingleoutputpowersupplies.
DCDIRECTCURRENTElectrical
currentwhichflowsinone
direction.
DERATING.Areductioninan
operatingspecificationtoimprove
reliability.Forpowersuppliesitis
usuallyaspecifiedreductionin
outputpowertofacilitateoperation
athighertemperatures.
DESIGNLIFE.Theexpected
lifetimeofapowersupplyduring
whichitwilloperatetoits
publishedspecifications.

DIFFERENTIALMODE
NOISE.Noisethatismeasured
betweentwolineswithrespectto
acommonreferencepoint
excludingcommonmodenoise.
Theresultantmeasurementisthe
differenceofthenoise
componentsofthetwolines.The
noisebetweentheDCoutputand
DCreturnisusuallymeasuredin
powersupplies.
DIPAshorttermvoltage
decrease.EMIElectroMagnetic
Interference
DRIFT.Thechangeinanoutput
voltage,afterawarmupperiod,
asafunctionoftimewhenall
othervariablessuchaline,load,
andoperatingtemperatureare
heldconstant.
DROPOUT.Thelowerlimitofthe
ACinputvoltagewherethepower
supplyjustbeginstoexperience
insufficientinputtomaintain
regulation.Thedropoutvoltagefor
linearsisquiteloaddependent.
Formostswitchersitislargely
designdependent,andtoa
smallerdegreeloaddependent.
EFFICIENCY.Theratiooftotal
outputpowertoinputpower
expressedasapercentage.
Normallyspecifiedatfullloadand
nominalinputvoltage.
ELECTRONICLOAD.An
electronicdevicedesignedto
providealoadtotheoutputsofa
powersupply,usuallycapableof
dynamicloading,andfrequently
programmableorcomputer
controlled.
EMI(Electromagnetic
Interference)Unwantednoise
duringtheoperationofapower
supplyorotherelectricalor
electronicequipment.
ESR.EquivalentSeries
Resistance.Thevalueof
resistanceinserieswithanideal
capacitorwhichduplicatesthe
performancecharacteristicsofa
realcapacitor.
FAULTMODEINPUT
CURRENT.Theinputcurrenttoa
powersupplywithashortcircuit
ontheoutput.

FERRORESONANTPOWER
SUPPLY.Powersupplyusedat
higherpowerlevelsinfixed
applications,sincetheyarevery
heavy.Canonlybeused
effectivelywhentheline
frequencyisverystableasthey
aresensitivetovariationsofinput
ACfrequencies.
FilterAnelectronicdevicethat
allowsonlycertainfrequenciesto
pass.
GROUND.Anelectrical
connectiontoearthorsomeother
conductorthatisconnectedto
earth.Sometimestheterm
"ground"isusedinplaceof
"common,"butsuchusageisnot
correctunlesstheconnectionis
alsoconnectedtoearth.
GROUNDLOOP.An
unintentionallyinducedfeedback
loopcausedbytwoormore
circuitssharingacommon
electricalground.
HAVERSINE.Awaveformthatis
sinusoidalinnature,butconsists
ofaportionofasinewave
superimposedonanother
waveform.Theinputcurrent
waveformtoatypicaloffline
powersupplyhastheformofa
haversine.
HEADROOM.Usedinconjunction
withseriespassregulators,andis
thedifferencebetweentheinput
andoutputvoltages.
HIPOT.AbbreviationforHigh
Potential,andgenerallyrefersto
thehighvoltagesusedtotest
dielectricwithstandcapabilityfor
regulatoryagencyelectricalsafety
requirements.
HOLDUPTIME.Thelengthof
timeapowersupplycanoperate
inregulationafterfailureoftheAC
input.Linearshaveveryshort
holduptimesduetotheCV
squaredenergystorageproductof
theirlowvoltagesecondaryside
outputcapacitors.Switchershave
longertimesduetotheirhigher
voltageprimarysideenergy
storagecapacitors.
INDUCEDNOISE.Noise
generatedinacircuitbyavarying
magneticfieldproducedby
anothercircuit.

INPUTLINEFILTER.An
internallyorexternallymounted
lowpassorbandrejectfilteratthe
powersupplyinputwhichreduces
thenoisefedintothepower
supply.
INVERTER.Apowersupplywhich
producesanACoutput,usually
fromaDCinput.
ISOLATION.Twocircuitsthatare
completelyelectricallyseparated
withrespecttoDCpotentials,and
almostalwaysalsoACpotentials.
Inpowersupplies,itisdefinedas
theelectricalseparationofthe
inputandoutputviathe
transformer.
ISOLATIONVOLTAGE.The
maximumACorDCvoltagewhich
maybecontinuouslyappliedfrom
inputtooutputand/orchassisofa
powersupply.
LEAKAGECURRENT.Aterm
relatingtocurrentflowingbetween
theACsupplywiresandearth
ground.Thetermdoesnot
necessarilydenoteafault
condition.Inpowersupplies,
leakagecurrentusuallyrefersto
the60Hertzcurrentwhichflows
throughtheEMIfiltercapacitors
whichareconnectedbetweenthe
AClinesandground(Ycaps).
LINEREGULATION.Thechange
inoutputvoltagewhentheAC
inputvoltageischangedfrom
minimumtomaximumspecified.
Itisusuallyasmallvalue,and
maybenearzerowithcurrent
modecontrol.
LOADREGULATION.The
changeinoutputvoltagewhenthe
loadontheoutputischanged.
MAGNETIC
AMPLIFIER.Sometimes
abbreviated"MagAmp,"a
saturatinginductorwhichisplaced
inserieswithapowersupply
outputforregulationpurposes.
MARGINING.Adjustingapower
supplyoutputvoltageupordown
fromitsminimalsettinginorderto
verifysystemperformancemargin
withrespecttosupplyvoltage.
Thisisusuallydoneelectricallyby
asystemgeneratedcontrolsignal.

MINIMUMLOAD.Theminimum
loadcurrent/powerthatmustbe
drawnfromthepowersupplyin
orderforthesupplytomeetits
performancespecifications.Less
frequently,aminimumloadis
requiredtopreventthepowerfrom
failing.
NOISEAnundesirablesignalthat
isirregularandisridingontopof
thedesiredsignal.
OFFLINE.Apowersupplywhich
receivesitsinputpowerfromthe
ACline,withoutusinga50/60Hz
powertransformerpriorto
rectificationandfiltering,hence
theterm"offline"powersupply.
OPTOISOLATOR.Anelectro
opticaldevicewhichtransmitsa
signalacrossaDCisolation
boundary.
OUTPUTIMPEDANCE.Theratio
ofchangeinoutputvoltageto
changeinloadcurrent.
OUTPUTNOISE.TheAC
componentthatmaybepresent
ontheDCoutputofapower
supply.Switchmodepower
supplyoutputnoisehastwo
components:alowerfrequency
componentattheswitching
frequencyoftheconverteranda
highfrequencycomponentdueto
fastedgesoftheconverter
switchingtransitions.Noise
shouldalwaysbemeasured
directlyattheoutputterminals
withascopeprobehavingan
extremelyshortgroundinglead.
OVERVOLTAGEPROTECTION.A
circuitwhicheithershutsdownthe
powersupplyorcrowbarsthe
outputintheeventofan
overvoltagecondition.
PEAKPOWER.Theabsolute
maximumoutputpowerthata
powersupplycanproducewithout
immediatedamage.Peakpower
capabilityistypicallywellbeyond
thecontinuousreliableoutput
powercapabilityandshouldonly
beusedinfrequently.
POWERFACTOR.Theratioof
truepowertoapparentpowerinan
ACcircuit.Inpowerconversion
technology,powerfactorisused
inconjunctionwithdescribingthe

ACinputcurrenttothepower
supply.
PRIMARY.Theinputsectionofan
isolatedpowersupplywhichis
connectedtotheACmainsand
hencehasdangerousvoltage
levelspresent.
RATEDOUTPUTCURRENT.The
maximumloadcurrentthata
powersupplycanprovideata
specifiedambienttemperature.
REGULATION.Theabilityofa
powersupplytomaintainan
outputvoltagewithinaspecified
toleranceasreferencedto
changingconditionsofinput
voltageand/orload.
REGULATIONBAND.Thetotal
errorbandallowableforanoutput
voltage.Thisincludestheeffects
ofallofthetypesofregulation:
line,load,andcross.
REVERSEVOLTAGE
PROTECTION.Aprotection
circuitthatpreventsthepower
supplyfrombeingdamagedinthe
eventthatareversevoltageis
appliedattheinputoroutput
terminals.
RFI.AnabbreviationforRadio
FrequencyInterference,whichis
undesirablenoiseproducedbya
powersupplyorotherelectricalor
electronicdeviceduringits
operation.Inpowersupply
technology,RFIisusuallytaken
tomeanthesamethingasEMI.
RIPPLEANDNOISE.The
amplitudeoftheACcomponent
ontheDCoutputofapower
supplyusuallyexpressedin
millivoltspeaktopeakorRMS.
Foralinearpowersupplyitis
usuallythefrequencyoftheAC
mains.Foraswitchingpower
supply,itisusuallytheswitching
frequencyoftheconverterstage.
SAFETYGROUND.Aconductive
pathtoearththatisdesignedto
protectpersonsfromelectrical
shockbyshuntingawayany
dangerouscurrentsthatmight
occurduetomalfunctionor
accident.
SECONDARY.Theoutputsection
ofanisolatedpowersupplywhich
isisolatedfromtheACmainsand

speciallydesignedforsafetyof
personnelwhomightbeworking
withpoweronthesystem.
SEQUENCING.Thetechniqueof
establishingadesiredorderof
activatingtheoutputsofamultiple
outputpowersupply.
SURGEAnabnormallyhigh
voltagelastingforashortperiod
oftime.
STANDBYCURRENT.Theinput
currentdrawnbyapowersupply
whenshutdownbyacontrolinput
(remoteinhibit)orundernoload.
SWITCHINGFREQUENCY.The
rateatwhichtheDCvoltageis
switchedonandoffduringthe
pulsewidthmodulationprocessin
aswitchingpowersupply.
TEMPERATURE
COEFFICIENT.Theaverage
outputvoltagechangeexpressed
asapercentperdegree
centigradeofambienttemperature
change.Thisisusuallyspecified
forapredeterminedtemperature
range.
THERMALPROTECTION.A
powersupplyprotectioncircuit
whichshutsthepowersupply
downintheeventofunacceptably
highinternaltemperatures.
TRACKING.Acharacteristicina
multipleoutputpowersupply
whereanychangesintheoutput
voltageofoneoutputcausedby
line,load,and/ortemperatureare
proportionaltosimilarchangesin
accompanyingoutputs.
TRANSFERTIMETheamountof
timeittakesastandbyoroffline
typeUPStosenseapower
interruptionandswitchfromutility
outputtoinverteroutput.Normally
expressedinmilliseconds.See
alsoSwitchingTime.Transformer
TRUEPOWER.InanACcircuit,
truepoweristheactualpower
consumed.Itisdistinguishedfrom
apparentpowerbyeliminatingthe
reactivepowercomponentthat
maybepresent.
UPS(UninterruptiblePower
Supply).Apowersupplywhich
continuestosupplypowerduring
alossofinputpower.Twotypes

arethestandaloneUPS,whichis
locatedexternaltotheequipment
beingpowered,andthebattery
backuppowersupply,whichis
embeddedintheequipmentbeing
powered,suchasaPOWERONE
SPMserieshighpowerproduct
withaG5batterybackup
module.
VOLTAGEBALANCE.The
differenceinmagnitudes,in
percent,oftwooutputvoltages
thathaveequalnominalvoltage
magnitudesbutopposite
polarities.
WARMUPTIME.Thetime
requiredafterinitialturnonfora
powersupplytoachieve
compliancetoitsperformance
specifications.