Uninterruptible Power Supplies And The Different Types Available
We are all aware that our daily needs as far as energy goes is generally provided by a single utility power source; this however, is not probably the best way to be as a lone supplier may at times get overloaded, meaning a power cut. It is in such a situation that we need an UPS to provide us with an uninterrupted power supply. But how can we tell which one is good for us?
As is known, uninterruptible power supplies or UPS are a back up source of energy that provide emergency power to devices that are connected to it until the main utility source is restored or the equipment safely switched off. An uninterrupted power supply system can be considered a life saving device as it helps avoid serious situations such as fatalities that could occur in a hospital due to a lapse in power supply or a loss of important data and many other grave power disruptions.
But how can we tell which uninterruptible power supply is appropriate for us. There are two primary kinds of uninterruptible power supplies, the on-line and the line interactive UPS systems. The double-conversion is utilised by the on-line uninterruptible power supply. This means it takes in the AC input that is available from the main utility source and then converts it into DC power. This is necessary for it to pass through the battery. Once this is done it converts it back to AC power which runs the connected equipment.
The line interactive uninterruptible power supplies have an internal or in-line inverter that transmits the DC power of the battery from the standard charging form to supplying energy during an emergency power failure. It is analogous to the stand by or off-line UPS except for the fact that it has a flexible electrical transformer that has the ability to increase or decrease the magnetic field and the produced voltage of the transformer. Without using up the stored energy it is able to withstand constant high voltage surges and low voltage brownouts.
An on-line UPS is perfect for situations where there are extreme voltage fluctuations and the equipment connected to it is highly sensitive. The line-interactive and the stand-by UPS are slightly cheaper than this one and were once used only in large consumption installatiions. However, they are now available in smaller consumer equipment that use about 500watts of power. They are convenient for locations where there are large numbers of noise-making equipments such as those seen in large industries. A back up generator, apart from this may be required to supply these equipments with uninterrupted power supply.
Due to the fact that they have a powerful AC to DC converter and an advanced cooling system, they are more expensive than the other two types of UPS systems. They do however, provide efficient energy sources to your equipment. The on-line UPS require no power transmission switches as the converter moves out of the circuit when there is a power cut and moves back in to resume charging when the main power supply is restored.
Based on these two designs and their functions, you can decide which uninterruptible power supply system is right for you. Whether it is for your home or office or a large organisation or industry, uninterruptible power supplies will provide you an uninterrupted power supply always.
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