Switching Power Supplies?
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Are switching power supplies safe for all electrical applications?
Primarily, those little servos you can buy that operate on 5vdc?
Thanks..Dan
Primarily, those little servos you can buy that operate on 5vdc?
Thanks..Dan
Comments
Line operated switchers should be just as safe to use as linear supplies if
you mean safety to personnel. They have a few characteristics to consider
compared to linears. The first is they have higher electrical noise on
their output that can interfere with a sensitive high gain circuit.
However, I have used several on Stamp projects with no problem. The second
thing to watch is that most switchers require a minimum load to avoid
operating in a "hiccup" mode where they turn on/off at a low frequency.
This can be solved by placing a resistor on the output to provide a constant
load, even when your Stamp or servo is not drawing much current. Start with
a load resistor of ~ 10% of rated output, and experimentally determine if
less loading will suffice. One of our apps drives a VFD which always draws
at least 400 ma, so no dummy load resistor is needed. I suspect that
driving a servo should be no problem, especially if you bypass close to the
Stamp with a few hundred uf electrolytic.
Ray McArthur
Original Message
From: <mcruz1@t...>
To: <basicstamps@egroups.com>
Sent: Monday, January 08, 2001 6:11 AM
Subject: [noparse][[/noparse]basicstamps] Switching Power Supplies?
> Are switching power supplies safe for all electrical applications?
> Primarily, those little servos you can buy that operate on 5vdc?
> Thanks..Dan