Irvine, Calif., February 1, 2011— Pacific Power Source introduces the 390-ASX, the latest addition to its line of manual and programmable AC Power Sources. With 9kVA in a 9U chassis, the 390-ASX offers the high power density demanded in today’s AC Test Power market. This unit builds on the proven technology found in Pacific Power […]
What Is Programmable Z? Hate to disappoint, but programmable Z on an AC power source has nothing to do with getting sufficient sleep. Instead, the Z refers to the output impedance of the power source. A low AC source output impedance means there is little or no voltage drop at the output of the power […]
Power Conversion Programmable AC power sources used for development and test applications convert locally available utility power to specific precision AC or DC output formats needed to test or control units under test. This is called “solid state power conversion” as active electronic circuitry is used rather than rotary converters or voltage only transformer. This […]
Single Phase AC Voltage Most of us are familiar with the single phase voltage in our homes provided by the local utility. For the US, this is typically 120V. For single phase voltage, the voltage is expressed as a Line to Neutral voltage between two power conductors (plus a safety ground). The neutral conductor is […]
Power Supplies and Output Power rating versus Voltage As a rule, power supplies are rated for maximum power output only at their maximum output voltage. That means that as the programmed output voltage is decreased, the power output capability decreases proportionally. For example, a 10kW rated power supply with a 0 to 100V voltage range […]
Remote Control Computer control of test equipment – including AC and DC power sources – is a critical requirement for building automated test systems (ATE) and to a lesser extend engineering development lab experiments. Key requirements for this type of computer control are: Reliable communication to reduce or eliminate communication errors Data transfer speeds Industry […]
Critical Power Immunity Testing of DC Powered Equipment Reliable operation of on-board electrical equipment under all circumstance is a critical requirement to ensure the safety of passengers and crew. This is true for both AC powered and DC powered equipment. With the continued growth of on-board electrical systems, the amount and types of equipment that […]
What is the difference between Inrush Current and Peak Current? While inrush current has a peak current value, the term “Inrush Current” is commonly used to describe the current that is required to energize an AC powered device or product when first applying voltage and power to it. This is especially true for inductive loads […]
What are voltage modes? While all programmable AC power sources offer AC output mode, some also provide DC output mode. This may be useful for applications where only DC is required to power an EUT. However, a growing number of power related products are coming on the market than can operate from both AC grid […]
What is Voltage Distortion? Voltage distortion occurs when an AC output is purely sinusoidal but has small levels of voltage harmonics in addition to the fundamental sinewave frequency. This low level of voltage distortion is often difficult to see on an oscilloscope and requires a power analyzer or harmonics analyzer to quantify. Distortion is typically […]