Autoranging DC Power Supplies

Programmable DC power sources are an essential tool in product development and production testing of a wide range of electronic devices and systems. In many instances, functional test requires submitting the device-under-test (DUT) to a wide range of operating conditions. In some cases, the DUT draws constant power under variable input conditions.

Application Note Overview

“Autoranging” is a term used when a programmable DC source automatically offers a wide output range of both voltage and current to maintain full power output across a wide operation range. Programmable DC power sources are an essential tool in product development and production testing of a wide range of electronic devices and systems. In many instances, functional test requires submitting the device-under-test (DUT) to a wide range of operating conditions.

With the rising penetration of energy-consuming native direct current (DC) loads in commercial and residential applications, and the increasing focus on the adoption of energy-efficient systems to fulfill ambitious national goals, the debate over the relative merits of AC- versus DC-based systems has intensified.

The components include converters (central rectifiers and DC-DC converters), DC circuit breakers, DC power distribution units (PDUs) and DC power management systems (monitoring and control) installed for building-level, floor/room-level, and device-level conversion.

In this application note, you'll learn:

The principle of autoranging
Autoranging applications and examples
The advantages of autoranging