Choosing Appropriate DC/DC Converters for Use in Industrial Settings

In modern industrial systems the nature of loads has changed, especially in areas such as robotics where the loads are much more dynamic, changing from rest to full power in a matter of milliseconds. In other cases, as more control is being introduced to systems, the power requirements may be somewhere less than full load for extended periods of time – with brief overload (peak power) occurring on a regular basis.

This can cause challenges with the choice of power system, as designers need a solution that is rugged enough to withstand operation in this type of environment, while operating as efficiently as possible at all load conditions – especially partial loads. This is increasingly important in the face of skyrocketing utility bills, as well as the need for companies to curb their carbon footprint.

In this technical article, we will look at the many considerations for creating a power solution for industrial applications, whether that is to design from scratch, or select one of the many highperformance solutions available on the market. Every system needs some form of power, so every design requires engineers to ensure that an appropriate power solution is available. Inevitably, this tends to happen later in the design cycle once the system configuration and its power needs (voltages, rails, consumption figures) are known and reasonably stable.