An off line regulator, off-line regulator, or offline regulator is an

electronic Electronic may refer to: *Electronics, the science of how to control electric energy in semiconductor * ''Electronics'' (magazine), a defunct American trade journal *Electronic storage, the storage of data using an electronic device *Electronic co ...

voltage regulation In electrical engineering, particularly power engineering, voltage regulation is a measure of change in the voltage magnitude between the sending and receiving end of a component, such as a transmission or distribution line. Voltage regulation de ...

or current regulation device that is designed to directly accept

electric power Electric power is the rate at which electrical energy is transferred by an electric circuit. The SI unit of power is the watt, one joule per second. Standard prefixes apply to watts as with other SI units: thousands, millions and billions ...

obtained from an

alternating current Alternating current (AC) is an electric current which periodically reverses direction and changes its magnitude continuously with time in contrast to direct current (DC) which flows only in one direction. Alternating current is the form in which ...

utility power source. That is "off the mains voltage line". This

electronics design Electronic design automation (EDA), also referred to as electronic computer-aided design (ECAD), is a category of software tools for designing electronic systems such as integrated circuits and printed circuit boards. The tools work together ...

terminology has no relationship to the use of "

online and offline In computer technology and telecommunications, online indicates a state of connectivity and offline indicates a disconnected state. In modern terminology, this usually refers to an Internet connection, but (especially when expressed "on line" o ...

" for computers and networking, and no relationship with

uninterruptible power supplies An uninterruptible power supply or uninterruptible power source (UPS) is an electrical apparatus that provides emergency power to a load when the input power source or mains power fails. A UPS differs from an auxiliary or emergency power syste ...

that provide power while disconnected from the electrical grid. An off line regulator can be a complete integrated circuit with all capabilities necessary to provide clean power to a small portable or handheld device, or it may be used as part of a larger

switched mode power supply A switched-mode power supply (switching-mode power supply, switch-mode power supply, switched power supply, SMPS, or switcher) is an electronic power supply that incorporates a Voltage regulator#Switching regulators, switching regulator to elect ...

(SMPS) or

DC-DC converter A DC-to-DC converter is an electronic circuit or electromechanical device that converts a source of direct current (DC) from one voltage level to another. It is a type of electric power converter. Power levels range from very low (small batteries) ...

Characteristics

The convert input must be able to accept power at line voltage. Although AC line voltage is commonly referred to by its RMS value, such as 120V or 240V, the peak voltage of the sine wave is around ±170V for 120V RMS and ±339V for 240V RMS. Additionally, 120V and 240V are considered

nominal Nominal may refer to: Linguistics and grammar * Nominal (linguistics), one of the parts of speech * Nominal, the adjectival form of "noun", as in "nominal agreement" (= "noun agreement") * Nominal sentence, a sentence without a finite verb * Nou ...

voltages; the actual voltage provided by a utility may be somewhat higher or lower during normal operation. The range of this variability is generally within the ±5% range required by ANSI standard C84.1 (114126V and 228252V respectively). This pushes the peak line voltage up to ±178V for 120V and ±356V for 240V. Off line regulators must also be tolerant of voltage spikes, surges, brownouts, and other

power quality Electric power quality is the degree to which the voltage, frequency, and waveform of a power supply system conform to established specifications. Good power quality can be defined as a steady supply voltage that stays within the prescribed range, ...

conditions that may affect the electronic device.

References

Electrical power control {{electronics-stub