The popular LM317 voltage regulator IC is designed to deliver not more than 1.5 amps, however by adding an outboard current boost transistor to the circuit it becomes possible to upgrade the regulator circuit to handle much higher currents, and upto any desired levels. You might have already come across the 78XX fixed voltage regulator […]
Power Supply Circuits
IC 741 Power Supply Circuits
In this post I have explained how to make simple yet fully stabilized and regulated, variable power supply circuits using the IC 741 op amp. Three versions of the 741 power supplies are I have explained below: Simple Variable IC 741 Power Supply The first figure below exhibits a IC 741 based simple variable voltage […]
3 Solid-State Single IC 220V Adjustable Power Supply Circuits
These AC to DC power supplies use a single chip to convert mains 220 V or 120 V input AC into 12 V or 5 V DC without depending on a transformer. Three simple yet efficient 220V single chip based solid state transformerless adjustable solid-state power supply circuits are discussed here. The first one works […]
Constant Current Generator Circuits Explained
Constant current generators (CCGs), as the name suggests, are circuits designed to produce a steady load current regardless of significant fluctuations in load resistance or voltage levels. Basic Constant Current Generator Circuit Illustrated in Figure 1 is a basic example of such a circuit. In this configuration, Q1 operates in the common emitter mode. A […]
Simple Crowbar Circuits for Over-voltage Protection
A handful of simple DC over voltage protector crowbar circuits are discussed in this article. I have explained the working of each crowbar circuit through the following explanation. What is Crowbar Circuit If you are wondering what is a crowbar circuit, the definition is simple. It is a circuit network where a transistor or an […]
Simple 12V, 1A SMPS Circuit
In the following content I have explained two simple 12V, 1 Amp switch mode power supply (SMPS) circuit using the very reliable VIPerXX IC from ST microelectronics. With the advent of modern ICs and circuits, the age old iron transformer type of power supply are surely becoming obsolete. Today power supplies are much compact, smaller […]