1 Bulk Converter Manufacturers in 2023

What Is a Bulk Converter?

A bulk converter is a voltage conversion method used to step down the input voltage in an electric circuit. When the power supply voltage is too high to operate an electric circuit as it is, a bulk converter is used to lower the supply voltage so that the circuit can operate safely without malfunction.

A bulk converter is mainly used with DC-to-DC converters with a voltage conversion method called switching regulators to achieve this function.

Uses of Bulk Converters

These converters are used to regulate the voltage supplied to an electrical circuit. For example, the power supplied from an outlet at home is 100 VAC, which is connected to various electrical appliances. However, semiconductor devices in the circuits of electrical equipment operate mainly on direct current, so it is necessary to convert the 100 VAC (alternating current) supplied from the outlet to DC (direct current). Furthermore, if an FPGA or CPU is installed in the circuit, a voltage of 5 V or 3.3 V must be supplied, so it must be stepped down from 100 V. In such cases, a step-down converter is used. In such cases, bulk converters are used.

Principle of Bulk Converters

The following explanation is based on the principle of a switching regulator, which is the main method used as bulk converters for step-down regulators.

As the name suggests, a switching regulator is a conversion method using switch elements, and voltage is converted by controlling the output with ON/OFF. Here, as an example, the principle of operation to step down a 24V input voltage to 5V and output is explained. First, the switch is turned ON when power is supplied and waits for the output voltage to rise from 0V to 5V. Then, when the output voltage rises to 5V, the switch is turned off to suppress the output of a voltage greater than 5V. When the switch is turned off, the voltage drops from 5 V. When the voltage drops below the specified value; the switch is turned on again, and the voltage rises to 5 V. This ON/OFF operation is repeated at high speed. By repeating this ON/OFF operation at high speed, the 24V input voltage is converted to 5V and output.

If the voltage converted by turning the switch on and off is output as it is, the voltage will fluctuate around 5V and a slightly distorted voltage will be output. To eliminate this distortion, the voltage obtained by the ON/OFF operation is passed through a rectifier circuit. The principle is that a stable DC voltage with little distortion is thereby output.