EMAX DEFENDER Design Philosophy
The EMAX DEFENDER line conditioner series is different from traditional line conditioners, offering a range of benefits and features that are perfect for industrial and commercial applications. General Transformer manufactures line conditioners in a variety of sizes to meet your power requirements.
But what is the design philosophy behind the EMAX DEFENDER series of line conditioners from General Transformer Corporation? Why are they the best choice?
EMAX DEFENDER Line Conditioners vs. Traditional Line Conditioners
There have long been two main types of line conditioners on the market: Ferroresonant (also known as “ferros” or “constant voltage transformers” or “CVTs”) and electronic. Let’s look at the strengths and weaknesses of both, then compare the EMAX DEFENDER from General Transformer Corporation.
Electronic Line Conditioners
Electronic line conditioners can be efficient, compact, precise, low cost, and frankly, easier to design and manufacture. What’s not to like? Well, let’s assume that you have valuable papers to protect. Do you put them in a paper bag, or secure them in a steel safe?
Using an electronic line conditioner to protect delicate electronic devices makes no more sense than using paper to protect paper.
Yes, electronic line conditioners can be made with relatively rugged semiconductors, at least in comparison to those used in your vulnerable loads, but that’s just a difference in degree, not in kind—like using a “heavy-duty” paper bag. You’re still relying on active semiconductor devices to protect other semiconductors.
They may in fact “take a bullet” to protect your loads but die quietly, without you ever knowing until it’s too late. When that happens, at best, you need a replacement line conditioner. At worst, you need to repair or replace your valuable load(s).
Just as that paper bag is going to be less expensive than the safe, an electronic line conditioner will be a lower cost option which offers limited protection and can be destroyed by the same hazards it’s meant to protect against.
Ferroresonant Line Conditioners
Ferroresonant (or CVT line conditioners) are based upon electromagnetic transformer technology. Incoming power is converted twice: first from electrical energy to magnetic energy, and then from magnetic energy back to electrical energy.
This is a very efficient process at power line frequencies, but much less so at higher frequencies, and that’s a good thing. Higher frequencies on the power line are transients and noise, which should not be allowed to reach your loads.
As further protection, the construction of the ferro inherently provides physical separation of the input (primary) coil from the output (secondary) coil, minimizing even capacitive coupling of transients and noise. What’s more, the ferro equivalent circuit presents an input which functions as an L-C low pass filter, providing even further attenuation of high-frequency transients and noise.
That’s three different functional aspects inherent to the design of a ferro, all operating to prevent the transmission of high-frequency transients and noise to your load.
But it gets even better:
The output (secondary) section of a ferro operates in “saturation”: a magnetic flux maximum limit which is an inherent property of the steel core. This enables the ferro to operate as a voltage regulator, while this strict upper limit protects your load(s) from ever seeing an excessive voltage.
The ferro is an entirely passive device of steel and copper construction: no sensing or control circuits, no vulnerable semiconductors. Once built, it does not change. As you can imagine, it’s extremely rugged and reliable.
Ferroresonant line conditioners do, however, have several disadvantages. They are usually relatively low efficiency (as low as 75 to 80% at full load, worse at reduced load). They may also have relatively stiff regulation, which most manufacturers tout as a benefit, but it is not. Some even brag of 1% regulation, albeit under a limited range of conditions, but no real-world load requires such tight regulation.
Go outside of these limited load or input conditions, and output voltage can drop off abruptly to levels unacceptable to your loads.
The EMAX DEFENDER Line Conditioner Series
General Transformer’s EMAX DEFENDER line conditioners are based upon ferroresonant technology and offer all the ruggedness, transient reduction, and electrical isolation advantages of traditional ferro designs.
But they’re designed around an innovative dual magnetic topology, which facilitates what we call Optimum Regulation. This provides a softer regulation curve which assures not merely acceptable, but “near-optimal” (per ANSI C84.1, Range A) voltage to your load(s) over a wide range of input and load conditions.
What’s more, our Optimum Regulation concept enables operation at high efficiency, generally over 90% under real-world operating conditions. And that’s more important than you might think.
The EMAX DEFENDER rating you need is based upon real-world load requirements, not some arbitrarily tight regulation figure which is of no value to you or your load but carries penalties of size, cost, and low efficiency.
And the selection is easy with our line conditioner size selection guide.
Contact General Transformer for EMAX DEFENDER Line Conditioners
Don’t see exactly what you need in our standard line? Talk to us about a custom model, tailored to your requirements. For more than forty years, General Transformer Corporation has provided superior custom magnetics, proudly made in the USA, and designed around the real-world needs of our customers.
We’re here to help. To learn more about our line conditioners, contact us today or request a quote.
