Autoranging: Theory of operation

With the rising penetration of energy-consuming native direct current (DC) loads in commercial and residential applications the debate over the relative merits of AC versus DC-based systems has intensified. Therefore programmable DC power sources are an essential tool in product development.  "Autoranging" can provide valuable support in this regard, as this technology allows a programmable DC source automatically to provide a wide range of output voltage and current in order to maintain full output power over a wide operating range.