Electrical Network Analysis Mid Project Report

BEE-13 D
Group Members:

Name CMS ID
Abeeha Fatima 380993

Muhammad Shafay 383471

Muhammad Saad Husnain 365824

Azzan Rauf 373199

PROJECT TITLE:
Abstract:
Most electronics devices operate on low voltage DC, whereas most main supplies supply high
voltage AC power. For the usage, design, and testing of electronic components, it is
necessary to have a reliable system that is able to supply a range of DC voltages as per the
use case. To bridge this gap, our project uses the LM317 voltage regulator IC along with a
step-down transformer and a bridge rectifier to be able to supply an output voltage that is
variable from around 2V-27V. This project is a rather barebones implementation of a variable
voltage DC power supply that connects to the mains and provides the user the ability to
control the amount of DC voltage received at the output terminals via a voltage selection
knob. Our power supply has essentially three separate subdivisions, the rectification stage,
filtration stage, and regulation stage.

Introduction:
DC power is widely used in low voltage applications such as charging batteries, automotive
applications, aircraft applications, powering microcontrollers and other low voltage, low
current applications. Therefore, a variable DC power supply is the necessity of any lab or
research facility, as well as is extremely useful in the abovementioned cases. Often, to cut
costs it is possible to replace a multiple battery system operating at different voltages with a
single battery or bank along with a voltage regulation system.
After the initial idea and construction phase, we have created a breadboard-based
implementation of the variable DC voltage power supply which is functional and allows the
user to connect a load and supply variable voltage to it. The further findings during this
construction are within this paper.
Literature Review:
Onsemi[1] has a great data sheet covering in-depth the uses of LM-317 as a voltage regulator,
a current regulator, electronic shutdown regulator, slow turn-off regulator, etc. It is densely
packed with technical specifications about the LM-317 including operating temperatures,
current thresholds for the pins of the LM-317 regulator and other parameters of operation.
Steven Singley Jr [2] developed a voltage regulator circuit using the LM-317T to reduce
battery costs by replating multiple batteries with a single one and a voltage regulator for
robotics implementations. This paper covers in-depth the thermal performance and reliability
of an LM-317 based supply. The paper concluded that the supplies performed admirably and
the LM-317 did not exceed its maximum operating temperature of 125C after a 5-minute
stress test.
V Hemanth Kumar [3] developed a variable voltage regulator using the LM-317 IC and
detailed the process of assembling the system.
Bourdillon[4] performed a comparative analysis between transformer-based and transformer
less power supplies and concluded that both systems have their merits but also their
differences, mainly in isolation from source voltage and robustness of output current.
References:
[1] https://www.onsemi.com/pdf/datasheet/lm317-d.pdf
[2]https://prizedwriting.ucdavis.edu/sites/prizedwriting.ucdavis.edu/files/sitewide/
pastissues/12%E2%80%9313%20SIGLEY.pdf
[3] https://www.ijsr.net/archive/v8i3/ART20196392.pdf
[4]https://www.researchgate.net/publication/
264461651_Comparative_Analysis_of_Transformer_and_Transformer_Less
Design:

Above is a block diagram for the circuit design we have opted for. It involves a
step-down transformer to isolate the system from the main voltage preventing
damage from over-voltage.

Above is the circuit diagram for the circuit. TR1 is a 220V-24V step down transformer which
is connected to 220V 50Hz mains supply. D1,D2,D3, and D4 form a bridge rectifier for the
rectification stage of the circuit. The capacitor C1 = 220uF is used as a smoothing capacitor.
C3 and C4 are ripple filtration capacitors. Diodes D6 and D5 are used as protection diodes for
the ins of the LM-317 IC. The LM317 is used as the regulator IC and the 5K pot RV1 is used
to adjust the amount of output voltage received. The circuit is formed of mainly inexpensive
components but is a good basic power supply.
Working Details:
The output from TR1 is fed into the diode bridge formed by the four 1N4007 diodes. This
produces pulsating DC at the output terminals of the full-wave rectifier. This DC is not usable
for power applications due to its pulsating nature therefore we must use a capacitor as a filter
in order to smooth the pulsating DC to a more usable, steady DC value. Since the capacitor
resists a change in voltage it helps make the DC voltage a lot more stable before it is fed into
the input pin of the LM-317.
The LM-317 is a three-terminal device. In operation, the LM317 develops and maintains a
nominal 1.25 V reference (Vref) between its output and adjustment terminals. This reference
voltage is converted to a programming current (IPROG) by R1), and this constant current
flows through RV1 to the ground. The regulated output voltage is given by
V out =V ref 1+ (
RV 1
R1 )+ I adj RV 1
In practice, the value of Iadj is in the order of microamps and can safely be ignored from this
expression for most use cases.

C4 bypasses the adjust pin and directly grounds it, this allows the system to avoid amplifying
ripples when the output voltage is set high. Even though the LM317 IC is a very stable
integrated circuit, certain external capacitances can cause ringing. C3 is installed to swamp
this effect and mitigate it. Diode D6 and D5 are installed to prevent C4 from discharging into
the LM-317 IC in the case of an input short circuit, and diode D5 prevents C3 from
discharging into the IC in case of an output short circuit. This makes the system more stable
and prevents the IC from suffering damage in these cases.

Attached below are our simulated and practical implementation results:

Figure 1 Minimum Voltage with RV1 set to minimum

Figure 4 Physical implementation maximum voltage

The major reason for the difference of our output values from the simulation is the tolerance in the
transformer. It outputs a voltage higher than rated (around 27-28V).

Recommendations
We propose that we enhance this power supply even further by adding a heatsink or a method
of active cooling, as well as switching the physical implementation from breadboard to a
perforated board. We also intend on replacing the single potentiometer with two
potentiometers of differing magnitude to provide both fine and rough control over the output
voltage from the system. We are also aiming to incorporate a digital voltmeter and ammeter
display at the output of the system.
Conclusions:
We have been successful in a barebones implementation of an LM-317 based regulated
voltage supply that outputs steady DC on an AC input. The system provides regulated DC
voltage from 2.8V-26.7V and is cheap and effective in doing so. We aim to further improve
this project in the upcoming time.