For the data center, the UPS has the significance of ensuring continuous power supply, data protection, system stability, ensuring production environment, preventing hardware damage, emergency response, and ensuring network communication. So, what exactly is a UPS in a data center? What parts are they made of? What are the types?

UPS stands for "Uninterruptible Power Supply". A UPS is a power backup device used to provide backup power for a short period of time in case of power outages or voltage fluctuations to ensure that electronic devices can continue to operate normally.

A UPS system usually consists of the following main components:

Battery

This is one of the core components of the UPS system. Batteries store electrical energy and release this stored energy in the event of a power interruption to provide the power needed for the equipment to continue operating.

Inverter (Inverter)

The inverter converts the direct current provided by the battery to alternating current for use by the devices connected to the UPS. Most electronic devices use alternating current instead of direct current.

Charger (Charger)

The charger is responsible for charging the battery when the power is normal, to ensure that the battery has enough power reserves in the next power interruption.

Static Switch (Static Switch)

The static switch is used to switch the load to the backup power supply provided by the UPS system when the normal power supply fails.

UPS systems can be divided into different types according to their design and use, mainly the following categories:

Online (dual conversion) UPS

In this type of UPS, the device always receives power from the battery through the inverter, regardless of the status of the main power supply. This design provides the highest level of power protection, but is relatively inefficient.

Offline (off-line) UPS

In this type of UPS, the device directly uses the main power supply when the main power supply is normal, and only switches to battery power when the power is interrupted. This design is more efficient, but the switching time is relatively long.

Online interactive UPS

This is a hybrid of online UPS and offline UPS, the device uses the main power directly when the main power is normal, and immediately switches to battery power when the power is interrupted.

UPS is usually used to protect devices that require a stable power supply, such as computers, servers, network equipment, and medical equipment. UPS can provide a reliable power backup solution, ensuring that the system can continue to operate in the event of a power problem, and can smoothly switch back to the main power supply when the power problem is resolved.