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Power Supplies A to Z : "W"

We've included this handy glossary to help with the terminology & abbreviations relating to power products. Pick a letter below to begin.

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X-Z #

W

Abbreviation for watt.

Warm-up Drift

The change in output voltage of a power supply from turn on until it reaches thermal equilibrium at specified operating conditions.

Warm-up Time

The time required after a power supply (PSU) is initially turned on before it operates according to specified performance limits.

Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Directive (WEEE)

The European Community Directive on waste electrical and electronic equipment which, together with the RoHS Directive, became European Law in February 2003. It sets targets for collection, recycling and recovery for electrical/electronic goods. The law puts the responsibiliyt for these targets on the companies manufacturing electronic equipment. "Users of electrical and electronic equipment from private households should have the possibility of returning WEEE at least free of charge". Also, the manufacturers must use the collected waste in an ecologically friendly manner, either by ecological disposal or by reuse/refurbish. See also Restriction of Hazardous Substances Directive.

Watt (W)

Unit of measurement of Power. Written as 'watt'. Abbreviated to W.

WEEE

Abbreviation for Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Directive.

Wide Range Input

The ability for a power supply to operate from a wide range of input voltages (110Vac and 230Vac and any voltage in between). A typical specification for wide range input would be 90Vac to 253Vac. Compare with Auto-Range Input.

Winding

A conductor wound onto a magnetic core, e.g. a transformer Primary Winding or Secondary Winding.

Working Voltage

The highest RMS value of the ac or dc voltage (disregarding transients) that may occur locally across any insulation at rated supply voltage.

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X-Z #