The market for distributed power systems

Distributed power architectures replace central power sources with one bulk power supply that is converted to the required voltages by DC/DC power converters at the point of need. The benefits and disadvantages of distributed power systems are summarized. In the last ten years, the design advantages of distributed power systems has spread to a variety of applications, including industrial controls, automotive applications, computer systems, medical electronics, and telecommunications. The market for distributed power architecture is a niche within the switching power supply industry. Approximately two-thirds of respondents among power supply vendors perceive growth in applications for distributed power architectures, although they differ on the rate of acceptance of this technology. Though most of the DC/DC power converters of distributed power architectures are currently used in military/aerospace and communications applications, the real potential for distributed power systems lies within the computer industry