Chokeless power-line filters with integral surge protection

Like other subsystems and circuits used in electronic equipment, mitigation technologies used to protect equipment and reduce emissions must continue to advance. Power-line filters are one example of a mitigation technology that are overdue for improvement. Recent advances in filter characterization have been made as with the development of new test methods (i.e., IEEE 1560). Filters must also be able to withstand electrical disturbances in the common everyday electrical environment. Present equipment designs use traditional filters plus some type of surge protection device (SPD). Improvements to equipment and filter performance can be achieved by using a different approach to reduce emissions combined with integral surge protection. This paper not only discusses typical problems with filters but also presents a new technology for designing filters followed by some laboratory test data comparing traditional filter performance with that of the new filter technology.