Forward Converter

Another important switch mode power supply is Forward Converter. It is another isolated
type SMPS and produces controlled and regulated DC from an unregulated DC supply.

The efficiency of Forward Converter is slightly more than that of Flyback Converter and is
often used in application where the power requirements are a little higher (typically around
200W). The design of Forward Converters is slightly complex than Flyback Converters and a
simple structure is shown below.
The simple circuit of Forward Converter consists of a fast switching transistor, a control
circuit to control the duty cycle of the Square Wave, a normal transformer, two diodes for
rectifying the AC, an inductor and a capacitor for filtering.

Forward Converter Operation

The following image shows the operation of the Forward Converter when the Transistor is
turned ON. When the pulse is HIGH, the transistor is turned ON and as a result, the primary
coil of the transformer starts conducting. As a result, a voltage is induced in the secondary
coil of the transformer.

The polarity of the voltage induced in the secondary is similar to that of the primary and
hence, the diode D1 gets forward biased. The voltage from the secondary will start to flow
through the diode D1, inductor, capacitor and finally the load. During this period, both the
inductor and capacitor store energy in the form of magnetic field and electric field
respectively.

When the pulse becomes LOW, the transistor is turned OFF and as a result, the primary coil
stops conducting. This will in turn stop inducing current in the secondary. This sudden
change (or drop) in current will generate a back e.m.f of the inductor and polarity of its
voltage is reversed.

This period of operation of the Forward Converter is shown in the image below. The energy
in the inductor start collapsing in the circuit through the load and Diode D2 (as it is forward
biased). As soon as the energy in the inductor finishes, the capacitor starts discharging
through the load and acts as a temporary source to the load. This continues until the transistor
is turned ON again

the output voltage of the Forward Converter is dependent on the transformer turns ratio as
well as the duty cycle of the Pulse Width Modulator. The output voltage is given by

VOUT = VIN x D x NS/NP