An inverter and a UPS system both supply backup power to electrical devices; however, the primary difference between the two is that the UPS from the main supply to the battery is instantaneous, whereas the supply of power from the inverter to electrical devices will take a few seconds before the power will kick in.
Your inverter will convert your DC power into AC power during unstable power situations. Power from an inverter is stored inside a battery. Depending on the configuration of the circuit and the design of the inverter, the output will put out pulse sine waves, sine waves or square waves.
UPS protects sensitive electrical devices from hikes and dips. The UPS converts AC power to DC power through a rectifier and converts the DC power into AC power through an inverter. Power is instantaneous.
Ten differences between an inverter and an Online UPS System
- The Inverter will convert AC power into DC power. An Online UPS uses a rectifier to provide the backup power to an electrical device which is instantaneous
- Inverters delay the conversion of power by a couple of seconds which means that the power is not instantaneous
- A UPS System is connected directly to appliances; inverters are connected to a battery which will be attached to the electrical circuit (hence the delay of a couple of seconds)
- An inverter is a more cost-effective option; a UPS System, on the other hand, is a more costly option
- The configuration of the UPS System includes a battery and rectifier that are built in; the rectifier in the UPS System stores power which converts the power from AC to DC during outages
- Inverters, on the other hand, have external batteries that store DC power
- Inverters have the capacity to supply DC power for longer periods of time; more so than UPS Systems
- An inverter’s power supply could fluctuate and is less stable than that of a UPS System
- Applications for UPS systems are usually applied to functioning in office, home and industrial environments, whereas inverters are usually used in office environments
Inverters have a definite use in numerous environments as do UPS systems, whether they are Online systems or Offline.