Regulated and unregulated

[Antonio_Magma]

What does it mean to have regulated and unregulated voltage?

 

[DrWhoF]

Regulated voltage will mentain its value (almost constant) with or without load.
Unregulated voltage will varry with load, supply (mains) and so on.
DrWho

 

[mayu_wakui]

yeah..and there's 2 types of regulation which is Line regulation and Load regulation. for more info, check out:

https://www.answers.com/

 

[Antonio_Magma]

Does it mean that unregulated voltage is more unpredictable and dangerous?

If a certain load draws in more current than usual, based on V=IR, with a fixed R, an unregulated voltage might fluctuate whereas a regulated voltage will stay constant right?

If so, why do we need unregulated voltage?

 

[IanP]

Bear in mind that regulated voltage is always produced from unregulated voltage ..

If a circuit can work with wide range of voltages it can be fed from an unregulated voltage ..
If a circuit requires certain and constant supply voltage it (the voltage) will be produced by a regulator form unregulated voltage ..

Regards,
IanP

 

[Sceadwian]

Regulating a voltage always causes a power loss as well. In battery powered applications this can be critical, this is why li-poly cells are so popular, because they work at a native voltage that is ideal to 3.3 volt cmos parts.

 

[pankaj waghmare]

regulated means o/p voltage is constant which causes the power loss.
unregulated means voltages has to vary with load

 

[pourfardm]

Most of the time you need a stable voltage for circuit to work for example ICs mostly work with exactly 5 voltage if you give them a voltage lower or higher than this voltage it won't work in a way that factory guarenteed or do not work.
The circuit that make for you a stable or regulated voltage called regulated circuit which gives a unrregulated(unstable) voltages as an input for example a voltage which could change from 5-1=4 to 5+1=6 and give you a stable regulated voltage of 5.
As an another example the 220 voltage of your town are not stable but the device which work with electricity needs a regulated voltage so they have a regulated curcuit in themselves