In the United States, there are over 6,000 hospitals in operation and more than 90% of them use isolation transformers. With numbers this high, you might be wondering what they’re used for and why they’re so crucial for a hospital’s power supply. Here are some of the most common isolation transformers used in a hospital.
What are isolation transformers?
Medical grade isolation transformers are the most common type of transformer in a hospital. They’re used to isolate sections of the hospital with different voltages. These transformers are designed to protect equipment in that section from disruption from currents. For example, an isolation transformer can prevent a patient’s heart monitor from being disrupted by incorrect voltage from other equipment in the room.
Why are they used?
Isolation transformers are used to isolate the power supply during an emergency. This helps prevent electric shock, fire, and other issues if a hospital’s power is interrupted.
How do they work?
An isolation transformer acts as a buffer between the power grid and the sensitive equipment. The isolation transformer converts high-voltage electricity from the power grid to a lower voltage level. This lower voltage is preferred for hospitals because it’s safer for medical equipment. A medical grade isolation transformer is needed in a hospital because you want to protect the sensitive electronics of your machines from power surges, which can occur when electricity flows through long wires. A sudden voltage spike could cause your medical devices to stop working or even damage them. By using an isolation transformer, any spikes are eliminated and protect your machines while they’re plugged in.
Conclusion
A medical grade isolation transformer is vital for the safety of the hospital and everyone inside. The three most common uses for isolation transformers in hospitals are; powering diagnostic equipment, protecting hospital staff and patients from external electrical faults, and providing backup power to critical equipment in the event of a power failure. Isolation transformers can be used to create an electrically isolated environment with another device or piece of machinery by converting its voltage so that it does not connect with anything else outside this “island” system. This prevents any electric current flow between them, which would otherwise cause dangerous short circuits or shocks – something that could prove fatal if done at high voltages such as those found on life support systems like ventilators.