Adaptation of a commercial UPS system for energy systems education

Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS) Systems have become a critical component in the monitoring and safeguarding of electrical networks. Having continuous power has been a necessity in data centers for years, but has since extended into protection of businesses and other essential facilities. For this reason, research efforts have focused on the production of large-scale systems capable of handling large quantities of power. In response to this movement, many custom UPS systems have been in production attempting to battle common issues seen with smaller-scale systems and enable support for a growing need for stable and reliable power. In this study, a unique UPS power system is analyzed and retrofitted for use in a university laboratory environment. A fully integrated information system is developed using National Instruments LabView™ to examine the functions of the UPS and its individual subsystems.