In many situations, the people working on the design and development of new equipment and systems in small companies or in initial ventures may not be engineers. This does not mean they are experienced or that they do not have the knowledge needed, but it may mean they make choices on parts and components that are not always the best option.
A good example of this is the choice of standard, off-the-shelf inductor or the choice of custom inductors. Often the easiest and the fastest option is to choose the off-the-shelf option, but this may not offer the protection to the system.
The Basics
Any type of inductor, both custom and off-the-shelf, are passive components in the system. This means they have no ability to change the energy flowing through the component, but they can store the energy in the magnetic field that is created. In the case of the inductor, their role is to block the AC going through the component while allowing the DC to pass through. There are other uses for inductors including as filters and to create a tuned circuit that is used in equipment like radios and televisions.
All inductors are made up of a conductor wire that is formed into a coil around a core. When the electricity is on and flowing through the conductor, it forms a magnetic field. The greater the number of coils, the stronger the magnetic field produced.
One of the options in custom inductors is to create the exact number of coils to create the required magnetic field for the specific application. This also means correctly choosing the area of the coil as well as the core of the component.
The use of custom inductors is essential to prevent changes, in the current through the component. If this is not correctly calculated, the components on the opposite side of the inductor have a shorter life cycle and high failure rates.