What is the third wire in my charger for?
Elisée
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kokanonyme -
kokanonyme -
Hello,
I just burned out a Compaq Presario charger.
To continue using the laptop, I cut the wire from this charger, stripped the wires that appeared, and made contact with the terminals of another laptop charger (Acer) that has roughly the same properties.
It worked, but the problem is that in the sheath I cut there are 3 wires: two thick ones (apparently the ground and the phase) and one thin one in the center, while on my Acer charger, I only have two terminals (ground and phase).
I assume this little wire is for refining/regulating the battery charge by sending information back to the charger. Probably to improve the battery's lifespan, but I have no idea.
I don't know how this small setup will perform in the long term, so I'm hesitant to use my new laptop that I just bought (I'm using the old one).
If anyone has an idea about the usefulness and function of this third wire, please let me know!!
Elisée
Configuration: Windows Vista / Safari 534.52.7
I just burned out a Compaq Presario charger.
To continue using the laptop, I cut the wire from this charger, stripped the wires that appeared, and made contact with the terminals of another laptop charger (Acer) that has roughly the same properties.
It worked, but the problem is that in the sheath I cut there are 3 wires: two thick ones (apparently the ground and the phase) and one thin one in the center, while on my Acer charger, I only have two terminals (ground and phase).
I assume this little wire is for refining/regulating the battery charge by sending information back to the charger. Probably to improve the battery's lifespan, but I have no idea.
I don't know how this small setup will perform in the long term, so I'm hesitant to use my new laptop that I just bought (I'm using the old one).
If anyone has an idea about the usefulness and function of this third wire, please let me know!!
Elisée
Configuration: Windows Vista / Safari 534.52.7
4 réponses
Thank you for this response, but it wasn't exactly what I wanted to know. (Sorry, I didn't pay attention to the technical terms)
So I'll rephrase:
On a standard charger, I only have two wires coming out: ground and the hot point (positive terminal delivering direct current).
On my Presario charger, I have three wires: two thick and one very thin.
By using the two thick ones (as ground and hot point: the ground is always the most accessible terminal), I was able to power my laptop.
However, I still have the very thin one that I am not using... I would like to know what role it might play... and how dangerous it is for my laptop not to use it...
Thank you!
So I'll rephrase:
On a standard charger, I only have two wires coming out: ground and the hot point (positive terminal delivering direct current).
On my Presario charger, I have three wires: two thick and one very thin.
By using the two thick ones (as ground and hot point: the ground is always the most accessible terminal), I was able to power my laptop.
However, I still have the very thin one that I am not using... I would like to know what role it might play... and how dangerous it is for my laptop not to use it...
Thank you!
Not exactly what you would have wanted to "learn." If you say "to know" in this sentence, it's like saying that you wouldn't have wanted to know "a troubling truth"...
"On a standard charger, I only have two wires coming out: the ground and the hot point."
Positive terminal and negative terminal (return current), but not the ground.
I'm sorry, I'm not sure I understand what is being insinuated.
Here, I'm not talking about "mass carcass" but rather a reference of potential..
I'm almost certain that the word "mass" is a synonym for it.
(Moreover, I believe that to talk about positive AND negative terminals, there has to be a reference point that would itself be at zero. Here, however, I do not have three terminals but two.. So if I define one as positive, the second will necessarily be zero or, (another name) the reference of potential.
We can also consider the dual case where you reverse the measurement terminals (the terminals to which you connect your voltmeter); in this case my zero would become my negative terminal and the positive terminal from earlier would turn into zero..
In the end, it all depends on the reference (thus the zero) that one sets. It is therefore completely arbitrary."