Patent ID: 8223512

Claim:
A power converter outputting a DC voltage from an AC voltage, the power converter comprising: a rectifier circuit for rectifying an AC voltage; a smoothing capacitor for smoothing an output from the rectifying circuit; a switching element controlling on-off operation of the AC voltage; and an inductor including a first set of windings and a second set of windings both wound on a common core that includes a leg portion formed between a first side and a second side of the core, the first set of windings and the second set of windings being loosely coupled with each other, an insulator interposed between the first set of windings and the second set of windings, a leakage inductance component storing energy in a main conversion operation to be output as the DC voltage, and an excitation inductance component suppressing a conduction noise generated by the on-off operation of the switching element, wherein the first set of windings and the second set of windings are disposed concentrically around a central axis formed within the leg portion, wherein a radius of the first set of windings from the central axis is less than a radius of the second set of windings from the central axis, wherein the insulator is disposed to be concentric with the first set of windings and the second set of windings around the central axis, the insulator having a radius from the central axis that is greater than said radius of the first set of windings, further wherein said radius of the insulator is less than said radius of the second set of windings, and the insulator being disposed between an entire side of the first set of windings and an entire side of the second set of windings.