Line isolation transformer
Safety device for telephones
A line isolation transformer for telephone use is a special type of impedance matching transformer that is used to couple telephone land lines to subscriber equipment to prevent dangerous common mode voltages from appearing on the line. It has a specific 600Ω input impedance which matches the telephone equipment.
A "wet" type will maintain its characteristics while passing the DC current needed to seize the telephone line (signal off-hook to the central office). It is also made with a gapped magnetic core that is not used in normal transformers. A "dry" isolation transformer need not carry DC current and an alternative DC path would be provided.
Sources and credits
This article is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Line isolation transformer”, written by its contributors and licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Fathomly has changed the layout, removed citation markers, navigation and maintenance notices, and adjusted punctuation. This adapted version is shared under the same license. For references, see the original article.
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