An improved single-phase uninterruptible power supply ( UPS) is proposed that is composed of a series converter and a parallel converter. The series converter regulates the output voltage, and then the parallel converter provides reactive current compensation and battery charging. A fast detection technique of the line voltage is proposed, which has almost zero transition time from the line power mode to the power failure mode. Furthermore, a current controller of the parallel converter for unity power factor is suggested and it is derived using the feedback linearization technique. A current limit technique in the power failure mode is proposed to protect the parallel converter without a system trip under any impulsive load. All control algorithms are implemented in software with a single-chip microcontroller. Experimental results obtained under a 3kVA prototype show good transient and steady-state performance such as almost negligible transition time, 97% power efficiency and 99% power factor.