EE2201 Measurement and Instrumentation Lecture Notes
EE2201 Measurement and Instrumentation Lecture Notes
EE2201 Measurement and Instrumentation Lecture Notes
com
CONTENTS
Measurement Basic requirements Significance of measurement Methods of measurement Instrument and measurement systems Evolution of instruments Classification of Instruments Types of Instrumentation system Elements of generalized measurement system Functional elements of an instrument Static and dynamic characteristics Errors in measurement Statistical evaluation of measurement data Standards Calibration
1. Measurement:
Measurement of a given quantity is essentially an act or result of comparison between the quantity (whose magnitude is unknown) and predetermined or predefined standards. Two quantities are compared the result is expressed in numerical values.
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3. Significance of Measurement
Importance of Measurement is simply and eloquently expressed in the following statement of famous physicist Lord Kelvin: I often say that when you can measure what you are speaking about and can express it in numbers, you know something about it; when you cannot express in it numbers your knowledge is of meager and unsatisfactory kind
4. Methods of Measurement
Direct Methods Indirect Methods
DIRECT METHODS: In these methods, the unknown quantity (called the measurand ) is directly compared against a standard. INDIRECT METHOD: Measurements by direct methods are not always possible, feasible and practicable. In engineering applications measurement systems are used which require need of indirect method for measurement purposes.
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quantities or variables.
Because of modular nature of the elements within it, it is common to refer the
6. Evolution of Instruments
Mechanical Electrical Electronic Instruments.
MECHANICAL: These instruments are very reliable for static and stable conditions.
But their disadvantage is that they are unable to respond rapidly to measurements of dynamic and transient conditions. ELECTRICAL: It is faster than mechanical, indicating the output are rapid than mechanical methods. But it depends on the mechanical movement of the meters. The response is 0.5 to 24 seconds. ELECTRONIC: It is more reliable than other system. It uses semiconductor devices and weak signal can also be detected
7. Classification of Instruments
Absolute Instruments. Secondary Instruments.
ABSOLUTE: These instruments give the magnitude if the quantity under measurement terms of physical constants of the instrument. SECONDARY: These instruments are calibrated by the comparison with absolute instruments which have already been calibrated. Further it is classified as
Deflection Type Instruments Null Type Instruments.
Functions of instrument and measuring system can be classified into three. They are:
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element into suitable form to preserve the information content of the original signal.
DATA PRESENTATION ELEMENT: The information about the quantity under
measurement has to be conveyed to the personnel handling the instrument or the system for monitoring, control or analysis purpose.
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QUANTITY TO BE MEASURED
INTERMEDIATE STAGE
TERMINATING STAGE
with time is known as static. Accuracy Drift Dead Zone Static Error Sensitivity Reproducibility
Static Characteristics Static correction Scale range Scale span Noise Dead Time Hysteresis. Linearity
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of input response.
STATIC ERROR: It is defined as the difference between the measured value and true
system responds to changes in measured quantity. It is one of the dynamic characteristics of a measurement system.
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changes in the measured quantity without any dynamic error. Dynamic Error
It is the difference between the true value of the quantity changing with time and the
value indicated by the measurement system if no static error is assumed. It is also called measurement error. It is one the dynamic characteristics. Measuring Lag
It is the retardation delay in the response of a measurement system to changes in the
Time delay: The response of the measurement system begins after a dead zone after
Systematic Errors
Due to inherent short comings in the instrument Due to misuse of the instrument Due to loading effects of the instrument ENVIRONMENTAL ERROR: These errors are due to conditions external to the
measuring device. These may be effects of temperature, pressure, humidity, dust or of external electrostatic or magnetic field.
OBSERVATIONAL ERROR: The error on account of parallax is the observational
error.
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sum of the individual deviations squared divided by the number of readings. Problem Question: The following 10 observation were recorded when measuring a voltage: 41.7, 42.0, 41.8, 42.0, 42.1, 41.9, 42.0, 41.9, 42.5, 41.8 volts.Calculate Mean, Standard Deviation, Probable Error and Range. Answer Mean=41.97 volt S.D=0.22 volt Probable error=0.15 volt Range=0.8 volt.
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instruments against a known standard and subsequently to find errors and accuracy.
Calibration Procedure involve a comparison of the particular instrument with either a Primary standard a secondary standard with a higher accuracy than the instrument to be calibrated. an instrument of known accuracy.
16. Standards
A standard is a physical representation of a unit of measurement. The term standard is applied to a piece of equipment having a known measure of physical quantity. Types of Standards
International Standards (defined based on international agreement )
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CONTENTS
Analog Instruments Classification Principle of operation Magnetic Effect Analog Ammeters Analog Voltmeters Types of Instruments Wattmeter Power Measurement in 3 phase 3 wire system Two wattmeter method Energy meters Single Phase Energy Meter Poly Phase Energy Meter 1. Analog Instruments
An analog device is one in which the output or display is a continuous function of time
and bears a constant relation to its input. 2. Classification Classified based upon the quantity they measure (ammeter, voltmeter) Classified according to the current that can be measured by them.(DC,AC) Classified according to the effects used for working. Classified as Indicating, Recording, And Integrating. Classified on the basis of method used for comparing the unknown quantity. (Direct / Comparison measurement )
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3. Principle of operation Magnetic Effect Thermal Effect Electrostatic Effect Induction Effect Hall Effect
4. Magnetic Effect
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Hall Effects
Supporting the moving element Suspension Taut Suspension Pivot and jewel bearings
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5. Analog Ammeters
Ammeters are connected in series in the circuit whose current is to be measured. The
power loss in an ammeter is I2Ra.Therefore ammeters should have a low electrical resistance so that they cause a small voltage drop and consequently absorb small power. 6. Analog Voltmeters
Voltmeters are connected in parallel in the circuit whose voltage is to be measured. The
power loss in an ammeter is V2/RV.Therefore voltmeters should have a high electrical resistance so that they cause a small voltage drop and consequently absorb small power. 7. Types of Instruments
Permanent magnet moving coil (PMMC). Moving Iron Electro-dynamometer type. Hot wire type. Thermocouple type. Induction type. Electrostatic type. Rectifier type.
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Electrodynamometer Type
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Energy meters
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Ammeter An ammeter is an instrument for measuring the electric current in amperes in a branch of an electric circuit. It must be placed in series with the measured branch, and must have very low resistance to avoid significant alteration of the current it is to measure. By contrast, a voltmeter must be connected in parallel. The analogy with an inline flow meter in a water circuit can help visualize why an ammeter must have a low resistance, and why connecting an ammeter in parallel can damage the meter. Modern solid-state meters have digital readouts, but the principles of operation can be better appreciated by examining the older moving coil meters based on galvanometer sensors.
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In order to use a DC-style meter movement such as the D'Arsonval design, the alternating current must be rectified into DC. This is most easily accomplished through
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Fig:Passing AC through this Rectified AC meter movement will drive it in one direction. Another strategy for a practical AC meter movement is to redesign the movement without the inherent polarity sensitivity of the DC types. This means avoiding the use of permanent magnets. Probably the simplest design is to use a no magnetized iron vane to move the needle against spring tension, the vane being attracted toward a stationary coil of wire energized by the AC quantity to be measured as in Figure below.
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Electrostatic attraction between two metal plates separated by an air gap is an alternative mechanism for generating a needle-moving force proportional to applied voltage. This works just as well for AC as it does for DC, or should I say, just as poorly! The forces involved are very small, much smaller than the magnetic attraction between an energized coil and an iron vane, and as such these electrostatic meter movements tend to be fragile and easily disturbed by physical movement. But, for some high-voltage AC applications, the electrostatic movement is an elegant technology. If nothing else, this technology possesses the advantage of extremely high input impedance, meaning that no current need be drawn from the circuit under test. Also, electrostatic meter movements are capable of measuring very high voltages without need for range resistors or other, external apparatus. When a sensitive meter movement needs to be re-ranged to function as an AC voltmeter, series-connected multiplier resistors and/or resistive voltage dividers may be employed just as in DC meter design: (Figure below)
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Fig:Multiplier resistor (a) or resistive divider (b) scales the range of the basic meter movement
Capacitors may be used instead of resistors, though, to make voltmeter divider circuits. This strategy has the advantage of being non-dissipative (no true power consumed and no heat produced): (Figure below)
Fig: AC voltmeter with capacitive divider If the meter movement is electrostatic, and thus inherently capacitive in nature, a single multiplier capacitor may be connected in series to give it a greater voltage measuring range, just as a series-connected multiplier resistor gives a moving-coil (inherently resistive) meter movement a greater voltage range: (Figure below)
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Fig:An electrostatic meter movement may use a capacitive multiplier to multiply the scale of the basic meter movement.. The Cathode Ray Tube (CRT) mentioned in the DC metering chapter is ideally suited for measuring AC voltages, especially if the electron beam is swept side-to-side across the screen of the tube while the measured AC voltage drives the beam up and down. A graphical representation of the AC wave shape and not just a measurement of magnitude can easily be had with such a device. However, CRT's have the disadvantages of weight, size, significant power consumption, and fragility (being made of evacuated glass) working against them. For these reasons, electromechanical AC meter movements still have a place in practical usage. With some of the advantages and disadvantages of these meter movement technologies having been discussed already, there is another factor crucially important for the designer and user of AC metering instruments to be aware of. This is the issue of RMS measurement. As we already know, AC measurements are often cast in a scale of DC power equivalence, called RMS (Root-Mean-Square) for the sake of meaningful comparisons with DC and with other AC waveforms of varying shape. None of the meter movement technologies so far discussed inherently measure the RMS value of an AC quantity. Meter movements relying on the motion of a mechanical needle (rectified D'Arsonval, iron-vane, and electrostatic) all tend to mechanically average the instantaneous values into an overall average value for the waveform. This average value is not necessarily the same as RMS, although many times it is mistaken as such. Average and RMS values rate against each other as such for these three common waveform shapes: (Figure below)
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RMS, Average, and Peak-to-Peak values for sine, square, and triangle waves. Since RMS seems to be the kind of measurement most people are interested in obtaining with an instrument, and electromechanical meter movements naturally deliver average measurements rather than RMS, what are AC meter designers to do? Cheat, of course! Typically the assumption is made that the waveform shape to be measured is going to be sine (by far the most common, especially for power systems), and then the meter movement scale is altered by the appropriate multiplication factor. For sine waves we see that RMS is equal to 0.707 times the peak value while Average is 0.637 times the peak, so we can divide one figure by the other to obtain an average-to-RMS conversion factor of 1.109:
In other words, the meter movement will be calibrated to indicate approximately 1.11 times higher than it would ordinarily (naturally) indicate with no special
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With square waves, the RMS and Average values are identical! An AC meter calibrated to accurately read RMS voltage or current on a pure sine wave will not give the proper value while indicating the magnitude of anything other than a perfect sine wave. This includes triangle waves, square waves, or any kind of distorted sine wave. With harmonics becoming an ever-present phenomenon in large AC power systems, this matter of accurate RMS measurement is no small matter. The astute reader will note that I have omitted the CRT movement fro m the RMS/Average discussion. This is because a CRT with its practically weightless electron beam movement displays the Peak (or Peak-to-Peak if you wish) of an AC waveform rather than Average or RMS. Still, a similar problem arises: how do you determine the RMS value of a waveform from it? Conversion factors between Peak and RMS only hold so long as the waveform falls neatly into a known category of shape (sine, triangle, and square are the only examples with Peak/RMS/Average conversion factors given here!). One answer is to design the meter movement around the very definition of RMS: the effective heating value of an AC voltage/current as it powers a resistive load. Suppose that the AC source to be measured is connected across a resistor of known value, and the heat output of that resistor is measured with a device like a thermocouple. This would provide a far more direct measurement means of RMS than any conversion factor could, for it will work with ANY waveform shape whatsoever: (Figure below)
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Direct reading thermal RMS voltmeter accommodates any wave shape. While the device shown above is somewhat crude and would suffer from unique engineering problems of its own, the concept illustrated is very sound. The resistor converts the AC voltage or current quantity into a thermal (heat) quantity, effectively squaring the values in real-time. The system's mass works to average these values by the principle of thermal inertia, and then the meter scale itself is calibrated to give an indication based on the square-root of the thermal measurement: perfect Root-MeanSquare indication all in one device! In fact, one major instrument manufacturer has implemented this technique into its high-end line of handheld electronic multimeters for true-RMS capability. Calibrating AC voltmeters and ammeters for different full-scale ranges of operation is much the same as with DC instruments: series multiplier resistors are used to give voltmeter movements higher range, and parallel shunt resistors are used to allow ammeter movements to measure currents beyond their natural range. However, we are not limited to these techniques as we were with DC: because we can use transformers with AC, meter ranges can be electromagnetically rather than resistively stepped up or stepped down, sometimes far beyond what resistors would have practically allowed for. Potential Transformers (PT's) and Current Transformers (CT's) are precision instrument devices manufactured to produce very precise ratios of transformation between primary and secondary windings. They can allow small, simple AC meter movements to indicate extremely high voltages and currents in power systems with accuracy and complete
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(CT) Current transformer scales current down. (PT) Potential transformer scales voltage down. Shown here is a voltage and current meter panel from a three-phase AC system. The three donut current transformers (CT's) can be seen in the rear of the panel. Three AC ammeters (rated 5 amps full-scale deflection each) on the front of the panel indicate current through each conductor going through a CT. As this panel has been removed from service, there are no current-carrying conductors threaded through the center of the CT donuts anymore: (Figure below)
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Toroidal current transformers scale high current levels down for application to 5 A fullscale AC ammeters. Because of the expense (and often large size) of instrument transformers, they are not used to scale AC meters for any applications other than high voltage and high current. For scaling a milliamp or microamp movement to a range of 120 volts or 5 amps, normal precision resistors (multipliers and shunts) are used, just as with DC. Frequency and phase measurement
An important electrical quantity with no equivalent in DC circuits is frequency. Frequency measurement is very important in many applications of alternating current, especially in AC power systems designed to run efficiently at one frequency and one frequency only. If an electromechanical alternator is generating the AC, the frequency will be directly proportional to the shaft speed of the machine, and frequency could be measured simply by measuring the speed of the shaft. If frequency needs to be measured at some distance from the alternator, though, other means of measurement will be necessary.
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The user of this meter views the ends of all those unequal length reeds as they are collectively shaken at the frequency of the applied AC voltage to the coil. The one closest in resonant frequency to the applied AC will vibrate the most, looking something like Figure below.
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Vibrating reed meters, obviously, are not precision instruments, but they are very simple and therefore easy to manufacture to be rugged. They are often found on small engine-driven generator sets for the purpose of setting engine speed so that the frequency is somewhat close to 60 (50 in Europe) Hertz. While reed-type meters are imprecise, their operational principle is not. In lieu of mechanical resonance, we may substitute electrical resonance and design a frequency meter using an inductor and capacitor in the form of a tank circuit (parallel inductor and capacitor). See Figure below. One or both components are made adjustable, and a meter is placed in the circuit to indicate maximum amplitude of voltage across the two components. The adjustment knob(s) are calibrated to show resonant frequency for any given setting, and the frequency is read from them after the device has been adjusted for maximum indication on the meter. Essentially, this is a tunable filter circuit, which is adjusted and then read in a manner similar to a bridge circuit (which must be balanced for a null condition and then read).
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Resonant frequency meter peaks as L-C resonant frequency is tuned to test frequency.
This technique is a popular one for amateur radio operators (or at least it was before the advent of inexpensive digital frequency instruments called counters), especially because it doesn't require direct connection to the circuit. So long as the inductor and/or capacitor can intercept enough stray field (magnetic or electric, respectively) from the circuit under test to cause the meter to indicate, it will work. In frequency as in other types of electrical measurement, the most accurate means of measurement are usually those where an unknown quantity is compared against a known standard, the basic instrument doing nothing more than indicating when the two quantities are equal to each other. This is the basic principle behind the DC (Wheatstone) bridge circuit and it is a sound metrological principle applied throughout the sciences. If we have access to an accurate frequency standard (a source of AC voltage holding very precisely to a single frequency), then measurement of any unknown frequency by comparison should be relatively easy. For that frequency standard, we turn our attention back to the tuning fork, or at least a more modern variation of it called the quartz crystal. Quartz is a naturally occurring mineral possessing a very interesting property called piezoelectricity. Piezoelectric materials produce a voltage across their length when physically stressed, and will physically deform when an external voltage is applied across their lengths. This deformation is very, very slight in most cases, but it does exist. Quartz rock is elastic (springy) within that small range of bending which an external voltage would produce, which means that it will have a mechanical resonant
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Electrically, that quartz chip is equivalent to a series LC resonant circuit. (Figure below) The dielectric properties of quartz contribute an additional capacitive element to the equivalent circuit.
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Quartz crystal equivalent circuit. \ The capacitance and inductance shown in series are merely electrical equivalents of the quartz's mechanical resonance properties: they do not exist as discrete components within the crystal. The capacitance shown in parallel due to the wire connections across the dielectric (insulating) quartz body is real, and it has an effect on the resonant response of the whole system. A full discussion on crystal dynamics is not necessary here, but what needs to be understood about crystals is this resonant circuit equivalence and how it can be exploited within an oscillator circuit to achieve an output voltage with a stable, known frequency. Crystals, as resonant elements, typically have much higher Q ( quality) values than tank circuits built from inductors and capacitors, principally due to the relative absence of stray resistance, making their resonant frequencies very definite and precise. Because the resonant frequency is solely dependent on the physical properties of quartz (a very stable substance, mechanically), the resonant frequency variation over time with a quartz crystal is very, very low. This is how quartz movement watches obtain their high accuracy: by means of an electronic oscillator stabilized by the resonant action of a quartz crystal. For laboratory applications, though, even greater frequency stability may be desired. To achieve this, the crystal in question may be placed in a temperature stabilized
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Two Marks
1. Name the different essential torques in indicating instruments. Deflecting torque Controlling torque Damping torque 2. Name the types of instruments used for making voltmeter and ammeter. PMMC type Moving iron type Dynamometer type Hot wire type Electrostatic type Induction type. 3. State the advantages of PMMC instruments Uniform scale. No hysterisis loss Very accurate High effuiciency.
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CONTENTS
D.C & A.C potentiometers D.C & A.C bridges
1. Potentiometers A Potentiometer is an instrument designed to measure an unknown voltage by comparing it with a known voltage 2. D.C & A.C bridges Resistance Low Resistance(<1) Medium Resistance(1 to 0.1M ) High Resistance(> 0.1M )
Low Resistance (<1) Ammeter voltmeter method Kelvins double bridge method Potentiometer method Kelvins double bridge
Medium Resistance (1 to 0.1M) Ammeter-voltmeter method Substitution method Wheatstone bridge method Ohmmeter method Wheat stone Bridge
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Inductance Measurement of self Inductance Maxwells Inductance bridge Maxwells Inductance- capacitance bridge Hays bridge Owens bridge Andersons bridge Measurement of mutual Inductance Heaviside mutual Inductance bridge Carey foster bridge Heydweiller bridge Campbells bridge Capacitance De sautys bridge Schering bridge Schering Bridge
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AC bridge circuits As we saw with DC measurement circuits, the circuit configuration known as a bridge can be a very useful way to measure unknown values of resistance. This is true with AC as well, and we can apply the very same principle to the accurate measurement of unknown impedances. To review, the bridge circuit works as a pair of two-component voltage dividers connected across the same source voltage, with a null-detector meter movement connected between them to indicate a condition of balance at zero volts: (Figure below)
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Any one of the four resistors in the above bridge can be the resistor of unknown value, and its value can be determined by a ratio of the other three, which are calibrated, or whose resistances are known to a precise degree. When the bridge is in a balanced condition (zero voltage as indicated by the null detector), the ratio works out to be this:
One of the advantages of using a bridge circuit to measure resistance is that the voltage of the power source is irrelevant. Practically speaking, the higher the supply voltage, the easier it is to detect a condition of imbalance between the four resistors with the null detector, and thus the more sensitive it will be. A greater supply voltage leads to the possibility of increased measurement precision. However, there will be no fundamental error introduced as a result of a lesser or greater power supply voltage unlike other types of resistance measurement schemes. Impedance bridges work the same, only the balance equation is with complex quantities, as both magnitude and phase across the components of the two dividers must be equal in order for the null detector to indicate zero. The null detector, of course,
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Modern low-Ohm headphones require an impedance matching transformer for use as a sensitive null detector. Using a pair of headphones that completely surround the ears (the closed -cup type), I've been able to detect currents of less than 0.1 A with this simple detector circuit. Roughly equal performance was obtained using two different step-down transformers: a small power transformer (120/6 volt ratio), and an audio output transformer (1000:8 ohm impedance ratio). With the pushbutton switch in place to interrupt current, this circuit is usable for detecting signals from DC to over 2 MHz: even if the frequency is far above or below the audio range, a click will be heard from the headphones each time the switch is pressed and released. Connected to a resistive bridge, the whole circuit looks like Figure below.
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Bridge with sensitive AC null detector. Listening to the headphones as one or more of the resistor arms of the bridge is adjusted, a condition of balance will be realized when the headphones fail to produce clicks (or tones, if the bridge's power source frequency is within audio range) as the switch is actuated. When describing general AC bridges, where impedances and not just resistances must be in proper ratio for balance, it is sometimes helpful to draw the respective bridge legs in the form of box-shaped components, each one with a certain impedance: (Figure below)
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Again, it must be stressed that the impedance quantities in the above equation must be complex, accounting for both magnitude and phase angle. It is insufficient that the impedance magnitudes alone be balanced; without phase angles in balance as well, there will still be voltage across the terminals of the null detector and the bridge will not be balanced. Bridge circuits can be constructed to measure just about any device value desired, be it capacitance, inductance, resistance, or even Q. As always in bridge measurement circuits, the unknown quantity is always balanced against a known standard, obtained from a high-quality, calibrated component that can be adjusted in value until the null detector device indicates a condition of balance. Depending on how the bridge is set up, the unknown component's value may be determined directly from the setting of the calibrated standard, or derived from that standard through a mathematical formula. A couple of simple bridge circuits are shown below, one for inductance (Figure below) and one for capacitance: (Figure below)
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Symmetrical bridge measures unknown capacitor by comparison to a standard capacitor. Simple symmetrical bridges such as these are so named because they exhibit symmetry (mirror-image similarity) from left to right. The two bridge circuits shown above are balanced by adjusting the calibrated reactive component (Ls or Cs). They are a bit simplified from their real-life counterparts, as practical symmetrical bridge circuits often have a calibrated, variable resistor in series or parallel with the reactive component to balance out stray resistance in the unknown component. But, in the hypothetical world of perfect components, these simple bridge circuits do just fine to illustrate the basic concept. An example of a little extra complexity added to compensate for real-world effects can be found in the so-called Wien bridge, which uses a parallel capacitor-resistor standard impedance to balance out an unknown series capacitor-resistor combination. (Figure below) All capacitors have some amount of internal resistance, be it literal or equivalent (in the form of dielectric heating losses) which tend to spoil their otherwise perfectly reactive natures. This internal resistance may be of interest to measure, and so the Wien bridge attempts to do so by providing a balancing imped ance that isn't pure either:
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Wein Bridge measures both capacitive Cx and resistive Rx components of real capacitor. Being that there are two standard components to be adjusted (a resistor and a capacitor) this bridge will take a little more time to balance than the others we've seen so far. The combined effect of R s and Cs is to alter the magnitude and phase angle until the bridge achieves a condition of balance. Once that balance is achieved, the settings of R s and Cs can be read from their calibrated knobs, the parallel impedance of the two determined mathematically, and the unknown capacitance and resistance determined mathematically from the balance equation (Z1/Z2 = Z3/Z4). It is assumed in the operation of the Wien bridge that the standard capacitor has negligible internal resistance, or at least that resistance is already known so that it can be factored into the balance equation. Wien bridges are useful for determining the values of lossy capacitor designs like electrolytics, where the internal resistance is relatively high. They are also used as frequency meters, because the balance of the bridge is frequency-dependent. When used in this fashion, the capacitors are made fixed (and usually of equal value) and the top two resistors are made variable and are adjusted by means of the same knob.
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Maxwell-Wein bridge measures an inductor in terms of a capacitor standard. This ingenious bridge circuit is known as the Maxwell-Wien bridge (sometimes known plainly as the Maxwell bridge), and is used to measure unknown inductances in terms of calibrated resistance and capacitance. (Figure above) Calibration-grade inductors are more difficult to manufacture than capacitors of similar precision, and so the use of a simple symmetrical inductance bridge is not always practical. Because the phase shifts of inductors and capacitors are exactly opposite each other, a capacitive impedance can balance out an inductive impedance if they are located in opposite legs of a bridge, as they are here. Another advantage of using a Maxwell bridge to measure inductance rather than a symmetrical inductance bridge is the elimination of measurement error due to mutual inductance between two inductors. Magnetic fields can be difficult to shield, and even a small amount of coupling between coils in a bridge can introduce substantial errors in certain conditions. With no second inductor to react with in the Maxwell bridge, this problem is eliminated.
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Stray capacitance to ground may introduce errors into the bridge. While reed-type meters are imprecise, their operational principle is not. In lieu of mechanical resonance, we may substitute electrical resonance and design a frequency meter using an inductor and capacitor in the form of a tank circuit (parallel inductor and capacitor). One or both components are made adjustable, and a meter is placed in the circuit to indicate maximum amplitude of voltage across the two components. The adjustment knob(s) are calibrated to show resonant frequency for any given setting, and the frequency is read from them after the device has been adjusted for maximum indication on the meter. Essentially, this is a tunable filter circuit which is adjusted and then read in a manner similar to a bridge circuit (which must be balanced for a null condition and then read). The problem is worsened if the AC voltage source is firmly grounded at one end, the total stray impedance for leakage currents made far less and any leakage currents through these stray capacitances made greater as a result: (Figure below)
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Stray capacitance errors are more severe if one side of the AC supply is grounded. One way of greatly reducing this effect is to keep the null detector at ground potential, so there will be no AC voltage between it and the ground, and thus no current through stray capacitances. However, directly connecting the null detector to ground is not an option, as it would create a direct current path for stray currents, which would be worse than any capacitive path. Instead, a special voltage divider circuit called a Wagner ground or Wagner earth may be used to maintain the null detector at ground potential without the need for a direct connection to the null detector. (Figure below)
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Wagner ground for AC supply minimizes the effects of stray capacitance to ground on the bridge. The Wagner earth circuit is nothing more than a voltage divider, designed to have the voltage ratio and phase shift as each side of the bridge. Because the midpoint of the Wagner divider is directly grounded, any other divider circuit (including either side of the bridge) having the same voltage proportions and phases as the Wagner divider, and powered by the same AC voltage source, will be at ground potential as well. Thus, the Wagner earth divider forces the null detector to be at ground potential, without a direct connection between the detector and ground. There is often a provision made in the null detector connection to confirm proper setting of the Wagner earth divider circuit: a two-position switch, (Figure below) so that one end of the null detector may be connected to either the bridge or the Wagner earth. When the null detector registers zero signal in both switch positions, the bridge is not only guaranteed to be balanced, but the null detector is also guaranteed to be at zero potential with respect to ground, thus eliminating any errors due to leakage currents through stray detector-to-ground capacitances:
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AC bridge circuits work on the same basic principle as DC bridge circuits: that a balanced ratio of impedances (rather than resistances) will result in a balanced condition as indicated by the null-detector device.
Null detectors for AC bridges may be sensitive electromechanical meter movements, oscilloscopes (CRT's), headphones (amplified or unamplified), or any other device capable of registering very small AC voltage levels. Like DC null detectors, its only required point of calibration accuracy is at zero.
AC bridge circuits can be of the symmetrical type where an unknown impedance is balanced by a standard impedance of similar type on the same side (top or bottom) of the bridge. Or, they can be nonsymmetrical, using parallel impedances to balance series impedances, or even capacitances balancing out inductances.
AC bridge circuits often have more than one adjustment, since both impedance magnitude and phase angle must be properly matched to balance.
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Some impedance bridge circuits are frequency-sensitive while others are not. The frequency-sensitive types may be used as frequency measurement devices if all component values are accurately known.
A Wagner earth or Wagner ground is a voltage divider circuit added to AC bridges to help reduce errors due to stray capacitance coupling the null detector to ground.
Two Marks
1. What is the basic principle used in potentiometer. In potentiometer the unknown emf is measured by comparing it with a std known emf. 2. Name the potentiometer material used. German silver Manganin wire 3. Define standardization. It is the process by which adjusting the current flows through the potentiometer coil to make the voltage across the std cell is equal. 4. State the applications of potentiometer. Used for m/s of unknown emf Used for ammeter calibration Used for Voltmeter calibration Used for wattmeter calibration 5. State the advantages of crompton potentiometer. More accurate Easy to adjust 6. What are the practical difficulties in ac potentiometers. More complicated Accuracy is seriously affected Difficulty is experienced in standardization. 7. Classify ac potentiometers. Polar potentiometer
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19. Name the errors caused in potential transformer. Ratio error Phase angle error. 20. How the CT and PT are connected in the circuits. CT is connected in series and PT is connected in parallel. 21. Classify resistance. Low resistance Medium resistance High resistance 22. What is the range of medium resistance? Resistance of about 1 ohm to 100 kilo ohms are called medium resistance. 23. Name the methods used for low resistance measurement. Ammeter voltmeter method Potentiometer method Kelvin double bridge method Ohm meter method. 24. Name the methods used for medium resistance measurement Ammeter voltmeter method Substitution method Wheatstone bridge method Carey foster bridge method. 25. Where high resistance m/s is required? Insulation resistance of cables High resistance circuit elements Volume resistivity of a material
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27. State the advantages of Kelvin double bridge method. Errors owing to contact resistance, resistance of leads can be eliminated by using this Kelvin double bridge. 28. What are the constructional features of doctor ohmmeter? Permanent magnet Current coil Pressure coil Battery Pointer with graduated scale. 29. Define megger. The megger is an instrument used for the measurement of high resistance and insulation resistance. 30. Name the parts of megger. It consists of a hand driven dc generator and a direct reading true ohm meter. 31. What is the range of low resistance? Resistance of about 1 ohm and under are included in this class. 32. What is the range of medium resistance? Resistance of 100 kilo ohms and above are usually termed as high resistance. 33. What ranges of resistance can be measured by using doctor ohmmeter. 0 to 500 micro ohms 0 to 5 milli ohms 0 to 50 milli ohms 0 to 500 milli ohms 0 to 5 ohms. 34. How resistance is measured in direct deflection method.
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