Lecture 1 Uploaded

INSTR F311: Electronic Instruments and Instrumentation Technology
Analog meters
BITS Pilani Dr. Sujan Yenuganti (office no: 5699 - O)

yenuganti.sujan@pilani.bits-pilani.ac.in
Pilani Campus
Analog meters
 An analog meter is one in which the output or display is a continuous function of time and has
proportional relation to its input.
 Classification of Analog meters:

1. Kind of current to be measured: DC/AC/DC-AC
2. Type of application: Indicating/Recording/Integrating/Control
3. Based on method used for comparing the unknown quantity: Direct / Comparison instruments
4. Principle of operation: Magnetic effect/Heating effect /Electrostatic effect/Electromagnetic
effect/Hall effect.
2
BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Types of analog meters
 The main types of analog meters are:

 Permanent magnet moving coil (PMMC)
 Moving iron
 Electro-dynamometer
 Electrostatic (voltmeter only)
 Rectifier
 Hot wire
 Thermocouple
 Induction

PMMC
 Permanent magnet moving coil meter (PMMC) is also called as D’ Arsonval meter, after its inventor.
 It requires very low power to operate and a low current is enough to produce a full scale deflection.
 PMMC meter can be used for DC measurements only and not for AC.
 PMMC instrument is basically a low level dc ammeter, however with the use of parallel connected
resistors (shunts), it can be employed to measure a wide range of dc currents.
 This PMMC can also be used to measure dc voltage by connecting suitable resistors in series with its
moving coil.
 AC ammeters and voltmeters also can be constructed by using rectifier circuits with PMMC.
 Ohmmeters can be made from precision resistors, PMMC and batteries.

Principle
 PMMC instrument consists of a light weight coil of copper wire

suspended in the field of permanent magnet.
 A pointer attached to the coil deflects over a

calibrated scale indicating the level of current
flowing in the copper wire.

Operating forces
 There are three forces operating in a PMMC instrument
- deflection force
- controlling force
- damping force
 A force is exerted on the coil when the current flows, causing the coil to rotate on its pivots. A pointer
attached to the coil moves over a calibrated scale as the coil rotates.
 This force is called deflecting force which causes the pointer to move from its zero position. The deflecting
force is magnetic.

Controlling force
 The controlling force is produced by the spiral springs.
 The springs retain the coil and the pointer to their

original position when no current is flowing through the
coil.
 When the current flows , the springs wind up as the coil

rotates, and the force they exert on the coil increases.
 The coil and the pointer will stop rotating when the
controlling force becomes equal to the deflecting force.

Contd..
 Number of turns on the spring should be fairly

large, so that the deflection per unit length is small.
The stress in the spring must be limited to such a
value that there is no permanent set.
 Suppose that a spiral spring is made up of a total

length l of strip whose cross section is rectangular,
the radial thickness being t and the depth b. Let E be
Young’s modulus (N/m2) for the material of the
spring. The spring constant for the spring will be
Ebt 3 C  K
K
12l Spring control
Gravity control
 In a gravity-controlled instrument, a small weight is attached

to the moving system in such a way that it produces a restoring
or controlling torque when the system is deflected.
 Gravity controlled instruments must obviously be used in a

vertical position in order that the control may operate.
C  WL sin 
 W= control weight
 θ= deflection angle
 L= distance from the axis of rotation to the moving system
Gravity control

Damping force
Absence of damping force
 The pointer and the coil tend to oscillate for some time before settling to their final position.
 A damping force is required to minimize these oscillations.

Contd..
 The damping force is normally provided by eddy currents and it is achieved by constructing the coil
frame or former with aluminum (non magnetic material).
Damping force by eddy currents

Contd..
Eddy current damping on a metal former

Suspensions
 In jewel bearing suspension, the shafts carrying pointer

fastened to the coil are inserted into a cone shaped cuts
in jewel bearings.
 This allows the coil to rotate freely with least possible

friction.
 Some bearings are spring loaded to absorb shocks more

easily.
Jewel bearing suspension

Spring supported Jewel bearing
Contd..
 In this system two flat ribbons are held under

tension by two springs to support the coil. Because
of the springs, the metal ribbons behave like rubber
under tension.
 The ribbons also exert a controlling force as they

twist, and they can be used as electrical
connections to the moving coil.
 Because there is less amount of friction, taut band

instruments are much more sensitive than the jewel
bearing type.
Taut band suspension

Construction
 A permanent magnet with two soft iron pole shoes
 A cylindrical soft iron core is positioned between

the shoes so that only very narrow air gap exists
between the core and the faces of the poles.
 A light weight moving copper coil is pivoted to

move within this narrow air gaps.
 One end of the spiral spring is fastened to the

pivoted coil and the other end is connected to an
adjustable zero position control.

Inside PMMC

Contd..
 A core magnet PMMC has a different construction.
 Instead of using horse shoe permanent magnets, the

magnet is placed inside the coil (replacing the cylindrical
soft iron core).
 A thick cylindrical piece of soft iron surrounds the coil

and the magnet.
 A major advantage of this type construction is that the

moving coil is shielded from the external magnetic fields
due to the presence of the surrounding soft iron cylinder.
Core magnet PMMC

Contd..
 The current in the coil of a PMMC instrument must flow in one particular direction to cause the pointer to
move right from the zero position over the scale.
 When the current is reversed, the interaction of the magnetic flux from the moving coil with that of the
permanent magnet causes the coil to rotate in opposite direction, and the pointer is deflected to the left of
the zero position (i.e., off-scale).
 The terminals of a PMMC are identified as ‘+’ and ‘-’ symbols to indicate the correct polarity for
connection, and the instrument is said to be polarized.
 Because it is polarized, the PMMC instrument cannot be used to directly measure alternating currents.

Torque equation
When a current I flows through one turn of the coil in a magnetic filed, a force F is exerted on each side of
the coil.
F  BIL
 B= magnetic flux density in Tesla
 I= Current in amperes
 L= Length of the coil in meters
Since the force acts on each side of the coil, the

total force for a coil of N turns will be
F  2 BILN Force acting on the coil Area enclosed by the coil

Contd..
The force on each side of the coil at a radius r, producing a deflecting torque ΓD is given by
D  2 BILNr Newton meter
D= coil diameter
D  BILND  BIAN  ( BAN ) I  GI A= area enclosed by the coil =L*D
The controlling torque exerted by the springs is directly proportional to the deformation of the
springs.
Thus the controlling torque ΓC is proportional to the actual angle of deflection θ of the pointer
C  K K= spring constant (N-m/degrees) or

(N-m/radians)
Contd..
For a given deflection, the deflecting torque ΓD and the controlling torque ΓC are equal
K  BIAN
BIAN BAN
  I
K K
Because all except θ and I are constant for a given instrument, the deflection angle is given by
BAN
  CI C is a constant C
K
Damping Torque
 As the coil moves in the field of the permanent magnet, eddy currents are set up in the metal former or
core.
 The magnetic field produced by the eddy currents opposes the motion of the coil. The pointer will
therefore swing more slowly to its proper position and come to rest quickly with very little oscillation.
 Electromagnetic damping is caused by the induced effects in the moving coil as it rotates in magnetic
field
let the resistance of the coil circuit with N turns be R Ω. Then the velocity of a coil side will be
d
v(t )  r m/sec
dt

Contd..
E.m.f induced in each turn of the coil is given by
d
2 BLV (t )  2 BLr
dt
Induced current across N turns of coil
2 BLrN d BLDN d G d
I I 
R dt R dt R dt
The torque produced will be
G d G 2 d
GI  G 
R dt R dt
Contd..
d
Damping torque  D
dt
D is the damping constant for the induced currents in the coil due to its motion.
A metal former may be considered as a single-turn coil and if its dimensions are l1, r1 and its resistance R1.
Similarly, damping torque for the former can be computed as
d
Damping torque  D1
dt
In addition to the induced current damping, there will be a small damping torque due to air friction.
d
Air damping torque  D2
dt
Characteristics
Full-scale Deflection Current (Im):

It is the current needed to deflect the pointer all the way to the right to the last mark on the calibrated scale.
Typical values of Im for D’ Arsonval meter vary from 2 mA to 30 mA.
Internal Resistance (Rm):

It is the dc ohmic resistance of the wire of the moving coil. A meter
with smaller Im has higher Rm and vice versa.
Sensitivity (S):
1 ohm
It is also known as current sensitivity or sensitivity factor S. It is given by S
I m volt
the reciprocal of full-scale deflection current Im.

Errors
Errors in PMMC Instruments

 Weakening of permanent magnets due to ageing at temperature effects.
 Weakening of springs due to ageing and temperature effects.
 Change of resistance of the moving coil with temperature.
Advantages
 The scale is uniformly divided. (linear scale)
 The power consumption is very low.
 Low operating current.
 No hysteresis errors.
Disadvantages
 The cost of these instruments is higher than that of moving iron instruments.
 These instruments cannot be used for AC measurements directly.
 Friction and temperature might introduce some errors.

Swamping resistors
 The PMMC meter is highly sensitive to temperature. Both the magnetic field strength and the spring
tension decreases with an increase in temperature.
 The coil resistance also increases with an increase in temperature.
 Compensation can be achieved by simply using swamping resistors in series with the moving coil. The
swamping resistor is made up of manganin combined with copper. (low temperature coefficient of
resistance)
 The total resistance of the coil and swamping resistors increase slightly with a rise in temperature, to just
only enough to counteract the changes of springs and magnetic field.

PMMC measurement
system
Current carrying wire

in magnetic field N turn coil Spring Pointer and Scale
Measuring θ
Primary Sensing Signal Manipulation Signal Conversion Data Presentation
Medium Element Element Element Element
I Scale
reading
Electric current Observer
Signal Conversion
Element
dθ/dt
Coil with pivoted
axis

PMMC Meters

Ammeters
 PMMC meter is a low level ammeter, however maximum pointer deflection is produced by a very small
amount of current. The coil is usually wound of thin wire that would be quickly destroyed by large
currents.
 For large currents the instrument should be modified so that most of the current to be measured should be
bypassed from the moving coil. Only small portion of the measuring current passes through the coil.
 A shunt or very low resistance is connected in parallel with the moving coil.

Contd..
 The shunt sometimes referred to as four terminal resistor because it has two sets of voltage and current
terminals.
 This is to ensure that resistance in parallel (Rsh) with coil is accurately defined and the contact resistance
of the current terminals is removed from Rsh
 Ammeter is always connected in series with the load in the circuit.
Shunt in Ammeter

Contd..
 Rm= Internal resistance of the coil/ meter

 Rsh= Shunt resistance
 Im= Ifsd= Meter current or full scale deflection current of the meter
 Ish= Shunt current
 I= Current to be measured
Voltage across the shunt resistance is equal to the voltage

across the meter.
Vsh  Vm I sh Rsh  I m Rm
I m Rm
Rsh 
I sh Ammeter equivalent circuit

Contd..
I m Rm
Rsh 
I  Im
Rm
Rsh 
I
1
Im
The ratio of total current to the meter current is known as

multiplying factor m of shunt.
Ammeter equivalent circuit
Rm
Rsh 
m 1
Swamping resistors
 The heating effect of the coil current may be enough to

produce a resistance change.
 Any such change in coil resistance will introduce error in
ammeter current measurements.
 The swamping resistance must be considered as a part of
the meter resistance Rm when calculating shunt resistance
values.
 In some cases the ammeter shunt must also be made of
manganin or constantan to avoid shunt resistance
variations with temperature.

Multi range ammeters
 The current range of the dc ammeter is further extended by a number of shunts, selected by a range
switch. This type of meter is called a multi-range ammeter.
Multi range ammeter circuit

Contd..
 A rotatory switch is employed to select any one of several shunts being different resistance values
 A make before break switch is used within the instrument so that the instrument is not left without a shunt in
parallel with it even for a brief instant.
 When switching between shunts, the wide ended moving contact of the make before break switch makes
contact with the next terminal before it breaks contact with the previous terminal.
 During switching , there are actually two shunts in parallel with the instrument.
Make before break switch

Universal or Ayrton shunt
 Resistors R1, R2 and R3 constitute the circuit. When the switch is

connected to the terminal B, the total resistance in parallel to the
meter is R1 + R2 + R3 (shunt) and the meter resistance remains
Rm.
 When the switch is connected to the terminal C, the total

resistance in parallel to the meter is R1+R2 and the meter
resistance remains R3 +Rm.
 Because the shunts are connected permanently and the switch
makes contact with the shunt junctions, the basic meter is never
left out without a parallel connected shunt.

Voltmeters
 The coil current is directly proportional to the voltage across the moving coil. Therefore the scale of
PMMC meter could be calibrated to measure or indicate voltage.
 The coil resistance is normally quite small and thus coil voltage is also usually very small.
 Without any additional series resistance , the PMMC instrument would only be able to measure very low
voltage.
 The voltage range is easily increased by connecting a series resistance with the PMMC.

Voltmeters
 The series resistance is termed as multiplier resistance since it increases the range of the voltmeter.
 Voltmeter is connected in parallel to the circuit and ideally it should have an high resistance.
Voltmeter equivalent circuit

Voltmeter construction

Contd..
 Rm= Internal resistance of the coil

 Rs= Multiplier series resistance
 Im= Ifsd= Meter current or full scale deflection current of the meter
 V= Full range voltage of the instrument
V  I m ( Rm  Rs )
V  I m Rm
Rs 
Im
V
Rs   Rm
Im Voltmeter equivalent circuit

Multi range voltmeters
 A multi range voltmeter consists of a PMMC instrument with several resistors and a rotary switch.
 Two possible configurations can be made. In one configuration, only one of the three multiplier
resistors is connected in series with the meter at any time.
V  I m ( Rm  R)
 Where R can be R1, R2 or R3 (all resistors must be

special values).
 In this arrangement multi range voltmeter circuit

uses switched multiple resistors
Configuration 1
41
Multi range voltmeters
 In the other configuration, the multiplier resistors are connected in series and each junction is
connected to one of the switch terminals.
V  I m ( Rm  R)
 Where R can be R1, R1+R2 or R1+R2+R3 (R1 resistor

must be special value and R2 and R3 can be standard
values).
 This arrangement is easy to implement and less

expensive.
Configuration 2
42
Ohmmeter
 An instrument used to measure resistance or checking continuity in a circuit.
 Types of ohmmeter:
1. Series type
2. Shunt type
43
Series type ohmmeter
 Series type ohmmeter essentially consists of a PMMC meter connected in series with a resistance
and a battery to a pair of terminals to which the unknown Rx is connected.
 When Rx is zero (terminals A and B are shorted), maximum current flows in the circuit.
 Under this condition shunt resistor R2 is adjusted until the meter indicates full scale current Ifsd.
This full scale current position of the pointer is marked as zero ohms on the scale.
R1 A

I2
R2
Rm Rx Series type ohmmeter
circuit
E
Ifsd B

It
44
Contd..
 When Rx is infinity (terminals A and B are open), the current in the circuit drops to zero and the meter
indicates zero current, which is marked as infinity on the scale.
 Intermediate markings are made on the scale by connecting different known values of Rx to the
instrument.
 The accuracy of these scale markings depend on the repeating accuracy of the meter and the tolerances
of the calibrating resistors.
 Internal battery whose voltage decreases gradually with time, so that full scale deflection drops and the
meter does not read zero when the terminals A and B are shorted.
 The variable shunt resistor R2 provides an adjustment to counteract the effect of battery change.

Design
 A convenient quantity to use in the design of a series type ohmmeter is the value of Rx which
causes half scale deflection of the meter.
 At this position, the resistance across the terminals A and B is defined as half scale position
resistance Rh.
 Given full scale current Ifsd, internal resistance of the meter Rm, battery voltage E and the desired
value of half scale resistance Rh ,The values of R1 and R2 can be found.
Rm R2
Rh  R1 
Rm  R2
E
To produce full scale deflection, the battery current is given by It 
Rh
46
Contd..
R1 A

I t  I 2  I fsd I2
R2
Rm Rx
I 2  I t  I fsd
E
Voltage across R2 will be equal to voltage across the meter Ifsd B

I fsd Rm It
I 2 R2  I fsd Rm R2 
I2
I fsd Rm I fsd Rm Rh I fsd Rh Rm

R2   R1  Rh 
I t  I fsd E  I fsd Rh E
47
Shunt type ohmmeter
 Shunt type ohmmeter consists of a battery in series with an adjustable resistor R1 and a PMMC meter.
 An on-off switch to disconnect the battery from the circuit when the instrument is not in use.
 When Rx is zero (terminals A and B are shorted), the meter current is zero and if Rx is infinity, the
current find a path only through the meter and by selecting R1, the pointer can be made to read full
scale current.
R1 A

Im
E Shunt type ohmmeter
Rm Rx circuit
S B

48
Contd..
When Rx=infinity the full scale current in meter will be
E
I fsd 
R1  Rm
E
R1   Rm
I fsd
For any value of Rx connected across the meter terminals A and B, the meter current is given by
ERx
Im 
R1 Rm  Rx ( R1  Rm )
49
Contd..
The meter current for any value of Rx, expressed as a fraction of full scale meter current is given by
Im Rx ( R1  Rm )
S 
I fsd Rx ( R1  Rm )  R1 Rm
R1 Rm Rx
Rp  S
R1  Rm Rx  R p
At half scale reading of the meter Im=0.5 Ifsd
ERh R1 Rm
0.5 I fsd  Rh 
R1 Rm  Rh ( R1  Rm ) R1  Rm
50
Multi meter or VOM
 The ammeter, voltmeter and the ohmmeter all use a PMMC

meter. The difference between these instruments is the circuit in
which the basic meter is used.
 It is therefore obvious to have a single instrument that can

perform all the three measurements functions.
 The instrument which contains function switch to connect the

appropriate circuits to the basic meter is called a multimeter or
volt ohm milliammeter (VOM).
 The meter is a combination of a dc ammeter, a dc voltmeter, an

ac voltmeter and a multi range ohmmeter.
51
Contd..
 The dc voltmeter section where the

common input terminals are used for
voltage range from 0-1000 V.
 An external jack marked DC 5000 V is

used for dc voltage measurements to
5000 V.
 The AC voltmeter section of the meter is

selected by setting the ac-dc switch to ac
position.
DC voltmeter circuit
52
Contd..
 The basic meter of the multi meter has a

full scale current of 50 μA and an
internal resistance of 2000 Ω.
 The DC ammeter section of the meter,

the positive and negative terminals are
used for current measurements upto 500
mA.
 The jacks marked +10 A and -10 A are

used for 0-10 A range.
DC ammeter circuit
53
Contd..
 The ohmmeter section in the multimeter

has a scale multiplication of 1, 100 and
10,000.
 Before any measurement is made, the instrument

is short circuited and the zero adjust control is
varied until the meter reads zero resistance.
54

Lecture 1 Uploaded

Загружено:

Сведения о документе

Оригинальное название

Авторское право

Доступные форматы

Поделиться этим документом

Поделиться или встроить документ

Параметры публикации

Этот документ был вам полезен?

Это неприемлемый материал?

Авторское право:

Доступные форматы

Lecture 1 Uploaded

Загружено:

Авторское право:

Доступные форматы

INSTR F311: Electronic Instruments and Instrumentation Technology

BITS Pilani Dr. Sujan Yenuganti (office no: 5699 - O)

 Classification of Analog meters:

 The main types of analog meters are:

BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus

BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus

 PMMC instrument consists of a light weight coil of copper wire

 A pointer attached to the coil deflects over a

BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus

 There are three forces operating in a PMMC instrument

BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus

 The controlling force is produced by the spiral springs.

 The springs retain the coil and the pointer to their

 When the current flows , the springs wind up as the coil

BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus

 Number of turns on the spring should be fairly

 Suppose that a spiral spring is made up of a total

 In a gravity-controlled instrument, a small weight is attached

 Gravity controlled instruments must obviously be used in a

BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus

Absence of damping force

 A damping force is required to minimize these oscillations.

Damping force by eddy currents

Eddy current damping on a metal former

BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus

 In jewel bearing suspension, the shafts carrying pointer

 This allows the coil to rotate freely with least possible

 Some bearings are spring loaded to absorb shocks more

Jewel bearing suspension

 In this system two flat ribbons are held under

 The ribbons also exert a controlling force as they

 Because there is less amount of friction, taut band

BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus

 A permanent magnet with two soft iron pole shoes

 A cylindrical soft iron core is positioned between

 A light weight moving copper coil is pivoted to

 One end of the spiral spring is fastened to the

BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus

BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus

 A core magnet PMMC has a different construction.

 Instead of using horse shoe permanent magnets, the

 A thick cylindrical piece of soft iron surrounds the coil

 A major advantage of this type construction is that the

BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus

BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus

Since the force acts on each side of the coil, the

F  2 BILN Force acting on the coil Area enclosed by the coil

BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus

D  2 BILNr Newton meter

C  K K= spring constant (N-m/degrees) or

BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus

E.m.f induced in each turn of the coil is given by

The torque produced will be

Full-scale Deflection Current (Im):

Internal Resistance (Rm):

BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus

Errors in PMMC Instruments

BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus

 The coil resistance also increases with an increase in temperature.

BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus

Current carrying wire

BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus

BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus