MODULE-III

D.C. POTENTIOMETER

A potentiometer is an instrument designed to measure an unknown voltage by comparing it with

a known voltage. The known voltage may be supplied by a standard cell or any known voltage.
At null condition, no current flows, so no power consumed. So the measurement is independent
of source resistance.

It can also measure current by measuring voltage drop across a standard resistor.

It is used extensively for calibration of voltmeters & ammeters.

Measurements using comparison methods are capable of a high degree of accuracy because the
result obtained does not depend upon the actual deflection of a pointer, as is the case in
deflection methods, but only upon the accuracy with which the voltage of the reference source is
known.

Procedure to Calibrate Volt-meter

1. In this circuit, the ends of a uniform resistance wire R1 are connected to a regulated DC
supply VS for use as a voltage divider.
2. A standard electrochemical cell is used whose emf is known (e.g. 1.0183 volts)

CALIBRATION/STANDARDISATION OF POTENTIOMETER
3. Switch ‘S’ is placed at calibrate position
4. Sliding position k is positioned at a point corresponding to standard cell voltage (1.0183
volts)
5. The potentiometer is first calibrated by positioning the wiper (arrow) at the spot on the R1
wire that corresponds to the voltage of a standard cell
R2 Cell Voltage
so that R1 VS
VS .
Cell Voltage * R working current * AX
2
R
1

6. The supply voltage VS is then adjusted until the galvanometer shows zero, indicating the
voltage on R2 is equal to the standard cell voltage.
7. As resistance of wire is uniform & proportional to length, working current i.e. volts/cm is
measured.

MEASUREMENT OF UNKNOWN VOLTAGE SOURCE

8. Now Rheostat will not be varied.

9. Now switch ‘S’ is placed at operate position
10. An unknown DC voltage, in series with the galvanometer, is then connected to the sliding
wiper, across a variable-length section R3 of the resistance wire. The wiper is moved until
no current flows into or out of the source of unknown voltage, as indicated by the
galvanometer in series with the unknown voltage. The voltage across the selected R3
section of wire is then equal to the unknown voltage. The final step is to calculate the
unknown voltage from the fraction of the length of the resistance wire that was connected
to the unknown voltage.
11. If the length of the R1 resistance wire is AB, where A is the (-) end and B is the (+) end,
and the movable wiper is at point Y at a distance AY on the R 3 portion of the resistance
wire when the galvanometer gives a zero reading for an unknown voltage, the distance
AY is measured or read from a preprinted scale next to the resistance wire. The unknown
voltage can then be calculated as VU working cur * AY
CROMPTON-LABORATORY D.C. POTENTIOMATER:-

CONSTRUCTION:-

Modern Lab Potentiometers use calibrated dial resistors and a small circular wire of one or more
turns (instead of previously used long slide wire), thus reducing the size of instrument.

In the figure, there is one dial resistor with 15 steps, each having a precision resistor of 10
Ω. Total 150 Ω & 1.5 volt.

Slide-Wire:- is of single turn having resistance of 10 Ω & 0.1 Volt. The working
current is 10 mA.

So each step of dial-resistor correspond to 10*10* 10-3 =0.1 volt

The slide wire is provided with 200 scale divisions with a total voltage range of 0.1 volt.

So each division=0.1/200=0.005 volt

The Potentiometer is provided with a double throw switch to make connection to either the
standard cell or un-known emf. To operate the Galvanometer at its
maximum sensitivity, provision is made to short the protective resistance near balance
condition.
STEPS TO FOLLOW TO MAKE MEASUREMENT:-

1. The combination of dial-resistor & Slide-wire is set to standard cell voltage (1.0186 volt).
Dial-resistor set at 1 volt, slide- wire set at 0.0186 V.
2. Galvanometer is calibrated with switch S, connected to standard cell. Rheostat is adjusted
foe zero Galvanometer deflection.
3. As the null point is approached, protective resistance is shorted to increase Galvanometer
sensitivity.
This completes the process of ‘Standardization’ of Galvanometer.
4. Now switch S is thrown to operate position to find out un-known emf. Now the
potentiometer is balanced using dial- switch & slide-wire.
5. At null, the value of emf is read directly from setting of dial adjust & slide-wire.
6. Standardization is checked again.
VERNIER POTENTIOMETER:

-
 CONSTRUCTION:-

There are 3 measuring dials.

1st Dial Measures upto 1.5 v in step of 0.1 v

2nd Dial has 102 studs & read upto 0.1 V in steps of 0.001 V.

3rd Dial has 102 studs & reads from -0.0001 v to + 0.0001 v in steps of 0.00001 v (i.e. 10 µv).

There is no Slide-wire.

The 2nd Dial shunts two of the coils of 1st Dial. The moving arm of 2nd-dial carries two
arms spaced two-studs apart.

In practice, the resistance of 2nd-dial is greater than that between two studs in the main dial,
so that voltage drop across 2nd-dial is greater than 0.1 v. If this is not done, voltage drop in
contact resistances & leads would cause 2nd-dial voltage less than 0.1 v.

3rd-dial is obtained from a shunt ckt which permits a true zero & a small –ve setting is
obtained.

OPERATION:-

The limitations imposed on performance of ordinary potentiometers by slide-wire are eliminated

in a vernier potentiometer. This instrument has two ranges.

1. Normal range of 1.6 v down to 10 µv

2. Lower range of 0.16 v to 1 µv.

The Vernier potentiometer reads to increment of 0.00001 v (10 µv) & has a
readability of 1 µv on 0.1 range. If a 3rd range of * 0.01 is provided, readability
becomes 0.1 µv
 AC Potentiometer

A potentiometer is an instrument which measures unknown voltage by balancing it

with a known voltage. The known source may be DC or AC. The working phenomenon of
DC potentiometer and AC potentiometer is same. But there is one major difference between
their measurements, DC potentiometer only measures the magnitude of the unknown voltage.
Whereas an AC potentiometer measures both the magnitude and phase of unknown voltage
by comparing it with a known reference.

There are two types of AC potentiometers:

1. Drysdale-Tinsley Potentiometer/ Polar type potentiometer

2. Gall-Tinsley Potentiometer / Coordinate type potentiometer.

Polar type Potentiometer

In such type of instruments, two separate scales are used to measure magnitude and phase
angle on some reference of the unknown e.m.f. There is a provision on the scale that it could
read phase angle up to 3600. It has electrodynamometer type ammeter along with DC
potentiometer and phase-shifting transformer which is operated by single phase supply.

In a phase-shifting transformer, there is a combination of two ring-shaped laminated steel

stators connected perpendicularly to each other as shown in the figure. One is directly
connected to power supply and the other one is connected in series with variable resistance
and capacitor. The function of the series components is to maintain constant AC supply in the
potentiometer by doing small adjustments in it.

Between the stators, there is laminated rotor having slots and winding which supplies voltage
to the slide-wire circuit of the potentiometer. When current start flowing from stators, the
rotating field is developed around the rotor which induces an e.m.f. in the rotor winding.
 The phase displacement of the rotor emf is equal to rotor movement angle from its original
position and it is related to the stator supply voltage. The whole arrangement of the winding is
done in such a way that the magnitude of the induced emf in the rotor may change but it does
not affect the phase angle and it can be read on the scale fixed on the top of the instrument.
The induced emf in rotor winding by stator winding 1 can be expressed as

The induced emf in the rotor winding by the stator winding 2,

From equation (1) and (2), we get

Therefore, resultant induced emf in the rotor winding due to two stator winding

Where, Ø gives the phase angle.

Coordinate type Potentiometer

In coordinate AC potentiometer, two separate potentiometers are caged in one circuit as
shown in the figure. The first one is named as the in-phase potentiometer which is used to
measure the in-phase factor of an unknown e.m.f. and the other one is named as quadrature
potentiometer which measures quadrature part of the unknown e.m.f. the sliding contact AA’
in the in-phase potentiometer and BB’ in quadrature potentiometer are used for obtaining the
desired current in the circuit. By adjusting rheostat R and R’ and sliding contacts, the current
in the quadrature potentiometer becomes equal to the current in the in-phase potentiometer
and a variable galvanometer shows the null value. S1 and S2 are signs changing switches
which are used to change the polarity of the test voltage if it is required for balancing the
potentiometer. There are two step-down transformers T1 and T2 which isolate potentiometer
from the line and give an earthed screens protection between the winding. It also supplies 6
volts to potentiometers.

Now to measure unknown e.m.f. its terminals are connected across sliding contacts AA’
using selector switch S3. By doing some adjustments in sliding contacts and rheostat, the
whole circuit gets balanced and galvanometer reads zero at the balanced condition. Now the
in-phase component VA of the unknown e.m.f. is obtained from the in-phase potentiometer
and quadrature component VB is obtained from quadrature potentiometer.
Thus, the resultant voltage of the coordinate AC potentiometer is

And the phase angle is given by

 MODULE -IV

CURRENT TRANSFORMER(C.T.) & POTENTIAL TRANSFORMER(P.T.)

INSTRUMENT TRANSFORMERS:-

Transformers used in conjunction with a measurement instrument for measurement

purposes are called Instrument Transformers.

C.T.- current Transformers used for meas. of current P.T.- Potential Transformers
used for meas. of voltage
In power system, direct meas of voltage, cur & power are not possible, as their
ranges are too large for any meter. So they can be stepped-down with the help of CTs & PTs. so
that they can be measured with normal instruments

Shunts & multipliers cannot be used for extension of range of instruments,

specifically in a.c. circuit as they have following de-merits.

Disadvantages of Shunts:

1. Division of current depends on ratio of reactance/ resistance of two paths, so

separate shunts needed for each instrument.
2. Poor accuracy over wide frequency range.
3. Insulation of meter & shunts is difficult at high voltage level.
4. Measuring ckt is electrically connected to power ckt.
Disadvantages of Multipliers:

1. Power consumed by multipliers become large as voltage increases.

2. Upper limit of power dissipation by multiplier is
7.5 watt.
3. Construction of multiplier at high voltage is costly & complicated due to
shunt capacitance effect.
4. Meas ckt is not isolated from power ckt.

Advantages of Instrument Transformers:

1. Inst reading does not depend on R,L,C as in the case of shunt & multipliers.
2. Standard secondary cur of CT=5A Standard
secondary Vol of PT=100 to 120 v
5 amp ammeter may be used to measure 1000 A using 1000/5 Amp ratio CT.
So very cheap, small size instrument can be used to measure large cur & vol.
3. Measuring ckt is isolated from power ckt. So it is more safe for operating
personals.
4. Several instruments can be operated from a single
instrument transformer.
5. Transformation ratio R= primary cur/Secondary cur for a CT

= primary vol/Secondary vol for a PT

Burden of an Inst-Transformer:-

The rated burden is the volt-ampere loading in sec winding, which is

permissible without errors, exceeding limits for particular class of accuracy .
CURRENT TRANSFORMER(C.T.)

Primary winding consisting of one or few turns is connected in series with line
carrying the current to be measured. So primary current is dependent on load to the
system and not on load (burden) connected to sec of C.T. .
The sec of CT has large no of turns. The ammeter or wattmeter c.c. are connected to
sec winding.
So CT operates with its sec winding under short ckt condition. One of the
terminal of sec winding is earthed to protect equipment operating personel ,in the event
of insulation breakdown.
CONSTRUCTION OF C.T.

CTs may be classified as,

a. Wound type
A CT having primary winding of more than one full- turn wound on core.

b. BAR-TYPE C.T.
A C.T. in which a primary winding consists of a bar of suitable size and material forming
an integral part of transformer.

EFFECT OF CT SECONDARY OPEN CKT:-

A C.T. secondary is always kept short ckted

through ammeter cur coil. It is never kept open. If kept.open consequences are serious like,
over heating of C.T. & eventually damage it. The core may be permanently magnetized,
which give more ratio error & phase angle. In a power transformer, primary
current is a reflection of secondary load current. In a C.T.
, primary winding is placed in series with line, whose current to be measured. So primary
current is not determined or
dependent on secondary current.
In a C.T. under normal operating condition, resultant of primary & sec mmf (amp-
turn) is very small. The resultant mmf produces the flux in core, so flux density is small, so
small induced voltage in sec ckt.
If sec is open ckted, primary mmf remains same, while sec mmf (NI) reduces to
zero. So resultant mmf (=NpIp), is very large. So this large mmf produces large flux density
in core, till it saturates. So large emf is induced in sec, which could be dangerous to
insulation.
So most CTs are provided with short-circuiting link for precaution.
C.T. CHARACTERISTICS:-
1.

2. Effect of IP:

At low value of IP or IS, Im & Ie are greater proportional to of IP. So errors are large. As IP
increases, ratio-error & phase angle error decreases.
3. Effect of Change in sec Burden:-
With increase sec burden(VA), it necessitates increase in flux & flux density. So both Im & Ie are
increased. So error will increase.
4. Effect of Change in sec Frequency:-
With increase in frequency, there will be a decrease in flux density, decrease in sec winding
burden. So error decreases.

POTENTIAL TRANSFORMERS (P.T.s)

Phasor of P.T.
Difference between CT & PT:-
1. P.T. sec winding operating under nearly open ckt
condition, as voltmeter coil or pr coil of wattmeter resistance is very high. So PT may be
considered as a parallel transformer. CT is considered as a series transformer, sec under
virtual short ckt condition.
2. IP is independent of sec winding ckt condition in a CT.
In a PT IP depends on sec ckt burden (load).
3. In a PT full line voltage is applied on its primary
winding. In a CT, primary winding carries full line current and a small vol appears across
its primary winding.
4. Primary winding current, so excitation I0 of CT varies over a wide range. In a PT flux
density, hence excitation cur I0, is nearly constant, as applied line voltage is nearly
constant.

CONSTRUCTION OF P.T. :-

The construction of P.T. is similar to those of power transformers, with few major
differences.

1. Design of P.T. is based on to reduce ratio & phase-angle error. P.T. has longer core &
conductor size.
Power Transformer design is based on efficiency, cost & regulation. So small core design
& conductor size.
2. In a P.T. , output is always small, size is large. So temperature rise is small. In power
transformer, load limitation is based on thermal limit. So P.T.s are able to carry loads
upto 30 times of their rated load for high voltage P.T..
3. Shell type construction is normally used.
4. Primary & secondary windings are co-axial to reduce leakage reactance. L.V winding is
placed near core to simplify insulation problem.
 5. Insulation:- Cotton tape or varnished fabric are used for coil insulation. Hard fiber
insulation is used between coils. P.T. above
7 KV are oil-immersed type. Dry type, porcelain insulated
transformers have been developed upto 45 KV.
BUSHING:-

Oil-filled bushings are usually used for oil-filled P.T., as this minimizes size of
transformer. Two bushings are used in P.T.. A C.T. needs only one bushing, as leads from
two ends of primary are brought through same insulator, since a small voltage exists
between them, as it consists of one or two turns only.

CHARACTERISTICS OF P.T.:-

1. Effect of Secondary current or VA:-

If secondary burden is increased, primary current increases. So both primary &
secondary voltage drop increases. So for a given Vp, Vs decreases. So Ratio-
error increases & become more –ve.

2. Effect of P.F. on Secondary Burden:-

With decrease in secondary power factor, ratio-error increases, but phase-angle
error reduces.
3. Effect of Frequency:-
Phase-angle error increases as frequency increases. Ratio-
error remains almost constant.
 Electronic Instruments for Measuring Basic Parameters

Amplified DC meter
Chopper stabilized circuit
AC voltmeter using rectifier
True r.m.s responding voltmeter
Electronic multimeter
DIGITAL VOLTMETER

It is a device used for measuring the magnitude of DC voltages. AC voltages can be measured
after rectification and conversion to DC forms. DC/AC currents can be measured by passing
them through a known resistance (internally or externally connected) and determining the
voltage developed across the resistance (V=IxR).
The result of the measurement is displayed on a digital readout in numeric form as in the case
of the counters. Most DVMs use the principle of time period measurement. Hence, the voltage
is converted into a time interval “t” first. No frequency division is involved. Input range
selection automatically changes the position of the decimal point on the display. The unit of
measure is also highlighted in most devices to simplify the reading and annotation.
The DVM has several advantages over the analog type voltmeters as:

• Input range: from ±1.000 000 V to ±1,000.000 V with automatic range selection.
• Absolute accuracy: as high as ±0.005% of the reading.
• Stability
• Resolution: 1 part in 106 (1 µV can be read in 1 V range).
• Input impedance: Ri=10 MΩ; input capacitance Ci =40 pF.
• Calibration: internal standard derived from a stabilized reference voltage source.
• Output signals: measured voltage is available as a BCD (binary coded decimal) code
and can be send to computers or printers.
 MODULE- V

Oscilloscope
INTRODUCTION:
➢ The cathode-ray oscilloscope (CRO) is a multipurpose display instrument used for the
observation, measurement , and analysis of waveforms by plotting amplitude along y-axis and
time along x-axis.
➢ CRO is generally an x-y plotter; on a single screen it can display different signals applied to
different channels. It can measure amplitude, frequencies and phase shift of various signals.
Many physical quantities like temperature, pressure and strain can be converted into electrical
signals by the use of transducers, and the signals can be displayed on the CRO.
➢ A moving luminous spot over the screen displays the signal. CROs are used to study
waveforms, and other time-varying phenomena from very low to very high frequencies.
➢ The central unit of the oscilloscope is the cathode-ray tube (CRT), and the remaining part of the
CRO consists of the circuitry required to operate the cathode-ray tube.
Block diagram of a cathode-ray oscilloscope:
COMPONENTS OF THE CATHODE-RAY OSCILLOSCOPE:

The CRO consists of the following:

(i) CRT
(ii) Vertical amplifier
(iii) Delay line
(iv) Horizontal amplifier
(v) Time-base generator
(vi) Triggering circuit
(vii) Power supply

CATHODE-RAY TUBE:
The electron gun or electron emitter, the deflecting system and the fluorescent screen are the three
major components of a general purpose CRT. A detailed diagram of the cathode-ray oscilloscope is
given in Fig. 14-2

Electron Gun:
➢ In the electron gun of the CRT, electrons are emitted, converted into a sharp beam and focused
upon the fluorescent screen.
➢ The electron beam consists of an indirectly heated cathode, a control grid, an accelerating
electrode and a focusing anode.
➢ The electrodes are connected to the base pins. The cathode emitting the electrons is surrounded
by a control grid with a fine hole at its centre.
➢ The accelerated electron beam passes through the fine hole.
➢ The negative voltage at the control grid controls the flow of electrons in the electron beam, and
consequently, the brightness of the spot on the CRO screen is controlled.
Deflection Systems:
➢ Electrostatic deflection of an electron beam is used in a general purpose oscilloscope. The
deflecting system consists of a pair of horizontal and vertical deflecting plates.
➢ Let us consider two parallel vertical deflecting plates P1 and P2. The beam is focused at point
O on the screen in the absence of a deflecting plate voltage.
➢ If a positive voltage is applied to plate P1 with respect to plate P2, the negatively charged
electrons are attracted towards the positive plate P1, and these electrons will come to focus at
point Y1 on the fluorescent screen.

The deflection is proportional to the deflecting voltage between the plates. If the polarity
of the deflecting voltage is reversed, the spot appears at the point Y2, as shown in Fig. 14-3(a).

➢ To deflect the beam horizontally, an alternating voltage is applied to the horizontal deflecting
plates and the spot on the screen horizontally, as shown in Fig. 14-3(b).
➢ The electrons will focus at point X2. By changing the polarity of voltage, the beam will focus at
point X1. Thus, the horizontal movement is controlled along X1OX2 line.
 Spot Beam Deflection Sensitivity:

Electrostatic Deflection:
Fluorescent Screen:
 Phosphor is used as screen material on the inner surface of a CRT. Phosphor absorbs
the energy of the incident electrons. The spot of light is produced on the screen where the
electron beam hits.
 The bombarding electrons striking the screen, release secondary emission electrons.
These electrons are collected or trapped by an aqueous solution of graphite called “Aquadag”
which is connected to the second anode.
 Collection of the secondary electrons is necessary to keep the screen in a state of
electrical equilibrium.
 The type of phosphor used, determines the color of the light spot. The brightest
available phosphor isotope, P31, produces yellow–green light with relative luminance of
99.99%.
Display waveform on the screen:
Figure 14-5(a) shows a sine wave applied to vertical deflecting plates and a repetitive
ramp or saw-tooth applied to the horizontal plates.
 The ramp (Saw-tooth) waveform at the horizontal plates causes the electron
beam to be deflected horizontally across the screen.
 If the waveforms are perfectly synchronized then the exact sine wave
applied to the vertical display appears on the CRO display screen.
Triangular waveform:
Similarly the display of the triangular waveform is as shown in Fig. 14-5(b)

TIME-BASE GENERATORS:
 The CRO is used to display a waveform that varies as a function of time. If the wave
form is to be accurately reproduced, the beam should have a constant horizontal velocity.
 As the beam velocity is a function of the deflecting voltage, the deflecting voltage
must increase linearly with time.
 A voltage with such characteristics is called a ramp voltage. If the voltage decreases
rapidly to zero—with the waveform repeatedly produced, as shown in Fig. 14-6—we observe a
pattern which is generally called a saw-tooth waveform.
 The time taken to return to its initial value is known as flyback or return time.
Simple saw-tooth generator & associated waveforms:
 The circuit shown in Fig. 14-7(a) is a simple sweep circuit, in which the capacitor C
charges through the resistor R.
 The capacitor discharges periodically through the transistor T1, which causes the
waveform shown in Fig. 14-7(b) to appear across the capacitor.
 The signal voltage, Vi which must be applied to the base of the transistor to turn it ON
for short time intervals is also shown in Fig. 14-7(b).

Time-base generator using UJT:

 The continuous sweep CRO uses the UJT as a time-base generator. When power is first
applied to the UJT, it is in the OFF state and CT changes exponentially through RT .
 The UJT emitter voltage VE rises towards VBB and VE reaches the plate voltage VP.
 The emitter-to-base diode becomes forward biased and the UJT triggers ON. This
provides a low resistance discharge path and the capacitor discharges rapidly.
 When the emitter voltage VE reaches the minimum value rapidly, the UJT goes OFF.
The capacitor recharges and the cycles repeat.

To improve the sweep linearity, two separate voltage supplies are used; a low voltage supply
for the UJT and a high voltage supply for the RTCT circuit. This circuit is as shown in Fig. 14-7(c).
RT is used for continuous control of frequency within a range and CT is varied or changed in
steps. They are sometimes known as timing resistor and timing capacitor.
Frequency response:
 The bandwidth of an oscilloscope detects the range of
frequencies that can be accurately reproduced on the CRT screen. The greater the
bandwidth, the wider is the range of observed frequencies.
 The bandwidth of an oscilloscope is the range of frequencies
over which the gain of the vertical amplifier stays within 3 db of the mid-band
frequency gain, as shown in Fig. 14-8.
 Rise time is defined as the time required for the edge to rise
from 10–90% of its maximum amplitude. An approximate relation is given as
follows:
MEASUREMENTS USING THE CATHODE-RAY OSCILLOSCOPE:
1) Measurement of Frequency:

2) Measurement of Phase:

3) Measurement of Phase Using Lissajous Figures:

Measurement of Phase Using Lissajous Figures:
TYPES OF THE CATHODE-RAY OSCILLOSCOPES:
The categorization of CROs is done on the basis of whether they are digital or
analog. Digital CROs can be further classified as storage oscilloscopes.
1. Analog CRO: In an analog CRO, the amplitude, phase and frequency are
measured from the displayed waveform, through direct manual reading.
2. Digital CRO: A digital CRO offers digital read-out of signal information, i.e., the
time, voltage or frequency along with signal display. It consists of an electronic
counter along with the main body of the CRO.
3. Storage CRO: A storage CRO retains the display up to a substantial amount of
time after the first trace has appeared on the screen. The storage CRO is also useful
for the display of waveforms of low-frequency signals.
4. Dual-Beam CRO: In the dual-beam CRO two electron beams fall on a single
CRT. The dual-gun CRT generates two different beams.
These two beams produce two spots of light on the CRT screen which make the
simultaneous observation of two different signal waveforms possible. The
comparison of input and its corresponding output becomes easier using the dual-
beam CRO.