Measurement and

instrumentation
EEE225
 Types of Instruments
• The action of all ammeters and voltmeters, except those of the electrostatic variety, depends upon a deflecting torque
produced by an electric current.

• In an ammeter this torque is produced by the current to be measured, or by a definite fraction of it. In a voltmeter it is
produced by a current that is proportional to the voltage to be measured. Hence both voltmeters and ammeters are essentially
current measuring devices.

• The essential requirements of a measuring instrument are (a) that its introduction into the circuit where measurements are to
be made, should not alter the circuit conditions, and (b) the power consumed by it be small.

• The following types of instrument are mainly used as ammeters and voltmeters.
1. PMMC Of these, PMMC type can be used for dc measurements only,
2. Moving Iron induction type for ac measurements only.
3. Electrodynamometer The other types can be used for both dc and ac measurements.
4. Hot wire The moving coil and moving iron types depend upon the magnitude effect of
5. Thermocouple current. The latter is the most commonly used form of indicating instrument, as
6. Induction type well as the cheapest. It can be used for both ac and dc measurements and is very
7. Electrostatic accurate, if properly designed.
8. Rectifier
The PMMC instrument is the most accurate type for dc measurement. Instrument of this type are
frequently constructed to have substandard accuracy.
• The calibration of the electrodynamometer type of instrument is the same for ac and dc. The same situation prevails for
thermal instruments. These are particularly suitable for ac measurements, since their deflection depends directly upon the
heating effect of the ac, i.e. upon the rms value of the current. Their readings are therefore independent of the frequency.

• Electrostatic instruments used as voltmeters have the advantage that their power consumption is exceedingly small. They can
be made to cover a large range of voltage and can be constructed to have sub-standard accuracy.

• The induction principle is most generally used for Watt-hour meters. This principle is not preferred for use in ammeters and
voltmeters because of the comparatively high cost and inaccuracy of the instrument.

Basic Meter Movement/D’Arsonval galvanometer

• The action of the most commonly dc meter is based on the fundamental principle
of the motor. The motor action is produced by the flow of a small current through a
moving coil, which is positioned in the field of a permanent magnet. This basic
moving coil system is often called the
D’Arsonval galvanometer

• The arrangement consists of a coil which is wound over an iron core (spindle).
• This spindle is place between the two poles of a horse shoe magnet
• A pointer is attached to the spindle that can sweep over the calibrated scale

D’Arsonval principle
 Operation of D’Arsonval Movement
When current passes through the spindle, the magnetic field produced by a current passing through the coil reacts with the
magnetic field of the permanent magnet, producing a torque, or twisting force that causes the spindle to rotate. When the
spindle rotates, it moves a pointer making it sweep over the calibrated scale. The spring produce a restoring torque. When this
restoring torque becomes equal to the excitation torque, the pointer comes to rest.
The rotational movement of the spindle is proportional to the supply (D.C) Current.

Permanent Magnetic Moving Coil Movement

In this instrument, we have a coil suspended in the magnetic field of a permanent magnet in the shape of a horse-shoe. The coil
is suspended so that it can rotate freely in the magnetic field. When current flows in the coil, the developed (electromagnetic)
torque causes the coil to rotate. The electromagnetic (EM) torque is counterbalanced by a mechanical torque of control springs
attached to the movable coil. The balance of torques, and therefore the angular position of the movable coil is indicated by a
pointer against a fixed reference called a scale.

τ
The equation for the developed torque, derived from the basic law for electromagnetic torque is = B x A x I x N
where t = torque, Newton-meter
• The equation shows that the developed torque is proportional to the flux
B = flux density in the air gap, Wb/m2
density of the field in which the coil rotates, the current coil constants (area and
A = effective coil area (m2)
number of turns). Since both flux density and coil constants are fixed for a given
N = number of turns of wire of the coil
instrument, the developed torque is a direct indication of the current in the coil.
I = current in the movable coil (amperes)
The pointer deflection can therefore be used to measure current
A moving coil instrument has the following data. A moving coil instrument has the following data
Number of turns = 100 No. of turns = 100
Width of the coil = 20 mm Width of the coil = 20 mm
Depth of the coil = 30 mm Depth of the coil = 30 mm
Flux density in the gap = 0.1 Wb/m2 Flux density in the gap = 0.1 Wb/m2
Calculate the deflecting torque when carrying a current of 10 mA. Also The deflection torque = 30 x 10–6 Nm
calculate the deflection, if the control spring constant is 2 x 10–6 Nm/degree Calculate the current through the moving coil.
Advantages
1. They can be modified with the help of shunts and resistance to cover a wide range of currents
and voltages.
2. They display no hystersis.
3. Since operating fields of such instruments are very strong, they are not significantly affected
by stray magnetic fields.

Disadvantages
1. Some errors may set in due to ageing of control springs and the permanent magnet.
2. Friction due to jewel-pivot suspension.
 Measurement of current by DC ammeter
The PMMC galvanometer constitutes the basic movement of a dc ammeter. Since the coil winding of a basic movement is small
and light, it can carry only very small currents. When large currents are to be measured, it is necessary to bypass a major part of
the current through a resistance called a shunt, as shown in the Figure. The resistance of shunt can be calculated using
conventional circuit analysis.

Referring to Figure,
Rm = internal resistance of the movement.
Ish = shunt current
Im = full scale deflection current of the movement
I = full scale current of the ammeter + shunt (i.e. total current)

Basic dc Ammeter
A 1 mA meter movement with an internal resistance of 100 Ώ is to be converted into a 0 – 100 mA. Calculate the value of shunt
resistance required.

A 100 μA meter movement with an internal resistance of 500 Ώ is to be used in a 0 – 100 mA Ammeter. Find the value of the
required shunt.
• The shunt resistance used with a basic movement may consist of a length of constant
temperature resistance wire within the case of the instrument. Alternatively, there may be an
external (manganin or constantan) shunt having very low resistance.
The general requirements of a shunt are as follows.
1. The temperature coefficients of the shunt and instrument should be low and nearly identical.
2. The resistance of the shunt should not vary with time.
3. It should carry the current without excessive temperature rise.
4. It should have a low thermal emf.
Manganin is usually used as a shunt for dc instruments, since it gives a low value of thermal emf
with copper.

Constantan is a useful material for ac circuits, since it’s comparatively high thermal emf, being
unidirectional, is ineffective on the these circuits.

Shunt for low current are enclosed in the meter casing, while for currents above 200 A, they are
mounted separately
 Multi range Ammeters
The current range of the dc ammeter may be further extended by a number of shunts, selected by a range switch. Such a meter
is called a multi range ammeter, shown in Figure. The circuit has four shunts R1, R2, R3 and R4, which can be placed in parallel
with the movement to give four different current ranges.

Switch S is a multi position switch, (having low contact resistance and high current carrying capacity, since its contacts are in
series with low resistance shunts). Make before break type switch is used for range changing. This switch protects the meter
movement from being damaged without a shunt during range changing.

If we use an ordinary switch for range changing, the meter does not have any shunt in parallel while the range is being changed,
and hence full current passes through the meter movement, damaging the movement. Hence a make before break type switch is
used. The switch is so designed that when the switch position is changed, it makes contact with the next terminal (range) before
breaking contact with the previous terminal. Therefore the meter movement is never left unprotected. Multi-range ammeters are
used for ranges up to 50A. When using a multi-range ammeter, first use the highest current range, then decrease the range
until good upscale reading is obtained. The resistance used for the various ranges are of very high precision values, hence the
cost of the meter increases.
A 1 mA meter movement having an internal resistance of 100 ohms is used to convert into a multi-range ammeter having the
range 0–10 mA, 0–20 mA and 0–50 mA. Determine the value of the shunt resistance required.
Design a multi-range ammeter with range of 0–1 A, 5 A and 10 A employing individual shunt in each A D’Arsonval movement with
an internal resistance of 500 ohms and a full scale deflection of 10 mA is available;
 The Aryton Shunt or Universal Shunt
The Aryton shunt eliminates the possibility of having the meter in the circuit without a shunt. This advantage is gained at the
price of slightly higher overall resistance. Figure shows a circuit of an Aryton shunt ammeter. In this circuit,

when the switch is in position “1”, resistance Ra is in parallel with the series combination of Rb, Rc and the meter movement.
Hence the current through the shunt is more than the current through the meter movement, thereby protecting the meter
movement and reducing its sensitivity.

If the switch is connected to position “2”, resistance Ra and Rb are together in parallel with the series combination of Rc and
the meter movement. Now the current through the meter is more than the current through the shunt resistance.

If the switch is connected to position “3” Ra, Rb and Rc are together in parallel with the meter. Hence maximum current flows
through the meter movement and very little through the shunt. This increases the sensitivity.
 Requirements of a Shunt
The type of material that should be used to join the shunts should have two main properties.
1. Minimum Thermo Dielectric Voltage Drop : Soldering of joint should not cause a voltage drop.

2. Solderability : Resistance of different sizes and values must be soldered with minimum change in value.

The following precautions should be observed when using an ammeter for

measurement.
1. Never connect an ammeter across a source of emf. Because of its low resistance it would draw a high current and
destroy the movement. Always connect an ammeter in series with a load capable of limiting the current.

2. Observe the correct polarity. Reverse polarity causes the meter to deflect against the mechanical stopper, which
may damage the pointer.

3. When using a multirange meter, first use the highest current range, then decrease the current range until
substantial deflection is obtained. To increase the accuracy use the range that will give a reading as near full scale as
possible.
 EXTENDING OF AMMETER RANGES
The range of an ammeter can be extended to measure high current values by using external shunts connected to the basic meter
movement (usually the lowest current range), as given in Figure.

Note that the range of the basic meter movement cannot be lowered. (For example,

if a 100 mA movement with 100 scale division is used to measure 1 mA,

the meter will deflect by only one division. Hence ranges lower than the basic
range are not practically possible.)
 RF AMMETER (THERMOCOUPLE)
• Thermocouples consists of a junction of two dissimilar wires or metals, so chosen that a
voltage is generated by heating the junction. The output of a thermocouple is delivered to a
sensitive dc micro ammeter. (Calibration is made with dc or with a low frequency, such as 50
cycles, and applies for all frequencies for which the skin effect in the heater is not appreciable.
Thermocouple instruments are the standard means for measuring current at radio
frequencies.) The generation of dc voltage by heating the junction is called thermoelectric
action and the device is called a thermocouple.
• It’s a kind of temperature sensor that is used to measure temperature at one specific point in
the form of EMF or Electric current.
CONSTRUCTION
 EFFECTS OF THERMOCOUPLES

Temperature measurement by thermocouples are associated with three major effects.

• The Seebeck Effect: This states that a very small current will flow in a closed circuit composed
of two dissimilar metallic conductors when their junctions are kept at different temperatures.

• The Peltier Effect: This states that when an electric current flow through a junction of two
dissimilar metals, heat is liberated or absorbed depending on the direction of the current flow.

• The Thomson Effect: This states that if an electric current flows along a single conductor while
a temperature gradient exists in the conductor, an energy interaction takes place in which
power is either absorbed or dissipated, depending on the relative direction of the current and
the gradient.

• When two dissimilar metals are connected to form two junctions and are subjected to
different temperatures, an electric current flows through it. This combination of two dissimilar
metals is known as a thermocouple.
 A OPERATION When one end of the rod is heated, the atoms at
the hot end will be excited and allow it electrons
to be transferred easily to the cold end (heat
transfer) as a result of temperature gradient. The
cold end has more electrons than the hot end.
Since electrons are negatively charged, there will
be a slightly negative and positive charged ends
and thus a voltage potential can be measured.
If a thermocouple is constructed from two wires of
the same material and heat is applied at the hot B
end, there will be electron buildup at the cold ends
but in equal amount in each wire. Both wires will
conduct heat equally and the temperature gradient
will be the same (zero) and thus the voltmeter
reading is zero(will not measure any difference) as
shown in fig C

C
When two wires of different materials are connected to form the
thermocouple instrument, they will conduct heat differently resulting in
different temperature gradient. the electron buildup at the cold end will
be different and therefore a voltmeter can measure the difference in
potential as shown in fig B . The instrument is calibrated such that any
voltage measured maps to an equivalent temperature.
• Thermocouple heaters operate so close to the burnout point under normal conditions, that they can withstand only small
overloads without damage, commonly up to 50%. This is one of the limitations of the thermocouple instrument.

• (Commonly used metal combinations are copper-constantan, iron-constantan,chromel-constantan, chromel-alumel, and

platinum-rhodium. Tables are available that show the voltages produced by each of the various metal combination at specific
temperatures.)
 Limitations of Thermocouple
1. Heaters can stand only small overload.

2. A rise in temperature (higher operating temperatures) causes a change in the resistance of the
heater.

3. Presence of harmonics changes meter reading, because the heating effect is proportional to
the square of current
 D.C VOLTMETER
The most commonly used dc meter is based on the fundamental principle of the motor. The motor action is
produced by the flow of a small amount of current through a moving coil which is positioned in a permanent
magnetic field. This basic moving system, often called the D’Arsonval movement, is also referred to as the basic
meter.
Different instrument forms may be obtained by starting with the basic meter movement and adding various
elements, as follows.

1. The basic meter movement becomes a dc instrument, measuring

(i) dc current, by adding a shunt resistance, forming a microammeter, a milliammeter or an ammeter.

(ii) dc voltage, by adding a multiplier resistance, forming a millivoltmeter, voltmeter or kilovoltmeter.

(iii) resistance, by adding a battery and resistive network, forming an ohmmeter.

2. The basic meter movement becomes an ac instrument, measuring

(i) ac voltage or current, by adding a rectifier, forming a rectifier type meter for power and audio frequencies.

(ii) RF voltage or current, by adding a thermocouple-type meter for RF.

(iii) Expanded scale for power line voltage, by adding a thermistor in a resistive bridge network, forming an
expanded scale (100 – 140 V) ac meter for power line monitoring.
To use the basic meter as a dc voltmeter, it is necessary to know the amount of current required to deflect the basic meter to full
scale. This current is known as full scale deflection current (Ifsd). For example, suppose a 50 mA current is required for full scale
deflection. This full scale value will produce a voltmeter with a sensitivity of 20,000 ohms per V. The sensitivity is based on the
fact that the full scale current of 50 mA results whenever 20,000 ohms of resistance is present in the meter circuit for each
voltage applied.

Sensitivity = 1/Ifsd = 1/50 mA = 20 kilo ohm/V

Hence, a 0 – 1 mA would have a sensitivity of 1 V/1 mA = 1 kilo ohm/V or 1000 ohms.

Calculate the sensitivity of a 200 mA meter movement which is to be used as a dc voltmeter

A basic D’Arsonval movement can be converted into a dc voltmeter by adding

a series resistor known as multiplier, as shown in Figure The function of the
multiplier is to limit the current through the Im = full scale deflection current of the
movement so that the current does not exceed movement (Ifsd)
the full scale deflection value. A dc voltmeter Rm = internal resistance of movement
measures the potential difference between two Rs = multiplier resistance
points in a dc circuit or a circuit component. V = full range voltage of the instrument
To measure the potential difference between
two points in a dc circuit or a circuit From the circuit of the figure
component, a dc voltmeter is always connected
across them with the proper polarity. The multiplier limits the current through the
The value of the multiplier required is movement, so as to not exceed the value of the
calculated as follows. Referring to Figure Ifsd. The above equation is also used to further
extend the range in DC voltmeter
A basic D’Arsonval movement with a full scale deflection of 50 microamps and internal resistance of 500 ohms is used as a
voltmeter. Determine the value of the multiplier resistance needed to measure a voltage range of 0 – 10 V.

Calculate the value of multiplier resistance on the 50V range of a dc voltmeter that uses a 500 μA meter movement with an
internal resistance of 1 kΏ.
 AC VOLTMETER
• The basic meter movement becomes an ac instrument, measuring
ac voltage or current, by adding a rectifier, forming a rectifier type meter for
power and audio frequencies.

• An AC voltmeter in an electrical instrument used for A.C voltage measurement.

• A.C is measured by dynamometer type instrument.

• But dynamometer type instrument have very low sensitivity

• Therefore D.C voltmeters which are designed with PMMC principle with high
sensitivity are used for A.C measurement by the addition of rectifiers.
 AC voltmeter using rectifier
Rectifier type instruments generally use a PMMC movement along with a rectifier arrangement. Silicon diodes are preferred
because of their low reverse current and high forward current ratings. The Figure gives an ac voltmeter circuit consisting of a
multiplier, a bridge rectifier and a PMMC movement.

(a) AC Voltmeter(general) (b) Average and RMS value of current (c) Diode characteristics (forward)
The bridge rectifier provides a full wave pulsating dc. Due to the inertia of the movable coil, the meter indicates a steady
deflection proportional to the average value of the current (b). The meter scale is usually calibrated to give the RMS value of an
alternating sine wave input.

Practical rectifiers are non-linear devices particularly at low values of forward current (c)). Hence the meter scale is non-linear
and is generally crowded at the lower end of a low range voltmeter. In this part the meter has low sensitivity because of the high
forward resistance of the diode. Also, the diode resistance depends on the temperature. The rectifier exhibits capacitance
properties when reverse biased, and tends to bypass higher frequencies. The meter reading may be in error by as much as 0.5%
decrease for every 1 kHz rise in frequency.
Diode D1 conducts during the positive half of the input cycle and causes the meter to deflect according to the average value of
this half cycle. The meter movement is shunted by a resistor, Rsh, in order to draw more current through the diode D1 and move
the operating point into the linear portion of the characteristic curve. In the negative half cycle, diode D2 conducts and the
current through the measuring circuit, which is in an opposite direction, bypasses the meter movement.

If a diode D1 is added to the dc voltmeter, as shown in Figure we have an ac voltmeter using half wave rectifier circuit capable of
measuring ac voltages. The sensitivity of the dc voltmeter is
given by Sdc = 1/Ifsd = 1/1 mA = 1 kΏ

A multiple of 10 times this value means a 10 V dc input would cause exactly full scale deflection when connected with proper
polarity. Assume D1 to be an ideal diode with negligible forward bias resistance. If this dc input is replaced by a 10 V rms sine
wave input. The voltages appearing at the output is due to the +ve half cycle due to rectifying action.
The peak value of 10 V rms sine wave is
Ep = 10 V rms x 1.414 = 14.14 V peak
The dc will respond to the average value of the ac input, therefore
Eav = Ep x 0.636 = 14.14 x 0.636 = 8.99 V
Since the diode conducts only during the positive half cycle, the average value
over the entire cycle is one half the average value of 8.99 V, i.e. about 4.5 V.
Therefore, the pointer will deflect for a full scale if 10 V dc is applied and 4.5 V
when a 10 Vrms sinusoidal signal is applied. This means that an ac voltmeter is
not as sensitive as a dc voltmeter.

AC voltmeter using half wave rectifier

Conduction at
positive cycle

No conduction at
the negative cycle
 For A. C
For dc voltage
Vdc
 A

Calculate the value of the multiplier resistor for a 10 V rms range on the voltmeter shown figure A

Calculate the value of the multiplier resistor required for a 100 Vrms range on the voltmeter shown in the Figure B
A.C VOLTMETER USING FULL WAVE RECTIFIER
For half wave

For full wave

Since both half cycles conduct,

X2
Calculate the value of the multiplier resistor for a 50 Vrms ac range on the voltmeter with the following data
Im = 100 micro amperes
Rm = 100 ohms
 Multi range AC voltmeter
Figure 4.24 is circuit for measuring ac voltages for different ranges.
Resistances
R1, R2, R3 and R4 form a chain of multipliers for voltage ranges of
1000 V, 250 V, 50 V, and 10 V respectively.
On the 2.5 V range, resistance R5 acts as a multiplier and
corresponds to the multiplier Rs in the AC voltmeter(general )
circuit.
Rsh is the meter shunt and acts to improve the rectifier operation.

Multirange AC voltmeter
 Multimeter
A multimeter is basically a PMMC meter. To measure dc current the meter acts as an ammeter
with a low series resistance.
Range changing is accomplished by shunts in such a way that the current passing through the
meter does not exceed the maximum rated value.

A multimeter consists of an ammeter, voltmeter and ohmmeter combined, with a function

switch to connect the appropriate circuit to the D’Arsonval movement.
A meter consisting of a dc milliammeter, a dc voltmeter, an ac voltmeter, a microammeter, and
an ohmmeter.
• The combination volt-ohm-milliammeter is a basic tool in any electronic laboratory. The
proper use of this instrument increases its accuracy and life. The following precautions should
be observed
1.To prevent meter overloading and possible damage when checking voltage or current, start
with the highest range of the instrument and move down the range successively.

2. For higher accuracy, the range selected should be such that the deflection falls in the upper
half on the meter scale.

3. For maximum accuracy and minimum loading, choose a voltmeter range such that the total
voltmeter resistance (ohms per volt x full scale voltage) is at least 100 times the resistance of
the circuit under test.

4. Make all resistance readings in the uncrowded portion on the meter scale, whenever
possible.

5. Take extra precautions when checking high voltages and checking current in high voltage
circuits.
6. Verify the circuit polarity before making a test, particularly when measuring dc
current or voltages

7. When checking resistance in circuits, be sure power to the circuit is switched off,
otherwise the voltage across the resistance may damage the meter.

8. Renew ohmmeter batteries frequently to insure accuracy of the resistance

scale.

9. Recalibrate the instrument at frequent intervals.

10. Protect the instrument from dust, moisture, fumes and heat.
 Digital Multimeters
Digital meters offer high accuracy, have a high input impedance and are smaller in size. They
gives an unambigious reading at greater viewing distances.

The output available is electrical (for interfacing with external equipment), in addition to a visual
readout.
The three major classes of digital meters are panel meters, bench type meters and system
meters.

All digital meters employ some kind of analog to digital (A/D) converters (often dual slope
integrating type) and have a visible readout display at the converter output.

Panel meters are usually placed at one location (and perhaps even a fixed range), while bench
meters and system meters are often multimeters, i.e. they can read ac and dc voltage currents
and resistances over several ranges.
For resistance measurement, the meter includes a precision low current source that is applied
across the unknown resistance; again this gives a dc voltage which is digitised and readout as
ohms.
Bench meters are intended mainly for stand alone operation and visual operation
reading,

while system meters provide at least an electrical binary coded decimal output (in
parallel with the usual display), and perhaps sophisticated interconnection and
control capabilities, or even microprocessor based computing power.
A basic digital multimeter (DMM) is made up of several A/D converters, circuitry for counting and
an attenuation circuit. A basic block diagram of a DMM is shown in (a). The current to voltage
converter shown in the block diagram of (a) can be implemented with the circuit shown in (b).

(a) basic block diagram of a DMM (b) Current to voltage converter

The current to be measured is applied to the summing junction (S i) at
the input of the opamp. Since the current at the input of the amplifier is
close to zero because of the very high input impedance of the amplifier,
the current IR is very nearly equal to Ii, the current IR causes a voltage
drop which is proportional to the current, to be developed across the
resistors. This voltage drop is the input to the A/D converter, thereby
providing a reading that is proportional to the unknown current.

Resistance is measured by passing a known current, from a constant

current source, through an unknown resistance. The voltage drop across
the resistor is applied to the A/D converter, thereby producing an
indication of the value of the unknown resistance.