III- B.

Sc (Physics)
UNIT – II
UNIT - II
Measuring Instrument
Principle and working of Analog Voltmeters, Ammeters – Multimeters –
Digital Instruments – Advantages – Resolution, Sensitivity and Accuracy
Specifications for Digital Meters - Basic digital counter – Frequency
Measurement – Frequency Ratio Measurement – Period Measurement –
Time Interval Measurement – Pulse Width Measurement – Digital
Voltmeters – Basic Principles – Vector Voltmeter – Digital Multimeter -
Fiber Optics Measurements-Pressure and Temperature
 Measuring Instrument

CONTENTS
 Digital Instruments:
 Digital Multimeters
 Advantages
 Resolution
 Sensitivity
 Accuracy
 DIGITAL INSTRUMENTS
Introduction:
Digital instruments are rapidly replacing their analog counterparts.
The parameters of interest in a laboratory environment are (i) voltage,
(ii) current, (iii) power, (iv) frequency, and (v) logic.

 The digital systems which measure the above parameters. To enable

digital systems to recognize information, inputs which are analog in
nature must be converted to digital form.
 Hence, any digital instrument would invariably consist of an analog
to digital converter in its input stage.
The basic building block of a digital instrument is shown in Fig. 1.

 The display block may be analog or digital in nature.

 If an analog readout is desired, it becomes necessary to include a

stage involving digital to analog conversion.
 Source: https://www.differencebetween.net/technology/difference-between-decoder-and-demultiplexer/
For example https://www.electronics-tutorials.ws/combination/analogue-to-digital-converter.html

 a 4-bit ADC will have a resolution of one part in 15, (24 – 1)

 Whereas an 8-bit ADC will have a resolution of one part in 255, (28 – 1).
Thus an analogue to digital converter takes an unknown continuous
analogue signal and converts it into an “n”- bit binary number of 2n bits.
Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Analog-to-digital_converter
 Digital systems may consist of the following components:
 Resistors
 Transistors
 Linear ICs
 Digital ICs
 Display devices
 Analog to digital converters
 Digital to analog converters

 The digital form of measurement can be used to display the measured

quantity numerically instead of a deflection, as in conventional analog
meters.
 Data in digital form facilitates various operations that are normally
required in signal processing.
An increase in the availability and type of computer facilities and a
decrease in the cost of various modules required for digital systems is
accelerating the development of digital instrumentation for
measurement and signal processing.
Digital Multimeters:
 Analog meters require no power supply, they give a better visual
indication of changes and suffer less from electric noise and isolation
problems. These meters are simple and inexpensive.

 Digital meters, on the other hand, offer high accuracy, have a high

input impedance 𝒁 = 𝑹𝟐 + 𝑿𝑳 − 𝑿𝑪 𝟐 and are smaller in size.

 They gives an unambiguous 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.
What is panel meter used for?
A panel meter is an instrument that displays an input signal in either a
digital or analog form. Many panel meters also include alarm options as well
as the ability to connect and transfer data to a computer.

Source: https://www.securemeters.com/in/product/digital-panel-meter/dpm-digital-panel-meters/
What is a bench multimeter?

 A benchtop digital multimeter measures

electrical stimuli, including voltage,
current, and resistance.

 Benchtop DMMs usually have higher-

performance analog-to-digital converter
integrated circuits (ICs) and associated
precision signal conditioning circuitry.
They provide higher precision and
accuracy to meet the demands of
product characterization and validation
work.
Source: https://www.amazon.in/Gw-Instek-Digit-Bench-Multimeter/dp/B071KL1Y1P
 System meters
Handheld, affordable Power System
Multimeter measures power and energy,
flicker, harmonics, phase angle, and
displays waveforms.
 The basic circuit, shown in Fig. 2(a), is always a dc voltmeter.

 Current is converted to voltage by passing it through a precision low

shunt resistance while alternating current is converted into dc by
employing rectifiers and filters.

 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 digitized and readout as ohms.
 An attenuator is an electronic device
2 that reduces the power of a signal
without appreciably distorting its
waveform.
 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 Fig. 2 (b).

 The current to voltage converter shown in the block diagram of

Fig. 2 (b) can be implemented with the circuit shown in Fig. 2 (c).
 The current to be measured is applied to the summing junction (Σ 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.
What is in an operational amplifier?

An operational amplifier is an integrated circuit that can amplify

weak electric signals. An operational amplifier has two input pins
and one output pin. Its basic role is to amplify and output the
voltage difference between the two input pins.

Source: https://www.allaboutcircuits.com/textbook/semiconductors/chpt-8/introduction-operational-amplifiers/
 Measurement of Resistance by Digital Multimeter
 Resistance of unknown value has been measured by the circuit shown
in Fig. 3.
 A constant current source is generated by increasing the internal
resistance of a voltage source to a high value and this constant
current has been passed through the unknown resistance, the drop
across which is measured by a DVM.

Fig. 3
 Complete Circuit of Digital Multimeter (DMM)

 Figure 4 is the schematic diagram of a complete Digital Multimetre

(DMM). The change over switch S1, S2, and S3 are coupled to each
other i.e., if one switch jumps to position 1, the other switches follow
it.

 The individual circuits for AC voltage, DC voltage, Current,

Resistance measurement has been already discussed.

 Digital multimeter display is generally 3½ digit i.e., range -1999 to

+ 1999 (3 digits may vary 0-9 and the first digit can be 0 or 1)
Fig. 4
Accuracy and resolution of digital multimeter
 The typical accuracy of a quality DMM meter is ±1% or less.
 This means if the true voltage is 120 V, the display will be within
±1.2 V of the real voltage and show a reading of 118.8 to 121.2 V.
Sensitivity of digital multimeter:
 Standard portable digital multimeters are specified to have an
accuracy of typically 0.5% on the DC voltage ranges.
 Mainstream bench-top multimeters are available with specified
accuracy of better than ±0.01%.
 Laboratory grade instruments can have accuracies of a few parts per
million.
Text Books:
1. H. S. Kalsi, “Electronic Instrumentation”, McGraw Hill Education, 4th Edition (2019).
2. Helfrick and Cooper, “Electronic Instrumentation and Measurement Techniques” PHI,
(2009).
3. A. K. Sawhney “Electrical and Electronic Measurements and Instrumentation”, Dhanpat
Rai and Co. (2008).
4. Dinesh K. Aswal and Shiv K. Gupta, “Science and Technology of Chemiresistor Gas
Sensor”, Nova Science Publishers (2007).

References:
1. L. Cromwell, F. J. Werbell and E. A. Pfeiffer, “Biomedical instrumentation and
Measurements”, Prentice-Hall, 2nd Edition (2011).
2. A.J. Bouwens, “Digital Instrumentation”, McGraw Hill Education, (2004).
3. S. M. Dhir, “Applied Electronics and Instrumentation”, McGraw Hill Education (2002).
Thank you for your Patience Listening