Measurement System And

Instrumentation

1
 CHAPTER ONE
Lecture out line

1.1. Introduction
1.2. Standard Units
1.3. Structure of measurement systems
1.4. Instrument types
1.5. Characteristics of instruments
 1.1.INTRODUCTION
MEASUREMENT, INSTRUMENTATION, METROLOGY
Measurement:
 The International Vocabulary of Basic and General Terms in
Metrology (VIM), has defined measurement as “a set of
operations having the objective of determining the value of a
quantity”.
 In other words, a measurement is the evaluation of a quantity
made after comparing it to a quantity of the same type which we
use as a unit.
 Measurement is a process of gathering information from a
physical world and comparing this information with agreed
standards.
 It is carried out with instruments that are designed and
manufactured to fulfill given specifications.
 CONT…
 An instrument is a device that transforms a physical variable of
interest (the Measurand ) into a form that is suitable for
recording (the measurement ).
 Refers to a group of permanent systems which help us to measure
objects and maintain retroactive control of a process.
 Are designed to maintain prescribed relationships between the
parameters being measured and the physical variables under
investigation.
 Measurand is the unknown quantity to be measured
 The value assigned
 Metrology, the science and “grammar” of measurement is
defined as “the field of knowledge concerned with
measurement”.
 It guarantees the meaning and validity of measurement by strict
accordance to established units.
 1.2.STANDARD UNITS

 Basic International System of units(SI)

CONT…
 STANDARDS
 The performance of an instrument must be cross-checked against
a known device.
 In addition to primary international standards, standard
instruments are available having stable and precisely defined
characteristics that are used as references for other instruments
that are performing the same function.
 At a global level, checking is done by using an international
network of national and international laboratories, such as the
National Bureau of Standards (NBS), the National Physical
Laboratory (NPL), and the Physikalisch-Technische
Bundesanstalt of Germany.
 A treaty among the world’s national laboratories regulates the
international activity and coordinates development, acceptance,
and inters comparisons.
 STAGES OF STANDARDS
There are four stages of standards:
I. International standard: represent certain units of measurement with
maximum accuracy possible within today’s available technology. These
standards are under the responsibility of an international advisory
committee and are not available to ordinary users for comparison or
calibration purposes.
II. Primary standards: are the national standards maintained by national
laboratories in different parts of the world for verification of secondary
standards. These standards are independently calibrated by absolute
measurements that are periodically made against the international
standards. The primary standards are compared against each other.
III. Secondary standards: are maintained in the laboratories of industry
and other organizations. They are periodically checked against primary
standards and certified.
IV. Working standards: are used to calibrate general laboratory and field
instruments.
 CALIBRATION OF INSTRUMENTS
 Calibration is a comparison of measuring equipment against a
standard instrument of higher accuracy to detect, correlate,
adjust, rectify and document the accuracy of the instrument being
compared.
 A test during which known values of Measurand are applied to
the transducer and corresponding output readings are recorded
under specified conditions.
 Calibration of an instrument is checked at several points
throughout the calibration range of the instrument.
 The calibration range is defined as “the region between the limits
within which a quantity is measured, received or transmitted,
expressed by stating the lower and upper range values.” The
limits are defined by the zero and span values.
 CHARACTERISTICS OF A CALIBRATION
 Calibration Tolerance: Every calibration should be performed to
a specified tolerance.
Tolerance: Permissible deviation from a specified value; may be
expressed in measurement units, percent of span, or percent of
reading.
 Accuracy Ratio: A good rule of thumb is to ensure an accuracy
ratio of 4:1 when performing calibrations.
 This means the instrument or standard used should be four times
more accurate than the instrument being checked.
 Therefore, the test equipment (such as a field standard) used to
calibrate the process instrument should be four times more
accurate than the process instrument, the laboratory standard
used to calibrate the field standard should be four times more
accurate than the field standard, and so on.
 TRACEABILITY PYRAMID
 Traceability: All calibrations should be performed traceable to a nationally or
internationally recognized standard.
 Traceability is accomplished by ensuring the test standards we use are routinely
calibrated by “higher level” reference standards.
 Typically the standards we use from
the shop are sent out periodically to a
standards lab which has more accurate
test equipment. The standards from the
calibration lab are periodically
checked for calibration by “higher
level” standards, and so on until
eventually the standards are tested
against Primary Standards maintained
by NIST or another internationally
recognized standard.
 WHY IS CALIBRATION REQUIRED?
 For new Instrument: to make sure the instrument is providing
accurate indication or output signal when it is installed.
 Instrument error can occur due to a variety of factors: drift,
environment, electrical supply, addition of components to the
output loop, process changes, etc.
Since a calibration is performed by comparing or applying a
known signal to the instrument under test, errors are detected by
performing a calibration.
 LENGTH MEASUREMENT CALIBRATION
 In order to calibrate the instrument an accurate gauge is
required. This is likely to be a SECONDARY STANDARD.
 Instruments calibrated as a secondary standard have themselves
been calibrated against a PRIMARY STANDARD.
 Gauge block calibration is one of the oldest high precision
calibrations made in dimensional metrology.
 Since their invention at the turn of the century gauge blocks
have been the major source of length standardization for
industry.
 Length measuring instruments are checked against these blocks
so that to check their reliability and error range.
 They can also be used for measuring length at labaratory and
industrial level
LENGTH MEASUREMENT CALIBRATION
1. Gauge block
GAUGE BLOCKS
 GAUGE BLOCK STANDARDIZATION

o Of all the conditions only the temperature has a measurable

effect on the physical length of the block.
o The other conditions are needed because the primary
measurement of gauge block length is a comparison with the
wavelength of light.
 EFFECT OF CHANGE IN TEMPERATURE OF
GAUGE BLOCK
Ο A change in temperature causes a change in dimensions of
the block
 ΔL/L = ΔT
o where L is the length,

o ΔL is the change in length of the block,

o ΔT is the temperature change and

o is the coefficient of thermal expansion(CTE).

o = L+L
 2. DEAD WEIGHT TESTER

Ο The dead weight tester is used as a labaratory standard for the

calibration of pressure measuring devices over the range of .
Ο Force per Unit Area is the pressure reference with the set up
shown in the next figure.
Ο The weight which is force per unit area of the cylinder will
counter balance the guage pressure under test
DEAD WEIGHT TESTER
 1.3.STRUCTURE OF MEASUREMENT
SYSTEMS
 A measuring system exists to provide information about the
physical value of some variable being measured.
 In simple cases, the system can consist of only a single unit
that gives an output reading or signal according to the
magnitude of the unknown variable applied to it.
 However, in more complex measurement situations, a
measuring system or measuring instrument consists of several
separate elements as shown in Figure Below.
CONT…
 1) THE SENSOR ELEMENT
 Sensors are the starting point of any measuring device or
Instruments that detect or sense the phisical variable ( Measurand).
 The sensor gives an output that is a function of the input applied to
it.
 For most but not all sensors, this function is at least approximately
linear.
 Examples of primary sensors are a liquid-in-glass thermometer, a
thermocouple and a strain gauge.
 In the case of the mercury-in-glass thermometer, the output reading
is given in terms of the level of the mercury, and so this particular
primary sensor is also a complete measurement system in itself.
 However, in general, the sensor is only part of a measurement
system.
 The types of primary sensors available for measuring a wide range
of physical quantities will be presented in chapter 2.
 2) SIGNAL CONDITIONING (VARIABLE
CONVERSION) ELEMENT
 This element is needed where the output variable of a primary
transducer is in an inconvenient form and has to be converted to
a more convenient form.
 For instance, the displacement-measuring strain gauge has an
output in the form of a varying resistance. The resistance change
cannot be easily measured and so it is converted to a change in
voltage by a bridge circuit, which is a typical example of a
variable conversion element.
 In some cases, the primary sensor and variable conversion
element are combined, and the combination is known as a
transducer.
 3) THE SIGNAL PROCESSING ELEMENT
 The Signal processing elements exist to improve the quality of
the output of a measurement system in some way.
 A very common type of signal processing element is the
electronic amplifier which amplifies the output of the primary
transducer or variable conversion element, thus improving the
sensitivity and resolution of measurement.
 This element of a measuring system is particularly important
where the primary transducer has a low output.
 For example, thermocouples have a typical output of only a few
millivolts.
 Other types of signal processing element are those that filter out
induced noise and remove mean levels etc.
 4) THE DATA PRESENTATION AND DISPLAY
ELEMENTS
 They are used to record and present the achieved reading for the
measured quantity and display it.
 In addition to these a signal transmition is needed when the
observation or application point of the output of a measurement
system is some distance away from the site of the primary
transducer.
 Sometimes, this separation is made solely for purposes of
convenience, but more often it follows from the physical
inaccessibility or environmental unsuitability of the site of the
primary transducer for mounting the signal
presentation/recording unit.
 The signal transmission element has traditionally consisted of
single or multi-cored cable.
 1.4.INSTRUMENT TYPES
 Instruments can be subdivided into separate classes according to
several criteria as follows:
1.Active and Passive instruments
 Instruments are divided into active or passive ones according to
whether the instrument output is entirely produced by the
quantity being measured or whether the quantity being measured
simply modulates the magnitude of some external power source.
This is illustrated by examples.
Passive Instruments
 The passive instrument dose not contain any electrical power
source.
 CONT…
An example of a passive instrument is the pressure-measuring
device shown below
 The pressure of the fluid is translated into a movement of a pointer
against a scale.
 The energy expended in moving the pointer is derived entirely
from the change in pressure measured.
 CONT…
Active Instruments
 The active instrument contains a power source.
 An example of an active instrument is a float-type petrol tank
level indicator . Here, the change in petrol level moves a
potentiometer arm, and the output signal consists of a proportion
of the external voltage source applied across the two ends of the
potentiometer.

Petrol-tank level indicator

 CONT…
 In active instruments, the external power source is usually in electrical form,
but in some cases, it can be other forms of energy such as a pneumatic or
hydraulic one.
 One very important difference between active and passive instruments is the
level of measurement resolution that can be obtained.
 It is possible to increase measurement resolution by making the pointer
longer, such that the pointer tip moves through a longer arc, the scope for
such improvement is clearly restricted by the practical limit of how long the
pointer can conveniently be.
 In an active instrument, however, adjustment of the magnitude of the
external energy input allows much greater control over measurement
resolution.
 In terms of cost, passive instruments are normally of a more simple
construction than active ones and are therefore cheaper to manufacture.
 2.NULL-TYPE AND DEFLECTION-TYPE
 Deflection Type Instrument
 The pressure gauge of mentioned above is a good example of a
deflection type of instrument, where the value of the quantity
being measured is displayed in terms of the amount of
movement of a pointer.
 Null Type Instrument

 The deadweight gauge shown below, is a null-type instrument

where weights are put on top of the piston until the downward
force balances the fluid pressure.
 Weights are added until the piston reaches a datum level, known
as the null point.
 Pressure measurement is made in terms of the value of the
weights needed to reach this null position.
 CONT…
• The accuracy of the first one(Deflection Type Instrument) depends on
the linearity and calibration of the spring, whilst for the second it
relies on the calibration of the weights.
• As calibration of weights is much easier than careful choice and
calibration of a linear-characteristic spring, this means that the
second type of instrument will normally be the more accurate.

Dead-weight pressure gauge 31

 3.ANALOG AND DIGITAL INSTRUMENTS
Analog Instrument
 An analog instrument gives an output that varies continuously as
the quantity being measured changes.
 The output can have an infinite number of values within the
range that the instrument is designed to measure.
 The analog voltmeter shown in Fig. below is a good example of
an analog instrument.

As the input value changes, the pointer

moves with a smooth continuous
motion. Whilst the pointer can therefore
be in an infinite number of positions
within its range of movement.

32
 CONT…
Digital Instrument
 A digital instrument has an output that varies in discrete steps
and so can only have a finite number of values.
 The digital multimeter shown in Fig. below is a good example of
a digital instrument.
 4.INDICATING INS. AND INS. WITH A SIGNAL OUTPUT

Indicating Instrument
 Instruments give an audio or visual indication of the magnitude
of the physical quantity measured.
 They can also be further divided into those that have an analogue
output and those that have a digital display.
 A common analog indicator is the liquid-in-glass thermometer.

 Another common indicating device, which exists in both analog

and digital forms, is the bathroom scale.
 The class of indicating instruments normally includes all null-
type instruments and most passive ones.
 One major drawback with indicating devices is that human
intervention is required to read and record a measurement.
 CONT…
Instruments with a signal output
 Instruments give an output in the form of a measurement signal
whose magnitude is proportional to the measured quantity.
 Instruments that have a signal-type output are commonly used
as part of automatic control systems.
 In other circumstances, they can also be found in measurement
systems where the output measurement signal is recorded in
some way for later use.
 Usually, the measurement signal involved is an electrical
voltage, but it can take other forms in some systems such as an
electrical current, an optical signal or a pneumatic signal.
 1.5.PERFORMANCE OF
INSTRUMENTS
The performance characteristics may be
broadly divided into two groups, namely
1.5.1.Static characteristics
1.5.2.Dynamic characteristics

It indicates how well the instrument measures the desired

input and rejects the spurious (or undesired) inputs.
 1.5.1.STATIC CHARACTERISTICS

 Values given when steady state condition occurs

i.e. the values given when the transducer has
settle down after receiving some input.
 The performance criteria for the measurement of
quantities that remain constant, or vary only quite
slowly.
 CONT…
 Accuracy of measurement is thus one consideration in the choice of
instrument for a particular application.
 Other parameters such as sensitivity, linearity and the reaction to
ambient temperature changes are further considerations.
 These attributes are collectively known as the static characteristics of
instruments, and are given in the data sheet for a particular instrument.
 A thermometer with an inaccuracy of ±0.5°C for room temperature
measurement; Such small variations are too small to affect whether we
feel warm enough or not. Our bodies cannot discriminate between
such close levels of temperature and therefore it is adequate.
 If we had to measure the temperature of certain chemical processes,
however, a variation of 0.5°C might have a significant effect on the
rate of reaction or even the products of a process.
 A measurement inaccuracy much less than ±0.5°C is therefore clearly
required.
 The various static characteristics are defined in following

 Accuracy is a measure of how close the output reading of the

instrument is to the correct value .
 In practice, it is more usual to quote the inaccuracy figure rather
than the accuracy figure for an instrument.
 Inaccuracy: is the extent to which a reading might be wrong,
and is often quoted as a percentage of the full-scale (f.s) reading
of an instrument.
 If we were measuring pressures with expected values between 0
and 1bar, we would not use an instrument with a range of 0–10
bar.
 The term measurement uncertainty is frequently used in place of
inaccuracy.
Example
A pressure gauge with a measurement range of 0–
10 bar has a quoted inaccuracy of ± 1.0% f.s. (± 1%
of full-scale reading).

(a) What is the maximum measurement error expected

for this instrument?
(b) What is the likely measurement error expressed
as a percentage of the output reading if this pressure
gauge is measuring a pressure of 1 bar?
Solution
(a) The maximum error expected in any measurement
reading is 1.0% of the full-scale reading, which is 10 bar
for this particular instrument. Hence, the maximum
likely error is 1.0% × 10 bar = 0.1 bar.
(b) The maximum measurement error is a constant value
related to the full-scale reading of the instrument,
irrespective of the magnitude of the quantity that the
instrument is actually measuring. In this case, as worked
out earlier, the magnitude of the error is 0.1 bar. Thus,
when measuring a pressure of 1 bar, the maximum
possible error of 0.1 bar is 10% of the measurement
value.
 PRECISION/REPEATABILITY/REPRODUCIBILITY
 Precision: How much do the measurements vary from trial to
trial?
 If a large number of readings are taken of the same quantity by a
high precision instrument, then the spread of readings will be
very small.
 Precision is often, though incorrectly, confused with accuracy.
High precision does not imply anything about measurement
accuracy. A precise system is not necessarily an accurate system
and vice versa.
 Repeatability : describes the closeness of output readings when
the same input is applied repetitively over a short period of time,
with the same measurement conditions, same instrument and
observer, same location and same conditions of use maintained
throughout.
 CONT…
 Reproducibility: describes the closeness of output readings for
the same input when there are changes in the method of
measurement, observer, measuring instrument, location,
conditions of use and time of measurement.
 Both terms thus describe the spread of output readings for the
same input. This spread is referred to as repeatability if the
measurement conditions are constant and as reproducibility if the
measurement conditions vary.
 CONT…
 Range or span: The range or span of an instrument defines the
minimum and maximum values of a quantity that the instrument
is designed to measure.
 Linearity: Linear device is the
one in which the relation
between its output reading is
linearly proportional to the
quantity being measured as
shown Fig.
 The non-linearity is then
defined as the maximum
deviation of any of the output
readings marked X from this
straight line.
 CONT…

 Sensitivity: is a measure of the change in instrument output that

occurs when the quantity being measured changes by a given
amount.

 The sensitivity of measurement is therefore the slope of the

straight line drawn on Fig. above.
 CONT…
Example
 CONT…
Threshold: If the input to an instrument is gradually increased
from zero, the input will have to reach a certain minimum level
before the change in the instrument output reading is of a large
enough magnitude to be detectable. This minimum level of input
is known as the threshold of the instrument.
 Manufacturers may specify threshold for instruments as
absolute values or as a percentage of full-scale readings.
 As an illustration, a car speedometer typically has a threshold of
about 15 km/h. This means that, if the vehicle starts from rest
and accelerates, no output reading is observed on the
speedometer until the speed reaches 15 km/h.
CONT…
 SENSITIVITY TO DISTURBANCE
 All calibrations and specifications of an instrument are
only valid under controlled conditions of temperature,
pressure etc. These standard ambient conditions are
usually defined in the instrument specification.
 As variations occur in the ambient temperature, pressure,
etc. certain static characteristics changed
 The sensitivity to disturbance is a measure of the
magnitude of this change.
 Such environmental changes affect instruments in two
main ways, known as zero drift and sensitivity drift.
 CONT…
 Zero drift or bias: describes the effect where the zero reading of
an instrument is modified by a change in ambient conditions.
This causes a constant error that exists over the full range of
measurement of the instrument.
 Sensitivity drift: (also known as scale factor drift) defines the
amount by which an instrument’s sensitivity of measurement
varies as ambient conditions change.
 CONT…
 If an instrument suffers both zero drift and sensitivity drift at the
same time, then the typical modification of the output
characteristic is shown in Figure below.
EXAMPLE
 CONT…
 Hysteresis effects: The non-coincidence between the loading
and unloading curves is known as hysteresis.
 Hysteresis is most
commonly found in
instruments that contain
springs, such as the passive
pressure gauge
 It is also evident when
friction forces in a system
have different magnitudes
depending on the direction
of movement
 CONT…
 Dead space: is defined as the range of different input values over
which there is no change in output value.
 Any instrument that exhibits hysteresis also displays dead space, as
marked on Fig. below.
 Backlash in gears is a typical cause of dead space, and results in
the sort of instrument output characteristic shown in Fig. below. It
is commonly experienced in gear sets used to convert between
translational and rotational motion (which is a common technique
used to measure translational velocity).
 Some instruments that do
not suffer from any
significant hysteresis can
still exhibit a dead space in
their output characteristics.
 1.5.2.DYNAMIC CHARACTERISTICS OF
INSTRUMENTS
 The dynamic(time changing) characteristics of a measuring
instrument describe its behavior between the time a measured
quantity changes value and the time when the instrument output
attains a steady value in response.
 the relationship between the syst output when the measured
quantity (measurand) is varying rapidly.
 As with static characteristics, any values for dynamic
characteristics quoted in instrument data sheets only apply when
the instrument is used under specified environmental conditions.
 Outside these calibration conditions, some variation in the
dynamic parameters can be expected.
 CONT…

 In any linear, time-invariant measuring system, the following

general relation can be written between input (x) and output (y)
for time t > 0:

 where x is the measured quantity, y is the output reading

and . . . , . . .are constants.
 INPUTS
 Step input:(0 to a constant value):-up to some particular time
there is no added value i.e. no input, then after there is an input
which remains constant for the rest of the time.
 Ramp input – a steadily increasing input and can be described by
an equation x=kt.
 Impulse- a very short duration input

 Sinusoidal input- can be described by an equation of the form

x=k sin ωt, with ω being the so called angular frequency.
 If we limit consideration to that of step changes in the measured
quantity only, then the above equation reduces to:

57
 ZERO ORDER INSTRUMENT
 If all the coefficients . . .other than in equation are assumed
zero, then:

 where K is a constant known as the instrument sensitivity as

defined earlier.
 Any instrument that behaves according to the above equation is
said to be of zero order type.
 Following a step change in the measured quantity at time t, the
instrument output moves immediately to a new value at the same
time instant t, as shown in Fig.
 A potentiometer, which measures motion, is a good example of
such an instrument, where the output voltage changes
instantaneously as the slider is displaced along the potentiometer
track.
CONT…
 FIRST ORDER INSTRUMENT
 If all the coefficients . . . except for and are assumed zero in
the equation then:

 Any instrument that behaves according to the above equation is

known as a first order instrument.
 Rearranging the above equation we get

 is the time constant.

 CONT…

 If the above equation is solved analytically, the output quantity

y in response to a step change in x at time t varies with time in
the manner shown in Fig. below
 The time constant of the step response is the time taken for the
output quantity, y to reach 63% of its final value.
 CONT…

RESPONSE OF 1ST ORDER INSTRUMENT

 RESPONSE OF 2ND ORDER INSTRUMENT
A system modelled by a second-order differential equation is
called a second-order system. If all coefficients a3 .. . an other
than a0, a1, and a2 are assumed zero, then we get
Examples of second-order instruments include accelerometers
and pressure transducers (including microphones and
loudspeakers).
CONT.….
 FIRST ORDER INSTRUMENT EXAMPLE

 A balloon is equipped with temperature and altitude measuring

instruments and has radio equipment that can transmit the output
readings of these instruments back to ground. The balloon is
initially anchored to the ground with the instrument output
readings in steady state. The altitude-measuring instrument is
approximately zero order and the temperature transducer first
order with a time constant of 15 seconds. The temperature on the
ground, , is 10°C and the temperature at an altitude of x meters is
given by the relation: = -0.01x
 CONT…

(a) If the balloon is released at time zero, and thereafter rises

upwards at a velocity of 5 m/s, draw a table showing the
temperature and altitude measurements reported at intervals of 10
seconds over the first 50 seconds of travel. Show also in the table
the error in each temperature reading.
(b) What temperature does the balloon report at an altitude of
5000m?
 SOLUTION
(a) The transducer is assumed to be a first order differential. Let
the temperature reported by the balloon at some general time t be .
Then is related to by the relation:

Where the output, y = (the reported reading), the input, x = (the

temperature at an altitude of x ), the constants, = τ, = 1, and = 1.
 Substitute for, we get:

67
 CONT…
 The solution of the differential consists of two parts: The
transient or complementary function part () when = 0, and the
particular integral part () in the form:

 The transient or complementary function part of the solution

when Tx= 0 is given by:

68
 CONT…

 Using the above to calculate for various values of t, the

following table can be constructed:
 (b) At 5000 m, t = 1000 seconds. Calculating we get:
~END~