Eet 3211 Electrical Measurements & Instrumentation Lecture1
Eet 3211 Electrical Measurements & Instrumentation Lecture1
L. O. Mogaka,
Email: [email protected]
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Purpose
The aim of this course is to enable the student to
understand the concept of international Standards of
Units and the working principle of electrical/instruments
and transducer.
Learning outcomes
By the end of this course unit the student should be able
to:
I. Use different instruments to perform various
measurements
II. Store, process and analyze data obtained from
measurements
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Course content
International Standards of Units (SI). Natural constants and their application in
measurements. Primary standards. Elements of a measurement system: accuracy,
precision, sensitivity of instrument. Sources of error. Error analysis.
Transducers; resistive, capacitive, inductive, optical, thermal etc. Analogue
instruments. Digital instruments. Instrument transformers. Alternating current/
direct current (AC/DC) bridges. Cathode ray oscilloscope (CRO). Calibration of
instruments. Measurements of voltage, current, charge, resistance, inductance,
capacitance, phase angle, frequency, power and energy. Magnetic measurements.
AC/DC conversion. Generalised performance of instrumentation systems. Static
characteristics. Meteorological, standards, error analysis. Dynamic
characteristics: dynamic system models. Transducers for non-electrical
quantities, application to measurement of primary variable e.g. mechanical,
thermal, acoustic etc. Remote sensing techniques. Signal conditioning e.g. chopper
amplifier and pre-processing. Microprocessor application in instrumentation.
Noise and interference reduction. Data storage system. Chart recorder: X-Y
plotters, digital data recording, digital displays.
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Reference Books
1. Kamakshaiah S., (2012). Electrical Measurements and Measuring
Instruments, 2ND Ed, I. K. International Pvt Ltd, New DELHI, INDIA .
ISBN: 9789380578767
2. Roman M., (2013). Instrumentation and Measurement in Electrical
Engineering, Universal-Publishers, London, ISBN-13: 9781612335001
3. Robert A.W., (2012). Electronic Test Instruments : Analog and Digital
Measurements, Prentice Hall, Upper Saddle River, New Jersey, USAISBN-
10: 0130668303 /ISBN-13: 978-0130668301
4. Helfrick C., (2013). Modern Electronics Instrumentation and Measurement,
Pearson Education, Upper Saddle River NJ,USA ISBN 10: 0132507218 /
ISBN 13: 9780132507219
5. Sawhney A. K., (2015). A Course in Electrical and Electronic Measurement
and Instrumentation, ISBN-10: 8177001000 / ISBN-13: 978-81770010064
Introduction to Electrical Measurement
Measurement is a process of comparison between a
standard and an unknown resulting in knowing the
magnitude of the unknown in terms of standard
Instrumentation is a device in which we can determine the
magnitude or value of the quantity to be measured.
The two main essential characteristics of an electrical
instrument are;
I. The operational power consumption should be minimal
II. The instrument should not change the ambient
condition for the circuit in which it has been introduced.
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Need for measurements
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What affects your measurements?
• Environmental conditions – Changes in temperature or
humidity can expand or contract materials as well as
affect the performance of measurement equipment.
• Inferior measuring equipment – Equipment which is poorly
maintained, damaged or not calibrated will give less
reliable results.
• Poor measuring techniques – Having consistent procedures
for your measurements is vital.
• Inadequate training – Not knowing how to make the right
measurement, not having the confidence to challenge
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Physical Quantity
A physical property that can be measured and
described by a number is called physical quantity.
Examples:
• Mass of a person is 65 kg.
• Length of a table is 3 m.
• Area of a hall is 100 m2.
• Temperature of a room is 300 K
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Types of physical quantities
1. Fundamental quantities:
The physical quantities which do not depend on any other
physical quantities for their measurements are known as
fundamental quantities. Eg mass, length, time, and
temperature
2. Derived quantities:
The physical quantities which depend on one or more
fundamental quantities for their measurements are known
as derived quantities. Eg area, volume, speed, and force
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Units for measurement
The standard used for the measurement of a physical
quantity is called a unit.
Examples:
• metre, foot, inch for length
• kilogram, pound for mass
• second, minute, hour for time
• fahrenheit, kelvin for temperature
Characteristics of units
Well – defined Suitable size
Reproducible Invariable Indestructible
Internationally acceptable
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Standards-
A standard is a physical representation of a unit of measurement. The
term 'standard' is applied to a piece of equipment having a known
measure of physical quantity· They are used for the purpose of
obtaining the values of the physical properties of other equipment by
comparison methods.
Standards of Measurement are classified by their function and
application in the following categories :
(i)International standards
(ii)Primary standards
(iii)Secondary standards
(iv)Working standards.
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International Standards-
• In 1971, General Conference on Weight and Measures held its
meeting and decided a system of units for international usage.
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Primary Standards-
Primary standards are absolute standards of such high accuracy that they can
be used as the ultimate reference standards.
It represent the fundamental units and some of the derived electrical and
mechanical units, are independently calibrated by absolute measurements at
each of the national laboratories.
Primary standards are not available for use outside the national laboratories
One of the main functions of the primary standards is the verifications and
calibration of secondary standards.
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The following points must be taken into serious consideration when a
primary standard is built:
1. The materials should have a long time stability.
2.The temperature coefficient of the materials should be as small as
possible.
3. The deterioration of the materials caused by moisture and other
environmental conditions should be eliminated as far as possible.
4.The machining of parts should be accurate.
5.The measurement of physical dimensions, on which the accuracy of
the standard depends predominantly, should be done with most
sophisticated techniques available.
6.The rigidity of the construction should be insured.
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Secondary Standards-
The secondary standards are the basic reference standards used in industrial
measurement laboratories.
The secondary standards are sent back to the industry by the national
laboratories with a certification as regards their measured values in terms of
primary standards. ·
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Working Standards-
The working standards are the major tools of a measurement
laboratory.
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Seven fundamental units
FUNDAMENTAL QUANTITY SI UNIT SYMBOL
Length metre m
Mass kilogram kg
Time second s
Temperature kelvin K
Electric current ampere A
Luminous intensity candela cd
Amount of substance mole mol
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Two supplementary units
1. Radian: It is used to measure plane angle
θ = 1 radian
Ω = 1 steradian
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Rules for writing SI units
1. Full name of unit always starts with small letter even if
named after a person. Eg newton
2. Symbol for unit named after a scientist should be in capital
letter. Eg N for newton
3. Symbols for all other units are written in small letters. Eg
m for meter
4. One space is left between the last digit of numeral and the
symbol of a unit. Eg 10 kg
5. The units do not have plural forms. Eg 6 metres
6. Full stop should not be used after the units. Eg 7 metre.
7. No space is used between the symbols for units. Eg 4 J s
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