Measurement

Devices
Meters
MCT 3332 : Instrumentation and
Measurements

Objectives
To familiarize the DArsonval meter
movement;
How it is used in ammeters,
voltmeters, and ohmeters;
Some of its limitations, as well as
some of its applications.

Target should be achieved in this

topic..
Explain the principle of operation of the
DArsonval meter movement
Describe the purpose of shunts across a
meter movement and multipliers in
series with a meter movement
Define the term sensitivity
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Meters
device built to accurately detect and display an
electrical quantity in a form readable by a human
being.
Usually this "readable form" is visual:
motion of a pointer on a scale, LED display
composed of numerical figures.
in the analysis and testing of circuits, there are
meters designed to accurately measure the
basic quantities of voltage, current, and
resistance.
modern -"digital" : display is in the form of
numerical digits.
Older mechanical: pointer device to show
quantity of measurement.

DC Meters
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Meters Discussed

Galvanometer instruments to detect electric

current

AC and DC current/voltage measurements

(analog and digital)

The DArsonval Meter

Hans Oersted (1777-1851)

Danish physicist who discovered

the relationship between current
and magnetism from the
deflection of a compass needle

Jacques dArsonval (1851-1940)

French physiologist who

discovered the moving-coil
galvanometer from muscle
contractions in frogs using a
telephone, which operates on an
extremely feeble currents similar to
animal electricity

The DArsonval Meter

In 1880s, two French inventors: Jacques dArsonval and
Marcel Deprez patented the moving-coil galvanometer.

Jacques dArsonval
(1851 1940)

Deprez-d'Arsonval Galvanometer

Marcel Deprez
(1843 1918)

Types of Instruments for DC Measurement

Permanent Magnet Moving-Coil (PMMC) or DArsonval Meter
most accurate type for DC measurement
Moving Iron
Electrodynamometer
Hot wire
Thermocouple
Induction Type
Electrostatic
Rectifier
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The DArsonval Meter Movement

The basic moving coil system
generally referred to as a
DArsonval meter movement
or Permanent Magnet Coil
(PMMC) meter movement.
Current-sensitive
device
capable of directly measuring
only very small currents.
Its
usefulness
as
a
measuring device is greatly
increased with the proper
external circuitry.

Fig.1 The DArsonval meter

movement

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Galvanometer
Galvanometer is the historical name given
to a moving coil meter
A simple galvanometer is made from a
magnetized needle (such as the needle
from a magnetic compass) suspended from
a string, and positioned within a coil of wire.
Current through the wire coil produces
magnetic field which deflects the needle
from pointing in the direction of earth's
magnetic field.
If the coil's movement is opposed by a coil
spring, then the amount of deflection of a
needle attached to the coil may be
proportional to the current passing through
the coil.
Such "meter movements" are the heart of
the moving coil meters such as voltmeters
and ammeters until they are largely replaced
by solid state coil electric current detector.

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Galvanometer

The meter movement of a D'Arsonval galvanometer

is a rectangular coil of wire suspended in a horizontal
radial magnetic field

Permanent-magnet moving coil (PMMC), is a

practical electromagnetic meter made with a pivoting
wire coil suspended in a strong magnetic field and
shielded from the majority of outside influences.
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Galvanometer

In PMMC, when current flows in the coils,

Electromagnetic Torque causes the coil to rotate
but this electromagnetic torque will be opposed by the
Mechanical Torque provide by springs attached to the
movable coil.
=BxAxNxI

Where , = torque by spring (Nm)

B = flux density in air gap, (Wb per cubic meter )
A = effective coil area (cubic meter )
N = number of turns of wire coil
I = current in the movable coil (amperes)

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Galvanometer
An increase in measured current
drives the needle to point further to the
right and a decrease will cause the
needle to drop back down toward its
resting point to the left.
The arc on the meter display is labeled
with numbers to indicate the value of
the quantity being measured.
Most meter movements are polaritysensitive (i.e., one direction of current
driving the needle to the right and the
other driving it to the left).

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Metering with Moving Coil

Instrument

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Note: Rm and Rg are the same in the figures above

DArsonval Meter Movement

D Arsonval Meter Movement In a

DC Ammeter

Since the windings of the moving coil

are very fine wire, the basic dArsonval
meter movement has only limited
usefulness without modification.
One desirable modification is to
increase the range of current that can
be measured with the basic meter
movement.
This done by placing a low resistance
called a shunt (Rsh), and its function is
to provide an alternate path for the
total metered current I around the
meter movement.

Ish > Im

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Basic DC Ammeter Circuit

Ammeter
Where
Rsh = resistance of the shunt
Rm = internal resistance of the
meter movement (resistance of
the moving coil)
Ish = current through the shunt
Im = full-scale deflection current of
Fig. 1-2 Drsonval meter movement
the meter movement
used in ammeter circuit
I = full-scale deflection current for
the ammeter

In most circuits, Ish >> Im

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DArsonval Meter Movement

D Arsonval Meter Movement In a DC Ammeter
Voltage drop across the meter movement is

Vm I m R m

The voltage drop across the shunt and meter movement is the same.

Vsh Vm

The current through the shunt is

I sh I I m
Therefor Rsh is

R sh

Vsh I m Rm I m
I

Rm m Rm ()
I sh
I sh
I sh
I Im
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DArsonval Meter Movement

D Arsonval Meter Movement In a DC Ammeter

Problem 1
Calculate the value of the shunt resistance required to convert
a 1 mA meter movement, with a 100 internal resistance into
a 0 to 10 mA ammeter

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Solution:
Vm I m Rm 1mA 100 0.1V
Vsh Vm 0.1V
I sh I I m 10mA 1mA 9mA
Vsh 0.1V
Rsh

11.11
I sh 9mA

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Ayrton Shunt

Basic DC Ammeter is reliable to measure limited range

of current.

In order to measure multiple range, Ayrton Shunt

Ammeter can be used.

Ayrton shunt may be used in a wider range of meter

movements

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Ayrton Shunt or Universal

Shunt
William

Edward Ayrton studied under

Lord Kelvin at Glasgow. In 1873 he was
appointed to the first chair in natural
philosophy and telegraphy at Imperial
Engineering College, Tokyo. In 1879 he
was the first to advocate power
transmission at high voltage, and with
John Perry (1850-1920) he invented the
spiral-spring ammeter, the wattmeter, and
other electrical measuring instruments.
The ammeter (a contraction of ampere
meter) was one of the first to measure
current and voltage reliably. They also
worked
on
railway
electrification,
produced a dynamometer and the first
electric tricycle.

William Edward Ayrton (1847-1908)

British Engineer
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The Ayrton Shunt

The purpose of designing the shunt circuit is to allow
to measure current I that is some number n times
larger than Im.

The number n is called a multiplying factor and

relates total current and meter current as
1.1
I = nI
m

We can get shunt resistance with n times larger than

Im with

Rm
Rsh
n 1

1.3

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The Ayrton Shunt

Problem 2
A 100 A meter movement with an internal resistance of 800
is used in a 0 to 100mA ammeter. Find the value of the
required shunt resistance.

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Ans: 0.80

Ayrton Shunt

The Ayrton Shunt eliminates the possibility of having

the meter in the circuit without a shunt.

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Ayrton Shunt
Rsh = Ra + Rb + Rc

R sh

Rm

n 1

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Ayrton Shunt
D Arsonval Meter Movement In a DC Ammeter

I ( R Rm )
Rb Rc m sh
( )
V Rb +Rc = V RaI 2+Rm

When
pointer
at I2

(Rb+Rc)(I2-Im) = Im(Ra+Rm)
I m ( Rsh Rm )
Rc
I3

When
pointer
at I3

Ra Rsh ( Rb Rc )
Rb Rsh ( Ra Rc )

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Ayrton Shunt
D Arsonval Meter Movement In a DC Ammeter

Problem 3
Compute the value of the shunt resistors for the circuit
shown below.

Hint: Find Rsh first

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Drsonval Meter Movement

Used In A DC Voltmeter
The basic DArsonval meter
movement can be converted to
a DC Voltmeter by connecting a
multiplier Rs in series with the
meter movement
The purpose of the multiplier:
is to extend the voltage range of
the meter
to limit current through the
dArsonval meter movement to a
maximum full-scale deflection
current.

Fig 2-1 The basic dArsonval meter

Movement Used In A DC Voltmeter

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DArsonval Meter Movement

D Arsonval Meter Movement In a DC Voltmeter

To use Darsonval meter as voltmeter, we need to know what

is the amount of current that deflect the meter to full scale, Ifs.
The sensitivity is found by taking the reciprocal of the full
scale deflection current
Sensitivit y

1
( / V )
If s
1
1
ohms

volt
amperes
volt
ohms

To determine the total resistance that a voltmeter presents to

a circuit , multiply the sensitivity by the range.
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DArsonval Meter Movement

D Arsonval Meter Movement In a DC Voltmeter

The unit of sensitivity express the value of the multiplier

resistance for the 1V range.
To calculate the value of the multiplier for ranges greater than
1V, multiply the sensitivity by the range and subtract the
internal resistance of the measurement,
Rs = S x Range Internal Resistance

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DArsonval Meter Movement

Problem 5
Calculate the value of the multiplier resistance on the 50V
range of a dc voltmeter that used a 500A meter movement
with an internal resistance of 1k

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Solution:
Sensitivity,

1
1
S

2k
V
I fs 500

Multiplier, Rs = S X Range internal Resistance

= (2k X 50) 1k
= 99k

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DArsonval Meter Movement

Problem 6
Calculate the value of the multiplier resistance for the multiple
ranges of dc voltmeter circuit

Ifs

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DArsonval Meter Movement

Problem 7 (practical arrangement)
Calculate the value of the
multiplier resistors for the
multiple range dc voltmeter
circuit as shown.

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To be continued..

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