Basic Electrical Engineering

Annexure

Department of Biomedical Engineering

Riphah International University, Islamabad
Annexure A:
Common Electrical Symbols










Basic Electrical Engineering

Annexure

Department of Biomedical Engineering

Riphah International University, Islamabad
Annexure B:
Safety Precautions:
In working with electrical equipment, extreme care must be taken to avoid electrical shock to
any person, and to avoid any damage to any instrument or other equipment. In this exercise,
you are to investigate the circuit connections for measuring DC voltages and currents. Some
important rules to remember are:
1. Carefully follow all written and verbal instructions. If you do not clearly understand a
procedure or directions, ask your instructor before proceeding with the experiment.
1. Always turn off power to the circuit when changing the circuit.
2. Have your instructor check and approve your circuit before turning power on
2. Only reapply power after verifying that the circuit is properly wired and that the voltage
to be applied is at or below the required value.
3. Failure to turn off power when making circuit changes is a major reason for blowing
fuses in the equipment, thereby rendering the equipment unusable and wasting your
time and that of others. Please carefully check circuit wiring, resistor settings, and
voltage settings before applying power to the circuits.
4. To avoid possible costly instrument damage, the range of the scale for a voltmeter or an
ammeter should always be larger than the magnitude of the voltage or current being
measured.
5. When in doubt, start out with the highest scale or with an instrument known to have a
higher range than the quantity you are measuring. It is important to note that one
should use the smallest possible scale, without exceeding the range setting, for the most
precise measurement.
6. Polarity must be observed on DC measurements. A voltmeter must be connected such
that its positive terminal is connected to the more positive point in the circuit, and an
ammeter must be connected such that current enters its positive terminal.
7. Always connect a voltmeter in parallel with the load or source being measured, and
connect an ammeter in series with the load. Never connect an ammeter across a
voltage source.
8. An ideal voltmeter would have infinite resistance and would not drain any current from
the original circuit. However, real voltmeters have a finite resistance, which must be
considered in a high-resistance circuit.
9. An ideal ammeter would have zero resistance, in which case there would be no voltage
drop across the meter. However, real ammeters have some resistance, which becomes
important in low-resistance circuits.
10. Rings, watches, etc.should be removed. Wearing articles of jewelry can be dangerous, since
they may serve as electrodes for the introduction of current into the body.
11. Do not work in the laboratory alone; have at least one partner or must be supervised by a
teaching assistant, faculty member, or staff member at all times.