Instrumentation and measurement (TELT 2206) 2012

Signal conditioning and conversion

Instrumentation system consists of, a signal source, processing circuits and some kind of
measuring devices. As a signal source, sensors are used. Due to the construction and operating
characteristics, many sensors have the capability to output only one kind of signal form. As is
often the case in sensor design, what the sensor is capable of outputting and what are actually
desired by the user may be two different things. Signals provided by a sensor may have
undesirable features such as noise, disproportional with the input, or a form of different from
the desired form. To bring these signals to the usable form as used for measurement, many
sensors contain modifying circuit or converter to alter the sensor output to the desired form.
Since the measuring instruments process the output signals from sensors signal conditioning
circuits are vital for interfacing with display devices. Signals from the sensors do not usually
have suitable characteristics for display, recording, transmission, or further processing. They
may lack the amplitude, power, level, or bandwidth required, or they may carry super imposed
interferences that mask the desired information. Signal conditioners, including deflection
bridges, amplifiers, attenuators, oscillators, filters, and etc are used to adapt sensor signals to
the requirements of the receiver to which they are to be connected.

Bridge circuit
A circuit composed of a source and four impedances that is used in the measurement of a wide
range of physical quantities. The bridge circuit is useful in measuring impedances (resistors,
capacitors, and inductors) and in converting signals from transducers to related voltage or
current signals. The bridge impedances Z1, Z2, Z3, Z4, shown in the illustration may be single
impedances (resistor, capacitor, or inductor), combinations of impedances, or a transducer with
varying impedance. For example, strain gages are resistive transducers whose resistance
changes when they are deformed.

Bridge circuit with source and impedances.

Bridge circuits are often used with transducers to convert physical quantities (temperature,
displacement, pressure) to electrical quantities (voltage and current). High-accuracy voltmeters
and ammeters are relatively inexpensive, and the voltage form of a signal is usually most
convenient for information display, control decisions, and data storage. There are different
types of bridge circuits some of the common bridge circuits are bellow.

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The Wheatstone bridge The Schering Bridge

The Hay bridge The Maxwell Bridge

Wheatstone bridge

A Wheatstone bridge is a bridge circuit used for measuring an unknown electrical resistance
by balancing two legs of its circuit, one of which contains the unknown resistance.  It was
invented by Samuel Hunter Christie in 1833, but it was Sir Charles Wheatstone who
improved and popularized it in 1843. Figure 1 below shows a diagram of the Wheatstone
bridge. The illustration below shows a basic bridge circuit which consists of three known
resistance's R1, R2, and R3 (variable), an unknown variable resistor R X a source of voltage, and
a sensitive ammeter.

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Resistors R1 and R3 are the ratio arms of the bridge. They ratio the two variable resistance’s for
current flow through the ammeter. R2 is a variable resistor known as the standard arm that is
adjusted to match the unknown resistor. The sensing ammeter visually displays the current that
is flowing through the bridge circuit. Analysis of the circuit shows that when R 2 is adjusted so
that the ammeter reads zero current, the resistance of both arms of the bridge circuit is the
same. The equation below shows the relationship of the resistance between the two arms of
the bridge.

Since the values of R1, R2, and R3 are known values, the only unknown is Rx. The value of Rx can
be calculated for the bridge during an ammeter zero current condition. Knowing this resistance
value provides a baseline point for calibration of the instrument attached to the bridge circuit.
The unknown resistance, Rx, is given by:.

Derivation: First,
Kirchhoff's first rule is used to find the currents in junctions B and D:

Then, Kirchhoff's second rule is used for finding the voltage in the loops ABD and BCD:

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The bridge is balanced and Ig = 0, so the second set of equations can be rewritten as:

Then, the equations are divided and rearranged, giving:

From the first rule, I3 = Ix and I1 = I2. The desired value of Rx is now known to be given as:

If all four resistor values and the supply voltage (VS) are known, and the resistance of the
galvanometer is high enough that Ig is negligible, the voltage across the bridge (VG) can be
found by working out the voltage from each potential divider and subtracting one from the
other. The equation for this is:

This can be simplified to:

Where VG is the voltage of node B relative to node D.

The Schering Bridge

 A Schering Bridge is a bridge circuit used for measuring an unknown electrical

capacitance and its dissipation factor. The dissipation factor of a capacitor is the ratio of
its resistance to its capacitive reactance. The Schering Bridge is basically a four-arm
alternating-current (AC) bridge circuit whose measurement depends on balancing the
loads on its arms.  Figure 1 below shows a diagram of the Schering Bridge.

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The Schering Bridge
In the Schering Bridge above, the resistance values of resistors R1 and R2 are known,
while the resistance value of resistor R3 is unknown.  The capacitance values of C1 and C2
are also known, while the capacitance of C3 is the value being measured.  To measure R3
and C3, the values of C2 and R2 are fixed, while the values of R1 and C1 are adjusted until
the current through the ammeter between points A and B becomes zero.  This happens
when the voltages at points A and B are equal, in which case the bridge is said to be
'balanced'.
  
When the bridge is balanced, Z1/C2 = R2/Z3, where Z1 is the impedance of R1 in parallel
with C1 and Z3 is the impedance of R3 in series with C3. In an AC circuit that has a
capacitor, the capacitor contributes a capacitive reactance to the impedance. The
capacitive reactance of a capacitor C is 1/2πfC.
  
As such, Z1 = R1/[2πfC1((1/2πfC1) + R1)] = R1/(1 + 2πfC1R1) while
Z3 = 1/2πfC3 + R3.  Thus, when the bridge is balanced:
2πfC2R1/(1+2πfC1R1) = R2/(1/2πfC3 + R3); or
2πfC2(1/2πfC3 + R3) = (R2/R1)(1+2πfC1R1); or
C2/C3 + 2πfC2R3 = R2/R1 + 2πfC1R2.
   
When the bridge is balanced, the negative and positive reactive components are equal
and cancel out, so

2πfC2R3 = 2πfC1R2 or
R3 = C1R2 / C2.
Similarly, when the bridge is balanced, the purely resistive components are equal, so
C2/C3 = R2/R1 or
C3 = R1C2 / R2.

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Note that the balancing of a Schering Bridge is independent of frequency.
        

Hay Bridge

A Hay Bridge is an AC bridge circuit used for measuring an unknown inductance by balancing
the loads of its four arms, one of which contains the unknown inductance. One of the arms
of a Hay Bridge has a capacitor of known characteristics, which is the principal component
used for determining the unknown inductance value. Figure 1 below shows a diagram of the
Hay Bridge.

The Hay Bridge

     
As shown in Figure 1, one arm of the Hay bridge consists of a capacitor in series with a
resistor (C1 and R2) and another arm consists of an inductor L1 in series with a resistor
(L1 and R4).  The other two arms simply contain a resistor each (R1 and R3).  The values
of R1and R3 are known, and R2 and C1 are both adjustable. The unknown values are
those of L1 and R4.
   
Like other bridge circuits, the measuring ability of a Hay Bridge depends on 'balancing'
the circuit. Balancing the circuit in Figure 1 means adjusting R2 and C1 until the current
through the ammeter between points A and B becomes zero.  This happens when the
voltages at points A and B are equal.  When the Hay Bridge is balanced, it follows that
Z1/R1 = R3/Z2 wherein Z1 is the impedance of the arm containing C1 and R2 while Z2 is
the impedance of the arm containing L1 and R4.  Thus, Z1 = R2 + 1/(2πfC) while Z2 = R4 +
2πfL1.

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Mathematically, when the bridge is balanced,
[R2 + 1/(2πfC1)] / R1 = R3 / [R4 + 2πfL1]; or
[R4 + 2πfL1] = R3R1 / [R2 + 1/(2πfC1)]; or
R3R1 = R2R4 + 2πfL1R2 + R4/2πfC1 + L1/C1.
   
When the bridge is balanced, the reactive components are equal, so
2πfL1R2 = R4/2πfC1, or R4 = (2πf)2L1R2C1.
  
Substituting R4, one comes up with the following equation:
R3R1 = (R2+1/2πfC1)((2πf)2L1R2C1) + 2πfL1R2 + L1/C1; or
L1 = R3R1C1 / (2πf)2R22C12 + 4πfC1R2 + 1); or
L1 = R3R1C1 / [1 + (2πfR2C1)2] after dropping the reactive components of the equation
since the bridge is balanced.
      
Thus, the equations for L1 and R4 for the Hay Bridge in Figure 1 when it is balanced are:
L1 = R3R1C1 / [1 + (2πfR2C1)2]; and
R4 = (2πfC1)2R2R3R1 / [1 + (2πfR2C1)2]
   Note that the balancing of a Hay Bridge is frequency-dependent.

Amplifier
Generally, an amplifier or simply amp is a device for increasing the power of a signal. In popular
use, the term usually describes an electronic amplifier, in which the input "signal" is usually a
voltage or a current. In audio applications, amplifiers drive the loudspeakers used in PA systems
to make the human voice louder or play recorded music. Amplifiers may be classified according
to the input (source) they are designed to amplify (such as a guitar amplifier, to perform with
an electric guitar), the device they are intended to drive (such as a headphone amplifier), the
frequency range of the signals (Audio, IF, RF, and VHF amplifiers, for example), whether they
invert the signal (inverting amplifiers and non-inverting amplifiers), or the type of device used in
the amplification (valve or tube amplifiers, FET amplifiers, etc.)

Factors that affect the quality of amp. The quality of an amplifier can be characterized by a
number of specifications; some of them are Gain, Bandwidth, Efficiency, Linearity, Noise,
Output dynamic, range, Slew rate, Rise time, Settling time and ringing, Overshoot and Stability

Operational amplifiers

An op amp basically has 4 circuit stages: 1) an input stage; 2) an intermediate stage; 3) a

level-shifting stage; and 4) an output stage.  The input stage of an op-amp is usually a pair of
matched transistors configured as a dual-input differential amplifier.  The output of this
input stage is taken from across the outputs of the paired transistors. This balanced output is
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fed into another dual-input differential amplifier that serves as the intermediate stage.  The
output of this intermediate stage is taken from just one of the transistors, i.e., it is single-
ended and therefore not balanced.
  
The dc level at the output of the intermediate stage is high with respect to ground, so a
level-shifting circuit such as an emitter follower is used to shift it down closer to ground.  The
output stage of an op amp usually consists of a push/pull pair of complementary transistors
which increases the swing of the output voltage and enhances the load current capacity of
the op amp.  The gains of the input and intermediate stages of an op amp are high, while
those of the emitter follower and output stage are generally close to 1. 

The op-amp is one type of differential amplifier. Other types of differential amplifier include the
fully differential amplifier (similar to the op-amp, but with two outputs), the instrumentation
amplifier (usually built from three op-amps), the isolation amplifier= (similar to the
instrumentation amplifier, but with tolerance to common-mode voltages that would destroy an
ordinary op-amp), and negative feedback amplifier (usually built from one or more op-amps
and a resistive feedback network).

Component level diagram of the common 741 op-amp. Dotted lines outline: current mirrors
(red); differential amplifier (blue); class A gain stage (magenta); voltage level shifter (green);
output stage (cyan).

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Positive feedback applications

Another typical configuration of op-amps is with positive feedback, which takes a fraction of the
output signal back to the non-inverting input. An important application of it is the comparator
with hysteresis, the Schmitt trigger. Some circuits may use Positive feedback and Negative
feedback around the same amplifier, for example Triangle wave oscillators and active filters.

Because of the wide slew-range and lack of positive feedback, the response of all the open-loop
level detectors described above will be relatively slow. External overall positive feedback may
be applied but (unlike internal positive feedback that may be applied within the latter stages of
a purpose-designed comparator) this markedly affects the accuracy of the zero-crossing
detection point. Using a general-purpose op-amp, for example, the frequency of E i for the sine
to square wave converter should probably be below 100 Hz.

Negative feedback applications

Non-inverting amplifier

In a non-inverting amplifier, the output voltage changes in the same direction as the input
voltage.

The gain equation for the op-amp is:

Non inverting op-amp

However, in this circuit V– is a function of Vout because of the negative feedback through the
R1R2 network. R1 and R2 form a voltage divider, and as V– is a high-impedance input, it does not
load it appreciably. Consequently:

where

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Substituting this into the gain equation, we obtain:

Solving for Vout:

If AOL is very large, this simplifies to

Note that the non-inverting input of the operational amplifier will need a path for DC to ground;
if the signal source might not give this, or if that source requires a given load impedance, the
circuit will require another resistor - from input to ground. In either case, the ideal value for the
feedback resistors (to give minimum offset voltage) will be such that the two resistances in
parallel roughly equal the resistance to ground at the non-inverting input pin.

Inverting amplifier

In an inverting amplifier, the output voltage changes in an opposite direction to the input
voltage.

As with the non-inverting amplifier, we start with the gain equation of the op-amp:

Inverting op-amp

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This time, V– is a function of both Vout and Vin due to the voltage divider formed by Rf and Rin.
Again, the op-amp input does not apply an appreciable load, so:

Substituting this into the gain equation and solving for Vout:

If AOL is very large, this simplifies to

A resistor is often inserted between the non-inverting input and ground (so both inputs "see"
similar resistances), reducing the input offset voltage due to different voltage drops due to bias
current, and may reduce distortion in some op-amps.

Attenuator
An attenuator is an electronic device that reduces the amplitude or power of a signal without
appreciably distorting its waveform. An attenuator is effectively the opposite of an amplifier,
though the two work by different methods. While an amplifier provides gain, an attenuator
provides loss, or gain less than 1. Attenuators are usually passive devices made from simple
voltage divider networks. Switching between different resistances forms adjustable stepped
attenuators and continuously adjustable ones using potentiometers. For higher frequencies
precisely matched low VSWR resistance networks are used.

Attenuator circuits

Basic circuits used in attenuators are pi pads (π-type) and T pads. These may be required to be
balanced or unbalanced networks depending on whether the line geometry with which they are
to be used is balanced or unbalanced. For instance, attenuators used with coaxial lines would
be the unbalanced form while attenuators for use with twisted pair are required to be the
balanced form.

Four fundamental attenuator circuit diagrams are given in the figures on the left. Since an
attenuator circuit consists solely of passive resistor elements, it is linear and reciprocal. If the
circuit is also made symmetrical (this is usually the case since it is usually required that the
input and output impedances Z1 and Z2 are equal) then the input and output ports are not

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distinguished, but by convention the left and right sides of the circuits are referred to as input
and output, respectively.

π-type unbalanced attenuator circuit π-type balanced attenuator circuit

T-type unbalanced attenuator circuit T-type balanced attenuator circuit

Attenuator circuits

Oscillator
An electronic oscillator is an electronic circuit that produces a repetitive electronic signal, often
a sine wave or a square wave. They are widely used in innumerable electronic devices.
Common examples of signals generated by oscillators include signals broadcast by radio and
television transmitters, clock signals that regulate computers and quartz clocks, and the sounds
produced by electronic beepers and video games. A low-frequency oscillator (LFO) is an
electronic oscillator that generates an AC waveform at a frequency below ≈20 Hz. This term is
typically used in the field of audio synthesizers, to distinguish it from an audio frequency
oscillator. Oscillators designed to produce a high-power AC output from a DC supply are usually
called inverters.

There are two main types of electronic oscillator: the harmonic oscillator and the relaxation
oscillator.

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A popular op-amp relaxation oscillator.

Filters
Filters are signal-processing circuits used to modify the frequency spectrum of an electrical
signal. They may be used to amplify, attenuate, or reject a certain range of frequencies of their
input signals. The following are some of the most common filter circuits:

Low-pass filters: A low-pass filter is a circuit offering easy passage to low-frequency signals and
difficult passage to high-frequency signals.

High-pass filters: A high-pass filter allows for easy passage of high-frequency signals from
source to load, and difficult passage of low-frequency signals.

Band-pass filters: A band-pass filter works to screen out frequencies that are too low or too
high, giving easy passage only to frequencies within a certain range.

Band-stop: A band-stop filter works to screen out frequencies that are within a certain range,
giving easy passage only to frequencies outside of that range. Also known as band-elimination,
band-reject, or notch filters.

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