Lect. 1 - 2020

Part two- Lect.
1
Assoc. Prof. Tarek A. Mahmoud
Electronic
Measurements
Electronic Measurements (ACE 311) Part two- Lect. 1
Level Transducers (cont. to part 1)
1- Discrete Level Transducers

Level Transducers
2- Continuous Level Transducer
Electronic Measurements (ACE 311) Part one (cont.) - level transducers
❑ Discrete Level Transducers

It’s only necessary to be able to detect the level of a tank or vessel at specific, individual locations,
e.g., empty, ½ full, full.
✓ Float switch ✓ Photoelectric level sensors

❑ Continuous Level Transducers

Continuous level measurement instruments measure the levels of solids and liquids in silos, storage
tanks, vessels, and other open or closed storage systems
Continuous Level Level measurement by pressure sensing

Transducers
Float Level Sensors
Capacitive Level Sensors
Ultrasonic level gauge


✓ Level measurement by pressure sensing
This type is only suitable for hydrostatic systems (i.e., The hydrostatic pressure due to a liquid is directly
proportional to its depth and hence to the level of its surface )
P=ρgh
P = head (pressure)
h
ρ = density of the liquid
h = height of the column
Open-topped vessel

✓ Level measurement by pressure sensing
𝑷𝒃𝒐𝒕𝒕𝒐𝒎 − 𝑷𝒕𝒐𝒑 = ρ g h
𝑷𝒕𝒐𝒑
P = head (pressure)
ρ = density of the liquid
h h = height of the column
𝑷𝒃𝒐𝒕𝒕𝒐𝒎
Sealed vessel

The force applied by the
✓ Float level Sensor float to the valve is
amplified by a factor of
ℓ1/ℓ2.
Monitoring Controlling

✓ Capacitive Level Sensors
▪ The change in capacitance is caused by the changing

dielectric constant between liquid and air.
ε is the relative permittivity of the measured substance

ε0 is the permittivity of free space.

✓ Capacitive Level Sensors
The change in capacitance due to the level usually

sensed by an oscillator in an AC bridge.

✓ Ultrasonic level gauge
▪ Ultrasonic level measurement is one of non-contact
techniques available
▪ The principle of the ultrasonic level gauge is that energy from

an ultrasonic source above the liquid is reflected from the
liquid surface into an ultrasonic energy detector
▪ Measurement of the time of flight allows the liquid level

to be inferred.

d = 0.5 V.t
d is distance to the surface ,
V = velocity of sound = 331.5 m/s sea level
and 0 𝑪𝒐
t = total time to the surface and back.

Measuring the position of the interface Measuring the sludge or precipitate level at
between two immiscible liquids contained in the bottom of a liquid-filled tank.
the same vessel
Part two
Contents 1- Digital Instrumentation
2- Signal Conversion (A/D and D/A converters)
3- Introduction to Telemetry
1- Digital Instrumentation
Digital Instrumentation - Analog meters (Brief review)
- Digital signals & Analog signals
- Digital Meters
❑ Analog Meters
1- Electromechanical Meters
2- Electronic Meters
❑ Analog Meters
1- Electromechanical Meters
▪ Galvanometer ▪ Galvanometer to ▪ Galvanometer to

multirange ammeter multirange voltmeter
Analog Meters
2- Electronic Meters
Electronic meters process the input signal by means of semiconductor devices
▪ Construction
Deflection
Measured signal Attenuator Amplifier
Display
❑ Analog Meters
▪ Electronic Meters versus Electromechanical Meters
1- They have a high input impedance that avoids the circuit loading problems
Advantages
associated with many applications of electromechanical instruments.
2- They have an amplification capability that enables them to measure small

signal levels accurately.
3- They have wide possible bandwidth for AC measurements

❑ Digital signals & Analog signals
f(t) f*(t)
continuous signal Sampler Discrete signal
f(t) f*(t)
Continuous signal T Sampled signal KT

t
sampling time 0 T 2T
Analog signal Digital signal
f(t)
f*(t) 00000000
00000101
.
.
KT
t 0 T 2T
.
11111111
❑ Digital Meters
▪ Analog meters & Digital meters ( Construction)
Electronic Analog meter
Its display shows the measured quantity by deflection of pointer on scale
Deflection
Measured signal Attenuator Amplifier
Display
Digital meter
The display of digital meter represents the value in the form of digits.
Analog to
Attenuator Digital
Measured signal Digital
or amplifier Display
converter
❑ Digital Meters
▪ Analog meters & Digital meters (merits and demerits)
Advantages Better Resolution (i.e., the smallest voltage can be read for 12 bit ADC is 0.001 V in 0-5V)
Storage Facility (the digital data can be easily stored in a microprocessor or PC memory)
Accuracy (i.e., the measured error is very less)
Easy to read (i.e., digital instruments are more user friendly)
Disadvantages More sensitive to noise
Very much sensitive to external atmospheric conditions
Analog instruments have higher overload capacity than digital instruments

Digital Meters
Attenuator Analog to
Measured Digital
❑ Performance Characteristics or Digital
Display
signal amplifier converter
1- Resolution
2- Accuracy
3- Linear Error
4- Settling time
❑ Digital Meters ▪ Performance Characteristics
1- Resolution
Analog to
Measured Attenuator Digital
Digital
signal or amplifier Display
converter
✓ It is defined as the smallest increment in measured signal that can be detected.
✓ It is the reciprocal of the number of discrete steps in the Analog to Digital (A/D) converter
output.
✓ Evidently it depends on the number of bits, i.e., the smallest increment in input measured signal
is determined by the Least Significant Bit (LSB).
𝟏
Percentage resolution % = 100 where N is the number of bits.
𝟐𝑵 −𝟏
2- Accuracy
✓ It is a measure of the difference between actual output and expected output
✓ It is expressed as a percentage of the maximum output signal (full scale).

± 𝒎𝒂𝒙𝒊𝒎𝒖𝒎 𝒆𝒓𝒓𝒐𝒓
Percentage accuracy % = 100
𝒇𝒖𝒍𝒍 𝒔𝒄𝒂𝒍𝒆
Example: If the maximum error is 5 mV for a DVM with 5 V full-scale , then the percentage accuracy is
±0.1%
𝟏
✓ Ideally the accuracy should be better than ±½ of LSB. LSB% = 100
𝟐𝑵
Example : In 8-bit converter, LSB is 1/255 or 0.39% of full scale, so the accuracy should be better than 0.2%.
Digital Meters ❑ Performance Characteristics
3. Linear Error
✓ It means that equal increments in input signal of digital instruments should result in equal increment in
digital output signal .
✓ For ideal components of digital meter, there are perfectly linear relation between output and input and
output–input graph would be a straight line.
Digital output
Analog input
4. Settling Time
✓ Settling time is defined as the time taken by the A/D converter to settle within ±½ LSB of its final value when a
change in input signal occurs.
Digital Multimeters
✓ A digital multimeter is an electronic instrument which can measure very precisely the dc and ac voltage,
current (dc and ac), and resistance.
✓ All quantities other than dc voltage is first converted into an equivalent dc voltage by some device and
then measured with the help of digital voltmeter.
Digital Multimeters
❑ Basic structure
Digital Multimeters
❑ Usage
For ac voltage,
✓ The input voltage, is fed through a calibrated,
compensated attenuator, to a precision full-wave
rectifier circuit followed by a ripple reduction filter.
✓ The resulting dc is fed to an Analog Digital
Converter (ADC) and the subsequent display system.
❑ Digital Multimeters
▪ Usage
For dc voltage,
✓ The input voltage, is fed through a calibrated,
compensated and then is fed to an Analog Digital
Converter (ADC) and the subsequent display system.
▪ Usage
For Current Measurements
✓ The current is feed to a voltage to current converter

and is measured directly by the ADC in the ‘dc current
mode’, and after rectifier circuit in the ‘ac current mode’.
▪ Usage
For current measurements
Current to Voltage Converter
𝑽𝒐𝒖𝒕
𝑽𝒐𝒖𝒕 = 𝑰𝑵 𝑹
▪ Usage
For Resistance Measurements
✓ the digital multimeter operates by measuring the

voltage across the externally connected resistance,
resulting from a current forced through it from a
calibrated internal current source.
✓ The buffer amplifier is needed to isolate the Analog to Digital

Converter from the internal current source.

Lect. 1 - 2020

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

You might also like

Lect. 1 - 2020

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Description:

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Lect. 1 - 2020

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Part two- Lect.

Level Transducers (cont. to part 1)

1- Discrete Level Transducers

❑ Discrete Level Transducers

✓ Float switch ✓ Photoelectric level sensors

❑ Continuous Level Transducers

Continuous Level Level measurement by pressure sensing

Capacitive Level Sensors

Ultrasonic level gauge

❑ Continuous Level Transducers

❑ Continuous Level Transducers

❑ Continuous Level Transducers

❑ Continuous Level Transducers

▪ The change in capacitance is caused by the changing

ε is the relative permittivity of the measured substance

❑ Continuous Level Transducers

The change in capacitance due to the level usually

❑ Continuous Level Transducers

▪ The principle of the ultrasonic level gauge is that energy from

▪ Measurement of the time of flight allows the liquid level

❑ Continuous Level Transducers

❑ Continuous Level Transducers

2- Signal Conversion (A/D and D/A converters)

Digital Instrumentation - Analog meters (Brief review)

- Digital signals & Analog signals

▪ Galvanometer ▪ Galvanometer to ▪ Galvanometer to

2- They have an amplification capability that enables them to measure small

3- They have wide possible bandwidth for AC measurements

❑ Digital signals & Analog signals

Continuous signal T Sampled signal KT

Analog signal Digital signal

Its display shows the measured quantity by deflection of pointer on scale

Accuracy (i.e., the measured error is very less)

Easy to read (i.e., digital instruments are more user friendly)

Disadvantages More sensitive to noise

Very much sensitive to external atmospheric conditions

Analog instruments have higher overload capacity than digital instruments

❑ Digital Meters ▪ Performance Characteristics

✓ It is defined as the smallest increment in measured signal that can be detected.

❑ Digital Meters ▪ Performance Characteristics

✓ It is expressed as a percentage of the maximum output signal (full scale).

Digital Meters ❑ Performance Characteristics

❑ Digital Meters ▪ Performance Characteristics

For Current Measurements

✓ The current is feed to a voltage to current converter

For current measurements

Current to Voltage Converter

For Resistance Measurements

✓ the digital multimeter operates by measuring the

✓ The buffer amplifier is needed to isolate the Analog to Digital

You might also like