FACULTY OF ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING

UNIVERSITI TEKNOLOGI MARA

BASIC ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING

(ELE291)

1 EXPERIMENT 1

INTRODUCTION TO LAB SAFETY, COMPONENTS AND EQUIPMENTS

OBJECTIVES
1. To expose the students to laboratories environment and safety precautions in the laboratories.
2. To expose the students to equipment/components, electronic and electrical symbols
3. To identify the operating controls and the functions of various laboratories equipment and
components using test instruments.

LIST OF REQUIREMENTS

Equipment
a) Power Supply
b) Digital Multimeter (DMM)
c) Analog Multimeter (AMM)
d) Resistors (at least 3 of any values)
e) Diode

THEORY
In this laboratory session, students will expose to the laboratory’s environment in terms of safety and
rules, basic instruments, and measurements.

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PART A: SAFETY RULES
Refer to a list of safety rules, lab regulations and precautions.

GENERAL LABORATORY SAFETY PROCEDURES AND RULES

FACULTY OF ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING

UNIVERSITI TEKNOLOGI MARA

1. Students should come to laboratory session on time, with proper dress/lab coat and
shoes. No slippers are allowed.

2. Students are not allowed to enter the laboratory without permission from the lecturer
or technician. Working alone and unsupervised in laboratories are forbidden.

3. Bags are not allowed in the laboratories. Put them on the shelves provided.

4. Read the instruction carefully and follow the laboratory procedures. Do not touch
anything with which you are not completely familiar.

5. Never eat, drink or smoke while working in the laboratory. Never run the experiments
with wet hands or wet body.

6. Never run the experiments when you are sleepy or when you take drug medicine.

7. Ensure that your circuit and equipment connections are correct before switching “ON”
power supply.

8. Ensure that the switches are “OFF” and the plugs are unplugged before you leave
the laboratory.

9. Place the equipment, tools and components back to their original place after the
experiment.

10. Notify your lecturer/instructor immediately for any accident.

“SAFETY FIRST”

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PART B: BASIC TEST INSTRUMENTS
a) Multimeter
A multimeter is an electrical instrument capable of measuring voltage, current, and resistance.
Digital multimeter have numerical displays, like digital clocks, for indicating the quantity of
voltage, current, or resistance. Analog multimeter indicate these quantities by means of a
moving pointer over a printed scale.

b) Power Supply
The basic purpose of a power supply is to provide a fixed voltage to the working circuit, with
sufficient current-handling capacity to maintain the operating conditions of the circuit.

PART C: INTRODUCTION TO ELECTRICAL SYMBOLS, SCHEMATIC DIAGRAMS AND

PICTORIAL DIAGRAMS

a) Electrical Symbols
An electronic symbol is a pictogram used to represent various electrical and electronic devices
(such as wires, batteries, resistors, and transistors) in a drawing of an electrical or electronic
circuit. Figure 1.1 shows some of the most common symbols used in a schematic diagram.

Component Circuit Symbol Component Circuit Symbol

Battery Capacitor

Capacitor,
DC supply
polarised

AC supply Diode

Earth LED Light Emitting

(Ground) Diode

Inductor
Voltmeter
(Coil, Solenoid)

Resistor Ammeter

Figure 1.1 : List of common symbols

b) Schematic Diagram
The schematic diagram consists of idealized circuit elements each of which represents some
property of the actual circuit.

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A well-drawn schematic makes it easy to understand how a circuit works and aids in
troubleshooting; a poor schematic only creates confusion. By keeping a few rules and
suggestions in mind, you can draw a good schematic in no more time than it takes to draw a
poor one.

c) Rules of Drawing Circuit Diagrams

Drawing circuit diagrams is not difficult but it takes a little practice to draw neat, clear diagrams.
Follow these tips for best results:
(i) Make sure you use the correct symbol for each component.
(ii) Draw connecting wires as straight lines
(iii) Put a 'blob' ( ) at each junction between wires.
(iv) Label components such as resistors and capacitors with their values. it is best to give
all parts a label, e.g., R7 or IC3
(v) The positive (+) supply should be at the top and the negative (-) supply at the bottom.

If the circuit is complex:

(i) Try to arrange the diagram so that signals flow from left to right: inputs and controls
should be on the left, outputs on the right.
(ii) You may omit the battery or power supply symbols, but you must include (and label)
the supply lines at the top and bottom.

560 560

Lamp 1 Lamp 1
3V 3V

GOOD BAD

Figure 1.2 : Good and bad schematic diagrams

d) Pictorial Diagram
A second type of electronic schematic diagram, the pictorial layout diagram, is actually not so
much an electronic schematic as a pictorial of how the electronic circuit actually looks as in
Figure 1.3. These drawings show the actual layout of the components on the circuit board. This
provides a two-dimensional drawing, usually looking down from the top, detailing the
components in their location.

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 Pictorial Diagram Schematic Diagram

Figure 1.3 Pictorial convert to schematic diagram.

PART D: BASIC HAND TOOLS

Common hand tools such as screwdrivers, pliers, long nose and soldering iron are required when
working in the laboratories/project.

PART E: INTRODUCTION TO RESISTOR COLOUR CODE AND BASIC INSTRUMENT

a) Resistor Colour Code
There are three types of resistor colour coding available. They have different number of colour
bands and hence provide different information. This is illustrated in Figure 1.4.

6-band colour code

4-band colour code 5-band colour code

3 digits, multiplier, tolerance,

2 digits, multiplier, tolerance 3 digits, multiplier, tolerance
thermal coefficient

Figure 1.4: Typical colour coding scheme

Reading 4 band Resistor Colour Codes

Table 1.1: Resistor band colour code

Colour Black Brown Red Orange Yellow Green Blue Violet Gray White

Code 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
Multiplier 100 101 102 103 104 105 106 107 - -

Table 1.2 : Tolerance band colour code

Colour Gold Silver Brown Red Green Blue Purple

Tolerance ± 5% ± 10% ± 1% ± 2% ± 0.5% ± 0.25% ± 0.1%

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Figure 1.5 shows a common 1 kΩ resistor. From left to right, a 1 kΩ resistor will have brown-black-
red-gold. This decodes respectively to 1 - 0 - 102 - ±5%.

Figure 1.5: A 4-band colour code resistor

Take the first and second significant digits together to be 10. Then multiply by the multiplier 102. That
gives you 1000 Ω as the resistor value, which is 1 kΩ. The tolerance band tells us that the measured
resistance can be off by plus or minus 5%. Thus, the actual measured resistor value could be
anywhere from 950 Ω to 1050 Ω.

b) Basic Measurement on Digital and Analog Multimeters

Digital Multimeter (DMM)
A digital multimeter will usually have the following key parts: digital display, function selector
switch, on/off switch.
i. The digital display will display the measured quantity (sometimes the units are given).
The range of the measurement may also be displayed.
ii. Use the function selector switch to make voltage, current, resistance, etc.,
measurements. Additional functions on a given DMM can be identified on the function
selector switch (e.g., continuity, diode testing, etc.)
iii. Make sure that the test leads are connected to the correct connectors.
iv. Get in the habit of turning the hand-held meters off when lab is completed (these are
battery-operated).

Analog Multimeter (AMM)

Analog multimeters are instruments that are commonly used to measure electrical quantities
such as voltage, current and resistance. Basic functionality includes measurement of
potential in volts, resistance in ohms, and current in amps. Basic measurements made by
analog multimeters include DC voltage, AC voltage, DC current and AC current. Analog
multimeters that measure current may have a current clamp built-in or configured as a probe.
A current clamp is a sensor that clamps around the wire. An analog multimeter displays
measured values via a dial, typically a moving pointer or needle.

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PART F: INTRODUCTION TO ELECTRONIC COMPONENTS AND DEVICES

a) An electrical circuit consists of various components or devices or elements, which may be active
or passive.
(i) Passive devices
All electrical devices which consume energy are called passive devices, like resistors,
inductors, and capacitors.

(ii) Active devices

Active devices produce energy that can be used to provide power gain in an electronic circuit.
This means that the power of their output signal may be more than that of their input signal.
The most common active components are transistors. Other active devices are OP-AMP,
Transformer, voltage source and current source.

Figure 1.6: Electronics components and devices

b) Introduction to Diode
Diodes are polarised, which means that they must be inserted into the breadboard or PCB the
correct way round. This is because an electric current will only flow through them in one direction,
from anode to cathode.

Diodes have two terminals, an anode and a cathode. The cathode is always identified by a dot,
ring or some other mark.

Figure 1.7: Diode polarity marking

Diodes come in all shapes and sizes. They are often marked with a type number. Detailed
characteristics of a diode can be found by looking up the type number in a data book.

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The resistance of a diode can be measured by using a multimeter. A good one has low
resistance in one direction and high in the other. There are also specialised types of diode
available such as the varicap, light emitting diode (LED) and zener diode.

Figure 1.8: Diode symbols

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PROCEDURE

PART A: SAFETY RULES

List down five safety rules when working with operating voltage.

a) ________________________________________________________

b) ________________________________________________________

c) ________________________________________________________

d) ________________________________________________________

e) ________________________________________________________

PART B: BASIC TEST INSTRUMENTS

Identify all the basic buttons on equipment below.
a) Multimeter
Figure 1.9 shows the front panel of a digital multimeter. Identify all the basic buttons on
equipments listed in Table 1.3.

Figure 1.9: Digital Multimeter

Table 1.3

Function Button

To measure DC voltage

To measure AC voltage
To get to the shifted button.i.e: Period,
dB,dBm
To measure DC current

To measure AC current

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 A

Figure 1.10: Front/Rear input terminal switch of multimeter

Referring to the Front/Rear Input Terminal Switch of a digital multimeter shown in Figure 1.10
above, indicate the connectors combination used for:
Measuring voltage : …………………………………………
Measuring resistance : …………………………………………
Measuring current : …………………………………………
Testing diode polarity : …………………………………………
Testing breadboard connectivity : …………………………………………

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 b) Power Supply

Figure 1.11 shows the front panel of a power supply. Identify all the basic buttons on
equipment as listed in Table 1.4.

A B C D

Figure 1.11: Power Supply

Table 1.4
Function Button/Connector
Positive terminal
Negative terminal
Amplitude adjust button
Power switch

PART C: INTRODUCTION TO ELECTRICAL SYMBOLS, SCHEMATIC AND PICTORIAL

DIAGRAMS

a) Pictorial and Schematic Diagrams

Draw the appropriate schematic diagrams of the pictorial diagrams shown in Table 1.5 below.

Table 1.5
Pictorial Diagram Schematic Diagram

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PART D: BASIC HAND TOOLS
Identify the following tools and write their corresponding labels into Table 1. below. Refer to Farnell
catalogue for their details.

B C D E
A

F G H I

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 Table 1.6

Basic Hand Tools

Item Tools Label

Cutting Pliers

Screwdriver

Trimming Knife

Wire Stripper

Long Nose Pliers

Basic Soldering Tools

Soldering Iron

Soldering Wire/ solder

Desoldering Gun (Solder Sucker)

Desoldering Braid

PART E: INTRODUCTION TO RESISTOR COLOUR CODE AND BASIC INSTRUMENT

a) RESISTOR COLOUR CODE
Refer to the colour coded resistors given by your lab instructor. Determine the resistor value,
the corresponding tolerance and minimum / maximum resistance for each resistor and record
your results in Table 1.7.

Table 1.7
Resistance Minimum Maximum
Resistor Colour Codes
and Tolerance resistances Resistance
Examples Brown Black Orange Gold 10kΩ +/- 5% 9.5 kΩ 10.5 kΩ
R1
R2
R3

b) BASIC INSTRUMENT ON MULTIMETER FAMILIARITY

Resistance Measurement using DMM and AMM
1. Connect the analog multimeter (AMM) as shown in Figure 1.12 below and select the
resistance function which is denoted by the unit symbol (Ω).
2. Set your multimeter to the highest resistance range and measure the resistance.
3. If the measured value is very close to zero, you need to select a lower resistance range
on the meter and measure the resistance again.
4. Record the results in Table 1.8.
5. Repeat the procedure 1) and 2) using digital multimeter (DMM).

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 Figure 1.12

Table 1.8

Analog Multimeter Digital Multimeter

Example 9.8 kΩ 9.83 kΩ
R1
R2
R3

Reverse the multimeter probe and measure again. What do you observe?

…………………………………………………………………………

PART F: INTRODUCTION TO ELECTRONIC COMPONENTS AND DEVICES (DIODE

TESTING)

1. Construct the circuit as shown in Figure 1.13 below, set the multimeter as ohmmeter. What is
the meter-reading?
Answer: ……………………………………………………………………………

2. Reverse the leads and read the meter again. What is the meter-reading?
Answer: ……………………………………………………………………………

3. What can you conclude from procedure A(1) and A(2)?

Answer: ……………………………………………………………………………

4. Draw the symbol of a diode and label the cathode and the anode.
Answer: ……………………………………………………………………………

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 Figure 1.13

INSTRUCTIONS TO STUDENTS
1. All experimental results and answers must be recorded in the Lab Manual.
2. Show the completed Lab Manual to your instructor at the end of each lab session and get
approval from your instructor.
3. Write a short report which include results, questions, discussion, conclusion and references.

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