Lab Manual:

Measurements and Instrumentation

Using the NI Automated Measurements Board for NI ELVIS III

Lab 5: Resistance
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Lab 5 - Resistance
Learning Objectives
In this lab you will explore, through hands-on experience, the concept and properties of resistance.
Among other experiments, you will

 Use the NI Automated Measurements Board to measure the change in voltage across a
variable-resistance load that is connected in a closed-circuit loop with a constant current
source.
 Use the NI Automated Measurements Board to measure the change in current flowing through
a variable-resistance load that is connected in closed-circuit loop with a constant voltage
source.
 Use the Wheatstone Bridge embedded in your NI Automated Measurements Board to measure
resistance.
 Simulate important resistance concepts using Multisim Live.
 Use your NI ELVIS III DMM to confirm measurement results obtained from the NI Automated
Measurements Board.

You will be expected to:

 Conduct experiments using the NI ELVIS III and record your observations.
 Conduct experiments using the NI Automated Measurements Board and record your
observations.
 Simulate circuits using Multisim Live and record your observations.
 Complete Check for Understanding Questions.
Required Tools and Technology
Platform: NI ELVIS III
 Digital Multimeter
Note: The NI ELVIS III Cables and
Accessories Kit (purchased
separately) is required for using the
instruments.
Hardware: NI Automated
Measurements Board
Software: NI Multisim Live
● You can use Multisim to
simulate circuits before building
them for your final solution
Software: LabVIEW
Version 19.0 or Later
Toolkits and Modules:
 LabVIEW Real-Time Module
 NI ELVIS III Toolkit
 View User Manual:
http://www.ni.com/en-us/support/mode
l.ni-elvis-iii.html
 View Tutorials:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?
list=PLvcPIuVaUMIWm8ziaSxv0gwtsh
BA2dh_M
 View Breadboard Tutorial:
http://www.ni.com/tutorial/54749/en
 Access online http://multisim.com
 View Help http://multisim.com/help/
 Before downloading and installing
software, refer to your professor or lab
manager for information on your lab’s
software licenses and infrastructure
 Download & Install for NI ELVIS III:
http://www.ni.com/academic/download
 View Tutorials:
http://www.ni.com/academic/students/l
earn-labview/
Introduction: Resistance and Ohm’s Law
Recall the water pump analogy that we used to describe the concepts of voltage, resistance, and current.

Left: water flows from higher-pressure point B through the pipe to lower-pressure point A and from higher-pressure point C to
lower-pressure point D. Tighter pipes resist the flow and cause less water to flow over time. Right: The difference in electric
potential between the plates of the battery (voltage source) causes electric charge to flow through the circuit and the load. The
positive direction of the flow is considered to be from the side voltage source with high electric potential (the + side of the
battery) to the side with lower electric potential (the – side of the battery). Different loads have different resistance to the flow
of electric charge per second. Thus, resistance impacts the amount of current flowing.

Recall that we defined the current at a certain point of a circuit to be the amount of electric charge
flowing through that point per unit of time.
One aspect that impacts this flow is the Resistance of the load through which the current is flowing.
Different substances resist the flow of electric charge to various degrees. For example, glass does not
allow the flow of electric charge. Silicon, on the other hand, is a semiconductor and so it allows partial
flow of charge per unit of time. Gold allows a lot more flow of electric charge per unit of time than
Silicon. This intrinsic property of various substances is referred to as Resistivity.
Another aspect that impacts current flow per unit of time is the shape of the object through which the
electric charge is flowing. The higher its cross-section area is, the more current an object allows. This is
analogous to the pump scenario. Using a tighter hose causes less flow of water over time.
The property that determines how much a load resists current is referred to as Resistance. It is measured
in units of Ohm (Ω).
Recall that this relationship between current, voltage and resistance is governed by Ohm’s law:
V =I × R
Where the current, I, is expressed in units of Amps (A), the voltage, V, is expressed in units of Volts (V)
and the resistance, R, is expressed in units of Ohms (Ω). The current is positive if it is flowing in the
positive direction (the direction going from the higher electric potential point to the lower electric
potential point).
Simulate: Resistance, Ideal Voltage Source
 Launch the Multisim circuit found through the link:
https://www.multisim.com/content/wo2vdEpiBzuDoJaDEdUkKW/resistance-voltage-source/
open/
 Save a copy of the circuit for yourself under the same name followed by your initials.
The above circuits are powered by ideal Voltage sources.
Recall that an ideal voltage source is an abstract voltage source that produces a voltage that is not
impacted by the load which it powers.
1. Run the circuits. Circuit 1 simulates the impact resistance has on current.
a. Change the potentiometer wiper so that the resistance is maximal. What is the measure of
the current? _____________________________
b. Change the potentiometer wiper so that the resistance is 0Ω. What is the measure of the
current? _____________________________
c. What would happen if resistor RX were not added to circuit 1?
________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________

The phenomenon encountered in the preceding question is a cause of hazard. It is

referred to as a short circuit. A short circuit is a circuit that allows a current to travel
along an unintended path with no or very low resistance. This results in an excessive
amount of current flowing into the circuit. To guard against short-circuiting we added
resistor RX.

2. Run the circuits. Circuit 2 simulates Kirchhoff’s Current Law. Change the potentiometer to see
how the resistance of the component in one branch impacts the change in currents flowing in the
two parallel branches.
a. Set the potentiometer to maximal resistance. What are the values of the currents flowing
through
i. the circuit? ____________
ii. resistor R3? __________
iii. the potentiometer? __________
b. Set the potentiometer resistance to 35kΩ. What are the values of the currents running
through
i. the circuit? ____________
ii. resistor R3? __________
iii. the potentiometer? __________
c. Set the resistance of the potentiometer to 0Ω. How will you fix the problem resulting
from what you just did? Implement your solution on Multisim Live. In your own words
describe your solution.
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
Simulate: Resistance, Ideal Current Source
 Launch the Multisim circuit found through the link:
https://www.multisim.com/content/5Wsf2nfyYTZCASZYXxTC2i/resistance-current-source-1/
open/
 Save a copy of the circuit for yourself under the same name followed by your initials.
The Sources powering both circuits are ideal current sources. An Ideal and constant current source is an
abstract source that produces a current that is not impacted by the load it powers.
1. Run the circuits. Change the resistance of the potentiometer in circuit 1.
a. What is the maximal voltage across the potentiometer that could be obtained and at what
potentiometer resistance is it obtained? _________________________________
b. At what resistance value should the potentiometer be set so that the voltage across it is
double the voltage value across the resistor RX?
_________________________________
2. Change the potentiometer resistance in circuit 2 while observing the impact of doing this on the
measures of the currents that flow through both resistors and the circuit. What is the relationship
between those three measures?
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
Experiment: Using the NI Automated Measurements Board to Measure Resistance
Usually, two ways are employed to measure the resistance of a resistor. The first involves running a
constant current through the resistor and measuring the voltage across that resistor. Then, using Ohm’s
law, the resistance can be computed from the values of the voltage and the constant current.
The other method used to measure resistance is done by installing the resistor in a special circuit with
three other resistors whose resistance values we know. This circuit is called the Wheatstone Bridge.
Your NI Automated Measurements Board allows you to conduct both ways of resistance measurement. In
the following two sections we will cover both methods in detail.

Measuring Resistance – Ideal Current Source

In this experiment you will use your NI Automated Measurements Board and LabVIEW to conduct
resistance measurement and display it on your screen.
Before we begin, consider the section of your NI Automated Measurements Board entitled “Resistance
Measurement (Constant Current)”. The following figure shows the schematic of the circuit involved.

Schematic of the NI Automated Measurements Board circuit used to measure resistance by constant current method.

The constant current supplied by the source to the potentiometer can be set up to 0.55 mA. The constant
current source is in a closed-loop circuit with a potentiometer. As the resistance of the potentiometer is
changed, the constant current source remains constant as it is not impacted by the load resistance change.
Thus, as expected from Ohm’s Law, the voltage across the potentiometer changes accordingly. That
voltage can be measured through sockets 37 and 36. For best results, we use a differential measurement.
Using Ohm’s Law, we can then compute the resistance of the potentiometer.

 Make sure your:

o NI ELVIS III is powered on and connected to your computer
o NI Automated Measurements Board is powered on.
 Open the /Resistance/Constant Current folder in the zip file provided in your lab kit.
 Launch the LabVIEW Project named Resistance Constant Current.lvproj.
 Make sure all other projects are closed.
 From the project window, configure the NI ELVIS III IP address to reflect the IP address of the
actual NI ELVIS III your computer is connected to.
o You can find the IP address of your NI ELVIS III by pressing and holding the button on
the left-hand side until the IP address is displayed on the LED screen.
o To configure the NI ELVIS III from your project window,
  right-click NI ELVIS III (0.0.0.0)[Unconfigured IP Address]
 click General in the window prompt you get.

 In the IP address section enter the IP address of the NI ELVIS III connected to
your computer.

o Save your project.

 Open the RT Main.vi and run it.
At this moment, a constant current of 0.55 mA is being supplied to the potentiometer. However, we still
need to conduct the differential voltage measurement across the potentiometer and compute the
resistance. First, we will do that programmatically. Next, we will do that using the NI ELVIS III DMM
and Ohm’s law.
Measuring the Potentiometer Resistance Programmatically
Connect socket 36 to the Bank A analog input channel AI0. The differential pair of this channel is input
channel AI4. Connect socket 37 to A/AI4. Rotate the potentiometer wiper and observe the Resistance
Indicator and the Resistance Chart on the Control Panel of your LabVIEW VI.
1. Set the potentiometer to maximum resistance. What is the maximum resistance value displayed?
_____________________________
2. What is the minimum resistance value displayed? ____________________.

Measuring the Potentiometer Resistance Using the DMM and Ohm’s Law
1. Set the potentiometer to maximum resistance and measure the differential voltage across the
potentiometer using the DMM on your NI ELVIS III. What is the voltage measurement reading
on the DMM SFP? ___________________
Use Ohm’s law to compute the maximum resistance based on the voltage reading and record it.
________________
2. Is there a difference between the values obtained from the two different ways? If so, what is it?
_______________________________________________________
In the lab on error, noise, precision and accuracy we will delve into some reasons behind the difference in
measurement values obtained from various devices. For now, we will settle on mentioning that both
measurements yielded different values due to a difference in their accuracy and/or precision. Intuitively,
the accuracy of a device refers to how close to the real-measurement is the measurement value it
produces. On the other hand, the precision of a device corresponds to the consistency of the measurement
values it returns when measuring the same entity under the same conditions.
Simulate Resistors in Parallel and Resistors in Series
 Launch the Multisim circuit by following the link:
https://www.multisim.com/content/ei9VBs7niTvg5To6Rr8PPg/resistance-para-brnch/open/
 Save a copy of the circuit for yourself under the same name followed by your initials.
Recall Kirchhoff’s Current and Voltage Laws from the Voltage and Current labs. Kirchhoff’s Voltage
Law states that the sum of voltages across components connected in a closed-loop circuit is zero.
Kirchhoff’s Current Law states that the algebraic sum of currents flowing through a node in a circuit is
zero. An implication of these two laws are that, given a closed loop circuit that is composed of a source
and two resistors in parallel or in series, we can replace the resistors by a single resistor to produce a new
circuit that is equivalent to the first.
Run the circuits in the Multisim Simulation.
1. What is the current running through Circuit 1? _____________________
2. Replace both resistors in Circuit 1 with a single resistor without causing a change in the current.
What is the resistance of that resistor? ________________________________
Run the circuits in the Multisim Simulation.
1. What is the voltage across nodes A and B in Circuit 2? _____________________
2. Replace both resistors in Circuit 2 with a single resistor without causing a change in the voltage
measured in the preceding question. What is the resistance of that resistor?
________________________________
Simulate: Wheatstone Bridge
The Wheatstone bridge is a circuit that helps us measure the resistance of a given resistor (see the figure
below).

Wheatstone Bridge circuit schematic. The differential voltage across nodes C and B of the circuit is referred to as the voltage
output of the Wheatstone Bridge.

Using Kirchhoff’s Voltage and Current Laws, it can be shown that the measure of the output voltage
(voltage across nodes C and B) is zero when the resistance values of the four resistors are related through
the following formula:
R1 Rx
=
R2 R3
This provides a way of measuring the resistance of Rx. By adjusting the potentiometer resistance until the
measure of the output voltage is zero, we can use the above formula to find R x.

For instance, suppose that R1=10 k Ω, R3=500 Ω and R x is unknown. Then, we can connect the probes
of a DMM to nodes C and B of the circuit to measure the output voltage. Next, we adjust the wiper of the
potentiometer until the measurement reading obtained is zero. Suppose the potentiometer resistance that
caused the zero voltage is 5KΩ. Then, the above formula is rendered to:

10000 R x
= .
5000 500
This yields

R x =1 K Ω.
When the measured voltage is zero, the Wheatstone Bridge is said to be balanced.

 Launch the Multisim circuit found through the link:

https://www.multisim.com/content/JBFAVDbPY43KfQCGDTbYLe/wheatstone-bridge/open/
 Save a copy of the circuit for yourself under the same name followed by your initials.
Run the circuit
1. What is the voltage across connectors A and B (make sure you place the voltage probe and its
reference probe properly)? _____________________________________
2. What should the resistance of the potentiometer be in order for the bridge to be balanced?
_________________________
Measuring Resistance – Using a Wheatstone Bridge
In this experiment you will use your NI Automated Measurements Board to measure resistance by means
of a Wheatstone Bridge.
Consider the section of the NI Automated Measurements Board entitled “Resistance Measurement
(Bridged)”. Consult the figure below for the schematic of the Wheatstone bridge circuit connected with
this section.

NI Automated Measurements Board - Resistance Measurement (Bridged) Circuit. The output voltage of the Wheatstone Bridge
is acquired through the differential voltage output of sockets 34 and 35.

1. Using the formula linking the resistance of resistors in a balanced Wheatstone Bridge, compute
the resistance that the potentiometer should be set to in order for the Wheatstone Bridge in the
above figure to be balanced.
____________________________________________________________________________
Next, you will use the following LabVIEW Project to confirm the result of the computation obtained in
the preceding question. The main VI in this project acquires the voltage measurement across the output
node of the Wheatstone Bridge on the NI Automated Measurements Board. Using that measurement, it
will programmatically compute the resistance of the potentiometer.

 Make sure your:

o NI ELVIS III is powered on
o Connected to your computer
o The NI Measurement Board is powered on.
 Open the /Resistance/Wheatstone folder in the zip file provided in your lab kit.
 Launch the LabVIEW Project named Resistance Wheatstone.lvproj.
 Make sure all other projects are closed.
 From the project window, configure the NI ELVIS III IP address to reflect the IP address of the
actual NI ELVIS III your computer is connected to.
o You can find the IP address of your NI ELVIS III by clicking and holding the button on
the left-hand side until the IP address is displayed on the LED screen.
o To configure the NI ELVIS III from your project window,
 right-click NI ELVIS III (0.0.0.0)[Unconfigured IP Address]
  click General in the window prompt you get.

 In the IP address section enter the IP address of the NI ELVIS III connected to
your computer.

o Save your project.

 Open the RT Main.vi and run it.
 The Wheatstone Bridge is being supplied with 5V. However, in order to measure its differential
output voltage, we need to connect sockets 34 and 35 to an input channel and its differential pair.
The VI that you are running is programmed to acquire this differential voltage measurement
through the channel A/AI0 and its differential pair A/AI4. Thus, we need to
o Connect socket 34 to the input channel AI0 in Bank A
o Connect socket 35 to the input channel AI4 in Bank A
2. For each of the following, record the voltage output measurement and the computed
potentiometer resistance.
a. Set the potentiometer to maximum resistance.
i. Output voltage: ________________
ii. Potentiometer resistance: ______________
b. Set the potentiometer to minimum resistance.
i. Output voltage: ________________
ii. Potentiometer resistance: ______________
3. Consult the Control Panel of your LabVIEW VI to answer the following questions. At what
resistance (range of resistance values) is the Wheatstone Bridge as close as possible to being
balanced? _________________. Did you get an exact zero for the output voltage reading and if
not, what was the range of measurements you obtained?
_______________________________________________
4. Leave the potentiometer in the best nearly-balanced position you achieved in the preceding
question and the Banana Jack wired. Using the DMM on your NI ELVIS III, measure the voltage
output of the Wheatstone Bridge.
You don’t have to unplug the Banana Jacks as they contain holes where the probes of the DMM
can fit.
 a. What is the DMM reading obtained? _____________________
b. Can you obtain a zero measurement from the DMM by re-adjusting the wiper of the
potentiometer? ______________________
c. What is the lowest measurement that you could obtain using the DMM? ____________
d. Leave the potentiometer wiper in the position from the preceding question. What is the
corresponding voltage measurement obtained on the Control Panel of your LabVIEW
VI? _______________________________
e. What is the corresponding resistance of the potentiometer as displayed on the Control
Panel of your LabVIEW VI? __________________
5. Was it the DMM or the LabVIEW VI that gave you the most accurate measurement of the
potentiometer resistance?
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
 Conclusion
Note: The following questions are meant to help you self-assess your understanding so far.

1. Indicate whether each of the following is true or false. [T/F]

a. The thinner a certain resistive wire is the lower is its resistance.
b. Given a resistor connected in a closed-circuit loop with a voltage source. In order to
double the resistance of the load, all we have to do is add another resistor in parallel to
the first one. The only condition is that the resistance of the newly added resistor is the
same as the old one. [T/F]
c. A Wheatstone Bridge is said to be balanced if its input voltage equals its output voltage.
[T/F]
2. In your own words, describe two ways you could use in practice to measure the resistance of a
certain resistor.
a. ________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
b. ________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
Explore Further
Wheatstone bridges play an important role in certain types of sensors. The design of a load cell (sensor
used for measuring weight), for example, is based on a Wheatstone Bridge. When subject to a weight
force, the sensor is caused to bend. This bend causes the resistance in one of the resistors to change which
yields an unbalanced bridge and a nonzero voltage output. Different weights result in different voltage
outputs. This gives us way to correlate weight values with voltage values. Thus, measuring the value of
the output voltage and performing basic computation yields the weight of an object.
Consult the sensor labs in this series of labs for more on sensors that use the concept of a Wheatstone
Bridge in their functionality.