ELECTRIC SYMBOL

WIRING SCHEMATICS
• A wiring schematic, sometimes called a
diagram, shows electrical components and
wiring using symbols and lines to represent
components and wires.
 WIRING
SCHEMATICS
Circuit Information

• Many wiring
schematics include
numbers and letters
near components
and wires that may
confuse readers of
the schematic.
WIRING SCHEMATICS
Circuit Information
 Electric Power

http://www.cnas.missouristate.edu/assets/cnas/Wind_Power.jpg
Wind Generator

Niagara Falls
Hydroelectric Plant
 ELECTRICAL CIRCUITS
All you need to be an inventor is a good
imagination and a pile of junk.
-Thomas Edison
 Electric Current
• Electric current is the continuous flow of
electric charge
• Two types of current are direct and alternating
• Direct current (DC) is when the charge flows in
one direction
• Alternating current (AC) is when the flow of
electric charge regularly reverses direction
 Electric Current
• An example of a direct current is a
flashlight and most battery-operated
devices

• Alternating current is in your home and

school

• Current is defined as the direction in

which the positive charges would flow
 Conductors and Insulators
• An electrical conductor is a
material through which charge
can flow easily
• Metals such as copper, and silver
are good electrical conductors
• An electrical insulator is a
material through which charge
cannot flow easily
• Wood, plastic, rubber and air are
good electrical insulators
Current, Voltage,
and Resistance
 Current
• Current: flow of charge (electrons) within a
conductor or how fast charge is moving.
• Charge will only flow if there is a voltage source
(potential difference).
• Symbol for Current = I
• Unit for Current = Amps (A)
 André-Marie Ampèrendré Ampère (1775 –
1836)
• French physicist and
mathematician.
• One of the main discoverers
of electromagnetism.
• SI unit of measurement of
electric current, the
ampere, is named after him.
 What level of current is
dangerous to people?
Current in Amps Effect on A Person
0.001 Amps Can be felt
0.005 Amps Painful
0.010 Amps Involuntary muscle
spasms
0.015 Amps Loss of muscle control
0.070 Amps If through heart, serious
injury, likely fatal if it lasts
more than 1 second
 Resistance
• Resistance: opposes the push from the voltage
source. Resistance affects the speed of the current.

• Symbol for Resistance = R

• Unit for Resistance = Ohms (Ώ)
GGeorg Simon Ohmeorg Ohm (1789 – 1854)
• German physicist
• Ohm determined that there is
a direct proportionality
between the voltage applied
across a conductor and the
electric current.
• This relationship is known as
Ohm's law.
 Resistance
• Resistance is the opposition to the flow of
charges in a material
• The SI unit of resistance is the ohm
• A material’s thickness, length and temperature
affect its resistance
• Resistance is more in a longer wire
• As temperature increases the resistance
increases since the electrons collide more often
 Potential Difference
• Reminder potential energy is related to
position
• Charges flow from a high to low potential
energy
• Potential difference is the difference in
electrical potential energy between two places
in an electric field
 voltage
•
Voltage is what makes electric charges move.
It is the 'push' that causes charges to move in
a wire or other electrical conductor. ... Voltage
is also called, in certain circumstances,
electromotive force (EMF). Voltage is an
electrical potential difference, the difference
in electric potential between two places.
 Potential Difference
• Potential difference is measured in joules per
coulomb or volts
• Potential difference is also called voltage
 Voltage Sources
• Three common voltage sources
are batteries, solar cells and
generators
• A battery is a device that converts
chemical energy to electrical
energy
• In a 9-volt battery the voltage
drop is about 9 volts
 Voltage
• Voltage: the charge (electron) “pusher.” Voltage
causes current to flow/move.
• Voltage sources:
– Battery
– Generator
– Outlets
• Symbol for voltage = V
• Unit for voltage = Volts (V)
Alessa Alessandro Voltandro Volta (1745 –
1827)

• Italian physicist
• known especially for
the invention of the
electrochemical cell,
aka the battery in
1800.
 Voltage at Home
• Power utilities use large generators to provide
the 120V that is delivered to your home outlets.

• When you plug in something to the outlet

(lamp, blow dryer, TV, etc) the voltage is applied
across the circuit, allowing the charge to flow
(electric current).
How you should
be thinking
about electric
circuits:
Voltage: a force that
pushes the current
through the circuit
(in this picture it
would be equivalent
to gravity)
How you
should be
thinking about
electric
Resistance: friction
circuits:
that impedes flow
of current through
the circuit (rocks
in the river)
How you should
be thinking
about electric
circuits:
Current: the actual
“substance” that is
flowing through
the wires of the
circuit (electrons!)
 Voltage and Current
• If the voltage in a circuit increases, the
current will increase.
• If the voltage in a circuit decreases, the
current will decrease.
• This is a direct/proportional relationship.
 Resistance and Current
• If the resistance in a circuit increases, the
current will decrease.
• If the resistance in a circuit decreases,
the current will increase.
• This is an inversely proportional
relationship.
 circuit diagram
Scientists usually draw electric circuits using symbols;

cell lamp switch wires

Simple Circuits
• Series circuit
– All in a row
– 1 path for electricity
– 1 light goes out and the
circuit is broken

• Parallel circuit
– Many paths for electricity
– 1 light goes out and the
others stay on
 Series and Parallel Circuits
• Series Circuits
– only one end of each component is connected
– e.g. Christmas tree lights

• Parallel Circuits
– both ends of a component are connected
– e.g. household lighting
 measuring current

Electric current is measured in amps (A) using

an ammeter connected in series in the circuit.

A
 measuring voltage
The ‘electrical push’ which the cell gives to the current
is called the voltage. It is measured in volts (V) on a
voltmeter

V
 measuring current
SERIES CIRCUIT

• current is the same 2A 2A

at all points in the
circuit. 2A

PARALLEL CIRCUIT

2A 2A
• current is shared
between the 1A
components
1A
fill in the missing ammeter readings.

4A
? 3A
? 3A

1A
?
4A
?

4A 1A

1A
?
 series circuit
• voltage is shared between the components

3V

1.5V 1.5V
 parallel circuit
• voltage is the same in all parts of the circuit.

3V

3V

3V
 ACTIVITY
Draw the schematic diagram and
fill out the appropriate
current and voltage.
 ACTIVITY:
measuring current & voltage
a)
6V
4A A

V V

A
measuring current & voltage

b)
6V
4A A
V