Loading Effects and

Calibration
EE 512
Klint Canilla
BSEE V
Loading Effects

 Loading effect is the

degree to which a
measurement instrument
impacts electrical
properties (voltage,
current, resistance) of a
circuit.
Loading Effects

 Practical
instruments has an internal
impedance which can also be a load when
connected to a circuit.
 Anideal instrument, when used, shows the
value which is the same with the computed
value(theory).
Loading Effect of Voltmeters

 A voltmeter always connects in parallel to electronic components for

measuring the voltage. Practical voltmeters are designed to possess very high
internal resistance (usually 10 or 20 MΩ). There are two cases which might
result in fault measurements.
 When voltmeter connects to a very high external resistance the overall resistance of
circuit changes. For example, a voltmeter with 10 MΩ internal resistance while connected
in parallel to 7.5 MΩ resistors will change overall resistance to 4.28 MΩ.
 When internal resistance of voltmeter is small and it connects to external resistance. The
overall resistance will be changed.
 Both above cases change the working of the circuit and thus lead to
inappropriate readings.
Loading Effects

 Ideally, the voltage drop on the

resistor is 12V. But since there is a
voltmeter connected, the resulting
resistance across the leads of the
voltmeter will be less than 10
megaohms since the resistor is
parallel to the voltmeter with 10
megaohms resistance. The
resulting voltage drop will be
0.889V which greatly differs from
ideally 12V voltage drop.
Loading Effect of the Ammeter

 The ammeter connects in series for measuring current flow through a

circuit. A practical ammeter is built with very small internal resistance
(10 – 100 Ω). Two possible cases which impact working of ammeter are:
 When ammeter connects to a low resistance circuit the overall resistance of circuit
stretches to a noticeable amount. e.g when a meter with 50 ohms internal resistance
connects to a 100 ohms circuit the overall resistance of circuit increases by 3 times.
This also impacts current and voltage by 3 times.
 When internal resistance of meter is high the same impact results and electrical
parameters of circuit vary.
Calibration

 Calibration is the process of

configuring an instrument to
provide a result for a sample
within an acceptable range.
Eliminating or minimizing factors
that cause inaccurate
measurements is a fundamental
aspect of instrumentation
design.
Calibration

 Calibrationis a comparison between a known

measurement (the standard) and the
measurement using your instrument. Typically,
the accuracy of the standard should be ten times
the accuracy of the measuring device being
tested. However, accuracy ratio of 3:1 is
acceptable by most standards organizations.
Importance of Calibration

 The accuracy of all measuring devices degrade over time.

This is typically caused by normal wear and tear. However,
changes in accuracy can also be caused by electric or
mechanical shock or a hazardous manufacturing environment
(e.x., oils, metal chips etc.).
 Depending on the type of the instrument and the
environment in which it is being used, it may degrade very
quickly or over a long period of time.
Importance of Calibration

 From a practical standpoint, a tradeoff must be made

between the desired level of product performance and the
effort associated with accomplishing the calibration.
 The instrument will provide the best performance when
the intermediate points provided in the manufacturer’s
performance specifications are used for calibration; the
specified process essentially eliminates, or “zeroes out”,
the inherent instrument error at these points.
 Importance of Calibration

 The bottom line is that, calibration improves the

accuracy of the measuring device. Accurate
measuring devices improve product quality.
Than You Very Much :D :D