EEEB 111 ELECTRICAL/ELECTRONICS MEASUREMENT LABORATORY - UNITEN Exp.

5, Page 1/17





EEEB111

ELECTRICAL/ELECTRONICS
MEASUREMENT LABORATORY




Experiment 5:
Loading Effects of Meters and Thevenins Theorem





























EEEB 111 ELECTRICAL/ELECTRONICS MEASUREMENT LABORATORY - UNITEN Exp. 5, Page 2/17

EXPERIMENT 5:


Loading Effects of Meters and Thevenins Theorem


Assessed OBE Course Objectives: CO1 and CO5


OBJECTIVES

The objective of this laboratory experiment is to identify the loading effects of digital and
analogue voltmeter and to validate the Thevenins Theorem.


INTRODUCTION

Loading Effects in DC Measurements

1. The DArsonval Movement

Ideally, the internal resistance of a voltmeter is infinite () while the internal resistance of
an ammeter should be zero (0) ohms to minimize its effect on a circuit when taking
measurements.

However, because measuring instruments are not ideal, they do draw current from the
circuit thus causing an effect known as loading.

Most analog ammeters and voltmeters operate based on a current sensing mechanism
called a "DArsonval movement". In this mechanism, a wire coil wrapped around a soft
iron shaft is mounted between two magnetic lines, a proportionate torque is produced
which rotates the coil and moves an attached pointer along a calibrated scale.

There is always a resistance R
M
associated with the coil of a wire.


2. Analogue Ammeter

A single scale ammeter may be modeled as an ideal movement (short circuit) in series
with the movement resistance, R
M
. In order to create an ammeter scale with a larger full-
scale range, a shunt resistor is placed in parallel with the movement to draw off a
proportionate amount of the current (Figure 5.1a). Thus the total meter resistance of a
multi range ammeter is the parallel combination of the shunt resistance and the movement
resistance R
M
(Figure 5.1b).


EEEB 111 ELECTRICAL/ELECTRONICS MEASUREMENT LABORATORY - UNITEN Exp. 5, Page 3/17



Figure 5.1a: Mul t i - r ange Ammet er Figure 5.1b: Equi val ent
Ammet er Resi st ance


Since the ammeter is always connected in series with elements in the branch in which
current is to be measured, this meter resistance R
meter
=R
M
// R
shunt
, affects the circuit by
placing an additional series resistance in the branch where current is being measured.

Also, since the shunt resistance must become progressively smaller to construct larger
scales, the meter resistance is dependent on scale.


3. Analogue Voltmeter

The DArsonval movement can be used as a voltmeter by calibrating the voltmeter scale
corresponding to the product of the current through the movement multiplied by the
movement resistance.

To increase the voltage scale, a resistor is placed in series with the movement resistance.
Placing the voltmeter in parallel with the element across which voltage is to be measured
loads the circuit by placing a parallel resistor R
meter
=R
M
+R
series
across the elements (see
Figures 5.3a and 5.4b).

This parallel resistance draws current from the rest of the circuit. Like the ammeter, the
voltmeter resistance is scale dependent.




Figure 5.2a: Ci r cui t wi t hout
Ammet er



Figure 5.2b: Ci r cui t wi t h Ammet er



EEEB 111 ELECTRICAL/ELECTRONICS MEASUREMENT LABORATORY - UNITEN Exp. 5, Page 4/17



Figure 5.3a: Mul t i - r ange Vol t met er






Figure 5.3b: Equi val ent
Vol t met er Resi st ance



Figure 5.4a: Ci r cui t wi t hout
Vol t met er


Figure 5.4b: Circuit with
Vol t met er



4. Meter Scales

Many analog meters have an ohm/volt rating on the face of the meter. The meter
resistance for a particular scale may be found by the following formula:


Rmeter = (/ ) x (full-scale voltage selected)






Figure 5.5: Met er Scal e of a anal ogue met er .

The digital voltmeter generally has very high input impedance (in the mega ohm range)
so that the loading effect is minimized.
/

EEEB 111 ELECTRICAL/ELECTRONICS MEASUREMENT LABORATORY - UNITEN Exp. 5, Page 5/17

Summary:

Measurement devices connected in a circuit to determine the currents or the voltages are
theoretically designed to prevent any disturbance in the behavior of the circuit.

However, in practice such perfection is impossible. It is then normal to expect that
these measurement devices will slightly modify the voltage and the current distribution in
the circuit and introduce some errors in the measurements. This phenomenon is known as
the loading effect in a circuit.


Remarks:

When a measurement device has to be connected in a circuit, the following rules must be
respected:

1. A voltmeter must always be connected in parallel with the element(s) across which
the voltage is to be measured.

2. An ammeter must always be connected in series with the element(s)through which
the current is to be measured.


3. Make sure to verify the polarity of all voltages and the direction of all currents
before you connect the measurement device to avoid a deviation in the wrong
direction that might damage the meter.

4. First, select the largest range of values available on the meter and progressively
reduce the scale (increase the sensitivity) in order to achieve the most precise reading
that is possible without taking the risk of overloading the measurement device. This
procedure also ensures to minimize the relative instrumental error.

























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Thevenins Theorem

1. Thevenin Equivalent Circuit

Thevenins theorem states that a linear two-terminal circuit can be replaced by an
equivalent circuit consisting of a voltage source V
Th
in series with a resistor R
Th
, where
V
Th
is the open-circuit voltage at the terminals and R
Th
is the input or equivalent
resistance at the terminals when the independent sources are turned off.



















Figure 5.6: Repl aci ng a l i near t wo- t er mi nal ci r cui t by i t s Theveni n
equi val ent


V
Th
is the open-circuit voltage across the terminal as illustrated in Figure 5.7a. R
Th
is the
input resistance at the terminals when the independent sources are turned off as illustrated
in Figure 5.7b.





















Linear two-
terminal circuit

Load

Load
V
Th
R
Th
V
+
-
V
+
-
Figure 5.6a: Or i gi nal

Figure 5.6b: Theveni n Equi val ent Ci r cui t
R
Th


Linear two-terminal
circuit


Linear circuit with
all independent
sources set equal to
zero
v
oc

+
-
V
Th
= v
oc
R
Th
= R
in

Figure 5.7a: Fi ndi ng V
Th
Figure 5.7b: Fi ndi ng R
Th


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The Thevenin equivalent circuit is useful in finding the maximum power a linear circuit
can deliver to a load. For the circuit shown in Figure 5.7, the power delivered to the load
is

P = i
2
R
L
=
V
Th
R
Th
+ R
L

2
R
L













Figure 5.8: Maxi mumPower Tr ansf er Ci r cui t


For a circuit shown in Figure 5.8, V
Th
and R
Th
are fixed. By varying the load resistance,
R
L
, the power delivered to the load varies as illustrated in Figure 5.9.


Figure 5.9: Gr aph of Power del i ver ed t o R
L
, P
R
L
ver sus R
L


Maximum power is transferred to the load when the load resistance equals the Thevenin
resistance as seen R
L
=R
Th
.

Therefore,

2
4

R
L


V
Th

R
Th


R
L

a






b

EEEB 111 ELECTRICAL/ELECTRONICS MEASUREMENT LABORATORY - UNITEN Exp. 5, Page 8/17

PRE-LAB ASSIGNMENT

1. Calculate the voltage across R
2
, V
2
in the circuit of Figure 5.10.


Figure 5.10: Vol t age Di vi der Ci r cui t










2. An analogue voltmeter with a meter resistance, R
meter
=200 k is used to measure V
2
.

a. Re-draw the circuit of Figure 5.10 to include the voltmeters internal resistance.











b. Calculate the voltage across R
2
, V
2
in the circuit re-drawn above.







R
1
= 100 k
V
S
=10 V
+
_
V
2



R
2
= 100 k
_

EEEB 111 ELECTRICAL/ELECTRONICS MEASUREMENT LABORATORY - UNITEN Exp. 5, Page 9/17

3. Evaluate the V
Th
and R
Th
of the circuit shown in of Figure 5.11 at terminal A-B. Draw the
equivalent circuit.



Figure 5.11: Ci r cui t t o be si mpl i f i ed t o equi val ent V
Th
and R
Th









































R
3
= 3.3k R
1
= 1k
R
2
=2.2k V
S


= 10V
A





B

EEEB 111 ELECTRICAL/ELECTRONICS MEASUREMENT LABORATORY - UNITEN Exp. 5, Page 10/17


UNIVERSITI TENAGA NASIONAL
Department of Electronics and Communication Engineering
College of Engineering
Semester: I / II / Special Academic Year: 20 .. / 20 ..

COURSE CODE: EEEB111 EXPERIMENT NO.: 5
LAB INSTRUCTOR: DATE: TIME:
TITLE: Loading Effects of Meters and Thevenins Theorem
OBJECTIVES: The objective of this laboratory experiment is to identify the loading effects of digital
and analogue voltmeter, used in measuring voltage values and to validate the
Thevenins Theorem.
PRE-LAB:
MARKS:

Q1 /1
Q2 /1.5
Q3 /1.5
EXPERIMENTAL RESULTS:
Part A : Voltmeter Loading Study
Table 5.1 /1
V
S
measured /0.5
Table 5.2 /2
Table 5.3 /1
Part B : Thevenins Theorem
Table 5.4 /1.5
V
S
measured /0.5
Table 5.5 /2
Table 5.6 /1.5
Table 5.7 /4

POST-LAB:
Part A : Voltmeter Loading Study
Q1 /1
Q2 /2
Q3

/1
Part B : Thevenins Theorem
Q1 /2
Q2
Part C : Open Ended Question



/2
/2
CONCLUSIONS: /2
INSTRUCTORS COMMENTS:
TOTAL:
/30
STUDENT NAME: STUDENT ID:
SECTION:
GROUP MEMBER: STUDENT ID:


EEEB 111 ELECTRICAL/ELECTRONICS MEASUREMENT LABORATORY - UNITEN Exp. 5, Page 11/17


EQUIPMENT
1. Resistors: 100k(2), 1 k(2), 2.2 k, 3.3 k
2. Decade Resistance Box
3. Analogue Multimeter (VOM)
4. Digital Multimeter (DMM)
5. DC Power Supply
6. DMM Probes x 2nos.
7. Crocodile Clips Connectors x 2nos.
8. Protoboard
9. Wire 22 AWG x 2nos.


PROCEDURES

This laboratory experiment is to create awareness about the loading effects present in voltage
measuring devices.


Part A: Voltmeter Loading Study

a. Refer to Figure 5.10 in Pre-Lab.

b. Measure the resistance of resistors R
1
and R
2
with the DMM.

c. Record the values in Table 5.1.

Table 5.1: Measur ed val ues of r esi st or s

Resistors

Nominal Value
()

Measured Value
()
R
1
100k

R
2
100k


d. Construct the circuit in Figure 5.10.

e. Set the source voltage V
S
=10V, using the DMM for setting accuracy.

Measured V
S
= ___________

f. Measure the voltage across R
2
, V
2
with the DMM and VOM using 10V scale.

g. Record the results in Table 5.2.










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Table 5.2: Measur ed val ues of V
2

Measured Voltage (V)
DMM VOM 10 V scale
V
2


Most DMMs have an internal impedance of 10M or greater. For the VOM, however, the
internal resistance can be found on the scale used from the ohm/volt rating.

h. Find the ohm/volt rating (/V) on the VOM.

i. Then, calculate the R
meter
for the VOM on the 10V. Use the following formula:

Rmeter = (VOM

s
(ohms)
V ( volts)
ratings) x (full-scale voltage selected)


j. Record the results in Table 5.3.

Table 5.3: Met er s i nt er nal r esi st ances
Meter
resistance
DMM ()
VOM 10V scale
()
R
meter
10 M


Part B: Thevenins Theorem

Thevenin Equivalent Circuit

a. Refer to Figure 5.11 in Pre-Lab.

b. Measure the resistance of resistors R
1
, R
2
and R
3
and record in Table 5.4.

c. A resistor act as load, R
L
, is to be connected at terminal A-B. Use 1k for R
L
.
Measure and the record the resistance of R
L
in Table 5.4
.


d. Set V
S
to 10V. Measure V
S
and record it here. V
S
=____________

Table 5.4: Resi st ance of Ci r cui t of Fi gur e 5. 11 and R
L


Resistors

Nominal Value
()

Measured Value
()
R
1
1k

R
2
2.1k

R
3
3.3k

R
L
1k



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e. Construct the circuit as per Figure 5.11. Connect R
L
at Terminal A-B.

f. Measure voltage across R
L
(V
R
L
) and record in Table 5.6.

g. Based on the measured value of V
S
, R
1
, R
2
and R
3
, calculate the V
Th
and R
Th.
Show
the calculation. Get your instructors verification on the calculation.

Table 5.5: Cal cul at i on of R
Th
and V
Th



Thevenin Resistance,R
Th
()

Thevenin Voltage, V
Th
(V)
Based on
measured
value of
V
S
, R
1
,
R
2
and R
3
















h. Construct the equivalent Thevenin circuit using the V
Th
and R
Th
calculated. For R
Th

use decade resistor box. Use the same R
L
used previously.

i. Measure voltage across R
L
(V
R
L
) and record in Table 5.6


Table 5.6: Measur ed val ues of V
R
L




V
RL

Circuit of
Figure 5.11
V
RL

Equivalent
Thevenin circuit
V
R
L


























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Maximum Power Transfer

a. Set the value of R
L
to 500 using the decade resistor box. Measure R
L
and record in
Table 5.7.

b. Construct the circuit shown in Figure 5.12. R
1
= 3.3k and V
S
= 7V are closest
values to reflect the the V
Th
and R
Th
calculated in Table 5.5.

c. Measure the voltage across R
L
, V
R
L
and record in Table 5.7. Calculate the P
R
L
using
the formula given in Table 5.7. You are required to use measured value of R
L
for the
calculation of P
R
L
.



Figure 5.12: Maxi mumPower Tr ansf er Ci r cui t



d. Repeat the previous procedures for all the values of R
L
as in Table 5.7.

Table 5.7: Measur ed val ues f or V
R
L


and P
R
L


R
L
()

Measured Value R
L

()

V
R
L
(V)

P
R
L
=
V
R
L
2
R
L
(W)

500

1k

2k

3k

4k

5k

6k

7k

8k




R
1
=3.3k
V
S
=7V
V
R
L

+



R
L
0-10 k

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POST-LAB ASSIGNMENT:

Show workings of all calculations.

Part A: Voltmeter Loading Study

1. Calculate the ideal value of voltage V
2
. Use only the DMM measured R
1
, R
2
and V
S
values.








2. With the internal resistance found in Table 5.3 calculate the theoretical value of V
2
for
DMM and VOM on 10 V scale. Use only the DMM measured R
1
, R
2
and V
S
values.
Record in Table 5.8.


















Table 5.8: Cal cul at ed val ues of V
2

Voltage calculated (V)
DMM VOM 10V scale
V
2



3. What is the effect towards the value of a measured current, I
R
N
flowing through a resistor,
R
N
using an ammeter? Explain.
__________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________

EEEB 111 ELECTRICAL/ELECTRONICS MEASUREMENT LABORATORY - UNITEN Exp. 5, Page 16/17



Part B: Thevenins Theorem

1. Plot a graph of P
R
L
versus R
L
on the graph paper provided. Use appropriate scale for
X-axis and Y-axis.

2. Referring to the graph, what is value of R
L
resulted in maximum power transfer to R
L
.
Record the value in Table 5.8


Table 5.8: Val ues of R
L
r esul t i ng i n maxi mumpower t r ansf er
Maximum
Power
Transfer


Measured Value
(From Graph P
R
L

versus R
L
)

Theoretical
value


% Error
R
L







Part C: Open Ended Question

1. How can we understand that the digital multimeter has higher internal resistance
compared to analog multimeter? Briefly explain.







CONCLUSIONS:

Identify TWO (2) main understandings that you have gained from this experiment.





















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