Ravi Shukla, HBM Test and Measurement Eighteen channels of sensor data from strain gauges attached to girders supporting bridge decking helped U.S. Army Corps of Engineers technicians monitor and record stresses on a decking structure of a new portable bridge. The work took place at the Corps’ Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC) in Vicksburg, […]
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Measurements in Tektronix MDO 3000 oscilloscopes
In early analog oscilloscopes, users placed a transparent overlay, known as a graticule, over the screen and counted divisions to estimate waveform amplitudes at various points in time. In today’s digital storage oscilloscopes, the graticule is purely electronic, incorporated in the display. You can still count divisions to get a quick estimate, but the instrument’s […]
It’s a blast, dummy. Army evaluates newest recruits
Diversified Technical Systems (DTS) says it has delivered four WIAMan Gen1 blast test manikins to the U.S. Army Research Development and Engineering Command (RDECOM). This milestone delivery marks the beginning of the validation phase, which will include live fire testing to confirm WIAMan’s readiness prior to its transition out of the development phase in 2018. […]
Understanding and displaying the J operator
A plus times a plus is a plus. A plus times a minus is a minus. A minus times a plus is a minus. A minus times a minus is a plus. Because none of these operations results in a negative product, we must confront the hard reality that the square root of a negative […]
Using the scope integration function to determine energy use
Integrals come in handy in measuring power consumption when that consumption is intermittent or corresponds to a dissipation vs. time function that is irregularly shaped. The classic example is that of a controller that wakes up every second or so. You can, of course, use single-shot capture to get the current waveform when the controller […]
Understanding basic oscilloscope uses
The dominant oscilloscope type today is digital. A relatively small number of analog oscilloscopes are still made for educational purposes and low-end DIY kits. The digital revolution in oscilloscope design, initiated by Walter LeCroy over 50 years ago, made possible vast new capabilities and features. Still, it is worthwhile for perspective to look back at […]
Budget-priced transistor testing
The field-effect transistor (FET) in one form or another has largely superseded the earlier bipolar junction transistor (BJT). Both can do amplification, oscillation, and switching, but the methods in getting there are quite different as are the input and output impedances. First, by way of background, we’ll look back at the BJT. It contains three […]
Quantifying signal compression
The object of signal compression is to facilitate transmission, reception, processing, and the use of great amounts of data while conserving valuable storage space and transmission resources. Data compression is obviously a good approach provided that it doesn’t incur an unacceptable amount of information loss. It was once widely assumed that detail or information, once […]
Negative resistance: meaning and measurement
It is a fact, verified in theory and by experiment, that no material can conduct electric current with greater efficiency than an ideal conductor having zero resistance. How, then, can the term “negative resistance” have meaning in the real world? First, it is possible to get negative resistance readings on a DVM. If this happens, they […]
Photo gallery: Here’s what happens during Keysight’s Test-drive 2017
Instrument maker Keysight is conducting what it calls a North American test-drive tour at 30 cities in the U.S. and Canada this spring. We sat in during the stop in Cleveland, Ohio. Here’s what we saw.
