Arduino Based Digital Ammeter

CHAPTER-1

PREAMBLE
1.1 INTRODUCTION

Digital ammeters are instruments that measure current flow in amperes and display current
levels on a digital display. These devices provide information about current draw and current
continuity in order to help users troubleshoot erratic loads and trends. They have both positive and
negative leads and feature extremely low internal resistance.

Digital ammeters are connected in series with a circuit (and never parallel) so that current flow
passes through the meter. High current flow may indicate a short circuit, unintentional ground, or
defective component. Low current flow may indicate high resistance or poor current flow within the
circuit.

1.2 PROBLEM STATEMENT

Analog ammeters are the ones with the swinging needle. Digital ammeters are the ones
with the digital readouts. Accuracy is the most serious disadvantage of analog ammeters. There are
three causes of error.
First, the mechanics of the device makes it inaccurate--the instructions that come with an
analog ammeter suggest you set the scale so the needle registers on the right-hand side of the scale
where the inaccuracy is only 1 or 2 percent. The inaccuracy increases as you move left across the
scale.
Second, making mistakes when counting the marked graduations is easy, especially if your
observation angle is off. You also must interpolate the last digit when the needle falls between two
graduations.
Third, scales can introduce insidious inaccuracies. Being on the wrong scale--for example
AC instead of DC--is the most obvious of these. In addition, for most measurements you must do a bit
of mental arithmetic, and that is often a mistake waiting to happen. If the meter reads 4.7 and the scale
is set to "times 10,000," this is pretty easy to do in your head, but this is also pretty easy to get wrong.
A lax moment can lead to a big error.
The needle in analog ammeters is activated by a magnetic field that causes it to rotate. You
can damage this delicate by dropping the ammeters or simply using it for years. Making scaling
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Arduino Based Digital Ammeter

mistakes or bad guesses can also "peg the meter," which is when the needle swings rapidly until it
slams into the post at the end of the scale. Repeated pegging can damage the mechanism and make the
ammeters inaccurate. The best way to avoid pegging the meter is to get into the habit of always
starting on the highest scale and backing down until you get a good reading.
Analog ammeters respond to the electrical phenomena that they are measuring. They do not
have the analytical power of digital electronics that is available in digital ammeters. Therefore, they
will never have the features that top-of-the-line digital ammeters offer. These features include
frequency measurements and waveform analysis. Choosing an analog ammeter means you are
choosing not to have these features.

1.3 LITERATURE SURVEY

Analog ammeters, also known as current meters, are metered instruments that measure
current flow in amperes. Current levels are displayed on a dial, usually with a moving pointer or
needle made of a soft iron. Analog ammeters provide information about current draw and current
continuity in order to help users troubleshoot erratic loads and trends. They have both positive and
negative leads and feature extremely low internal resistance. They are required to measure the current
in a circuit and are therefore connected in series with the components carrying the current. High
current flow may indicate a short circuit, unintentional ground, or defective component. Low current
flow may indicate high resistance or poor current flow within the circuit.
If the ammeter resistance is not significantly smaller than the load resistance, the load
current can be substantially altered by the inclusion of the ammeter in the circuit. For higher range
ammeters, a low resistance made up of manganin (low temperature coefficient of resistance) is
connected in parallel to the moving coil and the instrument may be calibrated to read directly to the
total current. This type of ammeter is called a shunt. The shunt method is typically used for higher
currents as the coil of the movements can only handle small currents directly.

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Arduino Based Digital Ammeter

CHAPTER-2
ELECTRONIC DESIGN

The schematic diagram shows the connection of Arduino Uno with LCD, resistor and LED.
Arduino Uno is the power source of all the components. The Arduino has analog and digital pins. The
sensor circuit is connected to the analog inputs from which we get the value of voltage. The LCD is
connected to the digital pins of Arduino board.

Figure 2.1: Interface circuit of Digital Ammeter

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Arduino Based Digital Ammeter

CHAPTER-3

HARDWARE AND SOFTWARE REQUIREMENTS

3.1 Hardware Requirements

3.1.1 Arduino Microcontroller

Figure 3.1: Arduino Microcontroller

The Arduino Uno is a microcontroller board based on the ATmega328 (datasheet). It has 14
digital input/output pins (of which 6 can be used as PWM outputs), 6 analog inputs, a 16 MHz ceramic
resonator, a USB connection, a power jack, an ICSP header, and a reset button. It contains everything
needed to support the microcontroller; simply connect it to a computer with a USB cable or power it
with a AC-to-DC adapter or battery to get started. The Uno differs from all preceding boards in that it
does not use the FTDI USB-to-serial driver chip. Instead, it features the Atmega16U2 (Atmega8U2 up
to version R2) programmed as a USB-to-serial converter. [4]
"Uno" means “one” in Italian language and is named to mark the upcoming release of Arduino
1.0. The Uno and version 1.0 will be the reference versions of Arduino, moving forward. The Uno is
the latest in a series of USB Arduino boards and the reference model for the Arduino platform; for a
comparison with previous versions.

Features:

1. Microcontroller ATmega328
2. Operating Voltage 5V
3. Input Voltage (recommended) 7-12V
4. Input Voltage (limits) 6-20V
5. Digital I/O Pins 14 (of which 6 provide PWM output)
6. Analog Input Pins 6
7. DC Current per I/O Pin 40 mA
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8. DC Current for 3.3V Pin 50 mA

9. Flash Memory 32 KB (ATmega328) of which 0.5 KB used by bootloader
10. SRAM 2 KB (ATmega328)
11. EEPROM 1 KB (ATmega328)
12. Clock Speed 16 MHz

3.1.2 LCD

A LCD is a flat panel display, electronic visual display, based on liquid crystal technology. A
liquid crystal display consists of an array of tiny segments that can be manipulated to present
information. Liquid crystals do not emit light directly instead they use light modulating techniques.
It is an electrically modulated optical device which is made up of any number of segments
which are filled with liquid crystals and are arrayed in front of a light source or reflector to produce
images in color or monochrome.

Figure 3.2: LCD Display

3.1.3 Potentiometer

A potentiometer is a three-terminal resistor with a sliding or rotating contact that forms an

adjustable divider. If only two terminals are used, one end and the wiper, it acts as a variable resistor
or rheostat. The measuring instrument called a potentiometer is essentially a voltage divider used for
measuring electric potential (voltage); the component is an implementation of the same principle,
hence its name. Potentiometers are commonly used to control electrical devices such as volume
controls on audio equipment.
Potentiometers operated by a mechanism can be used as position transducers, for example,
in a joystick. Potentiometers are rarely used to directly control significant power (more than a watt),
since the power dissipated in the potentiometer would be comparable to the power in the controlled
load. A potentiometer is a manually adjustable variable resistor with 3 terminals. Two terminals are
connected to both ends of a resistive element, and the third terminal connects to a sliding contact,

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Arduino Based Digital Ammeter

called a wiper, moving over the resistive element. The position of the wiper determines the output
voltage of the potentiometer.

Figure 3.3: Potentiometer (10K ohms)

3.1.4 Resistor
A resistor is a passive two-terminal electrical component that implements electrical
resistance as a circuit element. In electronic circuits, resistors are used to reduce current flow, adjust
signal levels, to divide voltages, bias active elements, and terminate transmission lines, among other
uses. High-power resistors that can dissipate many watts of electrical power as heat, may be used as
part of motor controls, in power distribution systems, or as test loads for generators. Fixed resistors
have resistances that only change slightly with temperature, time or operating voltage. Variable
resistors can be used to adjust circuit elements (such as a volume control or a lamp dimmer), or as
sensing devices for heat, light, humidity, force, or chemical activity.

Resistors are common elements of electrical networks and electronic circuits and are
ubiquitous in electronic equipment. Practical resistors as discrete components can be composed of
various compounds and forms. Resistors are also implemented within integrated circuits.

The electrical function of a resistor is specified by its resistance: common commercial

resistors are manufactured over a range of more than nine orders of magnitude. The nominal value of
the resistance falls within the manufacturing tolerance, indicated on the component

Figure 3.4: Resistor

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Arduino Based Digital Ammeter

3.1.5 Light Emitting Diode (LED)

Light-emitting diodes are elements, which is used as a light signalization in electronics. The
basic principle of LED is Electroluminescence. The light emitting diode should be forward biased to
get the light. In light emitting diodes, electrons are injected from low work function cathode to the
conduction band of the n-type semiconducting material and holes are injected from high work function
anode to balance band to the p-type semiconducting material. When the electron in the conduction
band combines with the hole in the balance band, energy is released. In this project we are using LED
for indication and illumination purpose.

Figure 3.5: LED

3.2 Software requirements

As for software, one of the advantages of using an Arduino board as a local controller is that it
has its own development environment or IDE, provides facilities for software development.

 IDE: Arduino
 Operation system: Linux, Windows, Ubuntu

3.3 Source code

#include<LiquidCrystal.h>
LiquidCrystal lcd (12,11,5,4,3,2);
void setup() {
// put your setup code here, to run once:
Serial.begin(9600);
lcd.begin(16,2);
lcd.clear();
}
void loop() {
// put your main code here, to run repeatedly:
int voltage_value0 = analogRead(A0);
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Arduino Based Digital Ammeter

int voltage_value1 = analogRead(A1);

int subraction_value =(voltage_value0 - voltage_value1) ;
float temp_val = (subraction_value*0.00488);
float current_value = (temp_val/22);
Serial.print(current_value);
lcd.setCursor(0,0);
lcd.print("current value=");
lcd.setCursor(0,1);
lcd.print (current_value);
lcd.print("A");
delay(1000);
}

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Arduino Based Digital Ammeter

CHAPTER-4

ADVANTAGES AND APPLICATIONS

4.1 ADVANTAGES

1. Easy to use.
2. High precision and accuracy compared to analog ammeters.
3. Flexible since program manipulations can be made for extension to a bigger application.

4.2 APPLICATIONS

The use of ammeters is vast, ranging from school laboratories to construction industries.
Ammeters are used to measure the flow of current through the wiring of newly constructed buildings
to ensure that the current is not too high or too low and has the ability to power electrical devices
within a safe range. Electrical devices manufacturing companies also make use of ammeters to test
their devices and ensure that they are functioning properly before putting them up for sale in the
market. Not only can ammeters be used to test the wiring and electric circuits of new buildings but
they can also be used to test the circuits of old buildings. Electricians often use these devices in case a
problem arises in the building’s electric circuit to be able to detect the fault and correct it.

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Arduino Based Digital Ammeter

CHAPTER-5
RESULT AND CONCLUSION
5.1 Result

5.2 Conclusion
Ammeters are very beneficial devices that can help to solve problems or test equipment in several
different industries. They can prevent any mishaps from happening as precautions are taken
beforehand. The idea of developing an Arduino based digital ammeter reduces the possible errors
occurs during its usage as compared to the old traditional analog ammeters. Since it uses very few
components and is cost efficient, it has vital applications for school and college students to measure
current up to certain amperes.

Dept. of ECE, SJCIT 10 2018-19