EE 213: Electrical Instrumentation

& measurement
(2 Credit Hours)
Comparators

Comparators are devices that compare two analog voltages on its input
terminals and output a digital signal indicating which is larger.

It has two analog input terminals and one binary digital output.

Comparators are often used to check whether an input has reached a

predetermined value.

For example, they can be used to determine when the temperature

detected by a thermistor rises above a certain threshold.
Types of Comparators

Comparators are of two types

• Inverting

• Non-inverting
Non-Inverting Comparator

A non-inverting comparator is a comparator for which a reference

voltage is applied to its inverting terminal and the input voltage is
applied to its non-inverting terminal.
The operation of a non-inverting comparator is very simple.

It produces one of the two values, +Vsat and −Vsat at the output
based on the values of input voltage Vi and the reference
voltage +Vref.

The output value of a non-inverting comparator will be +Vsat, for

which the input voltage Vi is greater than the reference voltage
+Vref.

The output value of a non-inverting comparator will be −Vsat, for

which the input voltage Vi is less than the reference voltage +Vref.
Let us draw the output wave form of a non-inverting comparator,
when a sinusoidal input signal and reference voltage of zero volts
are applied to the non-inverting and inverting terminals
That means, the output changes its value when the input is crossing
zero volts. Hence, the above circuit is also called as non-inverting zero
crossing detector.
Inverting comparator

Let us draw the output wave form of an inverting comparator, when a

sinusoidal input signal is applied to its inverting and a reference voltage
of zero volts is applied to its non-inverting terminal.
In other words, output changes its value when the input is crossing zero
volts. Hence, the above circuit is also called as inverting zero crossing
detector.
Example

A process-control system specifies that

• If pressure exceeds 10 kPa.

• then temperature should never exceed 1600 C.

• (Alarm should be generated when Pressure exceeds 10 kPa and

temperature exceed 1600 C).

Design an alarm system to detect this condition, using temperature

and pressure transducers with transfer functions of 2.2 mV/0 C and 0.2
V/kPa, respectively.