Perform Measurement and Calculation

NOVEMBER 10, 2017

AXUM TVET COLLAGE 2010 E.C
Electrical/Electronic Department
Basic Electrical/Electronic Equipment Servicing
Level I

Learning guide 2
Unit of Competence: Perform Measurement and Calculation
Module Title: Performing Measurement and Calculation
LG Code EEL BEE1 02 0511
TTLM Code EEL BEE1 0711v1

LO1: Plan and Prepare Task

LO2: Select Measuring Instrument
LO3: Carry Out measurement and Calculation
LO4: Maintain Measuring Instrument
 Learning Module
TVET Program Title: Basic Electrical/Electronic Equipment Servicing ( Level I)

Module Title: Performing Measurement And

Module Code: EEL BEE1 07 1011
Calculation

Nominal Duration: 50 hrs.

Module Description: This module covers the knowledge, skills and attitudes needed identify, care, handle
and use measuring instruments.

Learning Outcomes:

 Plan And Prepare Tasks

 Select Measuring Instruments
 Carry Out Measurements And Calculation
 Maintain Measuring Instruments
Module Contents:

1. Plan and Prepare Tasks

1.1 Safety in handling Instruments 1.3 Specifications

1.2 Identifying object or component to be measured 1.4 Selecting measuring tools

1.5 Prepare Workstation

2. Measuring Instruments

2.1 Types of Measuring Instruments & their uses 2.1.2 Electrical Quantity Measuring Instrument
2.1.1 Physical Quantity Measuring Instrument
*Ohm Meter *Watt Meter
 Rule  Micrometer
 Tachometer *Volt Meter *Clamp Meter
 Protractor
 Caliper *Ammeter *Insulation Tester
*Frequency Meter
2.2 Accuracy & range of Instruments

3. Measurements and calculation

3.1 Safe handling Measuring instruments 3.3 Measuring electrical quantities

3.2 Mathematics
 Four basic operations
 Fractions, percentages and mixed
numbers

4. Maintain Measuring Instruments

4.1 Cleaning/disinfection Measuring instruments 4.2 Proper storage of instruments

LEARNING STRATEGIES:

 Lecture-Discussion
 Group Work
 Individual Assignment
 Cooperative Training
 Practical
 Demonstration
Module Assessment: Assessment Methods

 Oral Questioning
 Written Test
Assessment Criteria

Lo 1 Plan And Prepare Tasks

 Object Or Component To Be Measured Is Identified According To Procedures.

 Correct Specifications Are Obtained From Relevant Source.
 Measuring Tools Are Selected In Line With Job Requirements.
 Workstation Is Made Ready In Accordance With Job Specifications.
Lo2 Select Measuring Instruments

Appropriate Measuring Instrument Is Selected To Achieve Required Outcome

Accurate Measurements Are Obtained For Job
Calculation Needed To Complete Work Tasks Are Performed Using The Four Basic Process Of Addition
(+), Subtraction (-), Multiplication (X), And Division (/)
 Calculation Involving Fractions, Percentages And Mixed Numbers Are Used To Complete Workplace
Tasks.
 Numerical Computation Is Checked And Corrected For Accuracy
 Instruments Are Read To The Limit Of Accuracy Of The Tool.
Lo3 Carry Out Measurements And Calculation


Measuring Instruments Are Handles Without Damage According To Procedures

Measuring Instruments Are Cleaned Before And After Using.

Proper Storage of Instruments Is Undertaken according To Manufacturer’s Specifications and Standard
Operating Procedures.
Lo4 Maintain Measuring Instruments

 Object Or Component To Be Measured Is Identified According To Procedures

 Correct Specifications Are Obtained From Relevant Source
 Measuring Tools Are Selected In Line With Job Requirements
Assessment Method:

 Interview
 Written Exam
 Demonstration
 Practical Test
Instruction Sheet Learning Guide

This learning guide is developed to provide you the necessary information regarding the
following content coverage and topics –
 Units – Measurement and Metric system
 Fundamental Operation of algebra
 Measurement Scales
 Rules and Calipers
 Electrical quantities measurement

Learning Activities
1. If you earned a satisfactory evaluation proceed to next module. However, if your
rating is unsatisfactory, see your teacher for further instructions.
2. Read the ―Operation Sheet‖ and try to understand the procedures discussed.
3. Practice the steps or procedures as illustrated in the operation sheet. Go to your teacher
if you need clarification or you want answers to your questions or you need assistance
in understanding a particular step or procedure.
 Information Sheet-1 Plan and Prepare Tasks for measurement

Introduction
The solution to any practical mathematics problem entails a two-part answer. The first part
represents the ―how many, or the amount, and is always a number. This amount or magnitude is
physically meaningless without the second part, which is the ―what‖, or unit of the solution. In
general, a unit is fixed by definition and is independent of physical conditions. Some examples of
units are the foot, pound, degree, ohm, meter, and so on. Each of these is physical unit, which means
that it is a subject of observation and measurement.

Take, for example, the statement 115 volts; the number 115 is the amount or magnitude, and the
term volt is the physical unit that gives the amount its meaning. Such numbers as ―115 volts‖ are
called the concrete numbers.

Plan and Prepare Tasks for measurement

Firstly it is known that we need to be prepared and planned getting to work before we start work. Here it is
about measurement. It is safety that we must think of, before any work steps. In measuring procedures to
apply safety, we first need to be sure that what quantity to measure, which rang of the quantity, using what
instrumentation and present condition of the instrument.

If we got those all information we can then accomplish our measuring procedures safely.

Making a mistake while working on a high-energy electrical system can deliver a deadly blow to anyone who
fails to take the right safety precautions. That is why we are still talking about safety. We first must know the
rating of the measuring instrument and working are must be cleaned and clear.
Information Sheet-2 Measuring Instruments

Types of Measuring Instruments & their uses

In this world there are hundreds of measuring instruments for different applications. Measuring instruments
are used to measure different quantities of different fields. Measuring instruments are useful tools. They
can be simple, like rulers, or complex like laser rangefinder or laser speedometer.
Here we are not expected to watch them all but mostly used by electrical electronic and related fields.
Physical Quantity Measuring Instrument
 Rule
It is sometimes called ruler or line gauge, it is straightedge with equally spaced markings along its length. It is
used in geometry, technical drawing, and others to measure length of an object.
It comes in many sizes and shapes. It can be made up of flexible cloth or metal, plastic and wood.

 Protractor
A protractor is a measuring instrument, typically made of transparent plastic or glass, for measuring angle.
Most protractors measure angles in degrees.
Information Sheet-2 Measuring Instruments

 Caliper and micrometer

They are devices used to measure the
distance between two opposite sides of an
object.
Calipers are used to measure diameters
outside diameters and inside diameters.
Simple calipers are used along with a scale
to find the measurement. Slide calipers and
venire calipers have their own scales.
The precision of length measurement may
be increased by using device that uses a sliding Vernier caliper. Two such instruments that are based
on a Vernier scale which we use to measure lengths of objects are the Vernier calipers and the
micrometer screw gauge. Wire gauge is a measurement of wire diameter. This determines the amount of
electric current a wire can safely carry as well as its electrical resistance and weight. Wire gauge can be
measured using those instruments.

Figure above showing How to read measurements from Vernier caliper;

The micrometer screw gauge is used to

measure even smaller dimensions than
the Vernier calipers.

This is 7mm+0.38mm=7.38mm

Read this? _____________

Information Sheet-2 Measuring Instruments

 Tachometer
A tachometer (revolution-counter, tach, rev-counter, RPM gauge) is an instrument measuring the rotation
speed of shaft or disk, as a motor or other machine. The device usually displays the revolution per minute
(RPM) on a calibrated analogue dial, but digital displays are increasingly common.

Accuracy & range of Instruments

Accuracy; an instrument’s degree of veracity-how close its measurement comes to the actual or
reference value of the signal being measured.
Range; the upper and lower limits an instrument can measure a value or signal such as amps, volts and ohms.
Electrical Quantity Measuring Instrument
Electrical measuring instruments may be divided into two categories that are
1. Absolute instruments
2. Secondary instrument
Absolute instruments
These instruments give the magnitude of quantity under measurement in terms of physical constants of the
instrumentation. E.g. Tangent Galvano meter. Not usually used in laboratories.
Secondary instrument
In secondary instruments the deflection give the magnitude of electrical quantity to be measured directly.
Basic Secondary instruments which we use;
 Multi meter
 Clamp meter
 Ammeter
 Voltmeter
Information Sheet-2 Measuring Instruments

The electrical quantity measuring instruments are listed above, now we are going to introduce with
the quantities.
Ampere (A)
Ampere is the electrical unit of electrical current.
Ampere (amp or A) is the name given to the transfer of
certain number of electrons through a material over a
certain elapse time as a result of an electrical pressure.
A movement of 6.25 X 10 18 electrons (one coulomb) past
a point in 1 second is defined to be 1 ampere of current.
It measures the amount of electrical charge that flows in
an electrical circuit per 1 second.
1A=1C/1S. The instrument that measures current is
called Ammeter. We connect the ammeter in series with
the circuit. Clamp meter is designed to measure
current without any electrical connection of the circuit and instrument.

Volt (V)
Volt is the electrical unit of Voltage. It is
defined as the difference of electrical potential
between the two points in an electric circuit.
One volt is the energy of 1 joule that is
consumed when electrical charge of 1 coulomb
flows in the circuit. 1V=1J/1C
The instrument that measures voltage is called
volt-meter. We connect the meter in parallel
with the circuit to measure voltage.
Ohm
The property of a conductor which opposes the
flow of electric current through it, is known as
resistance of a conductor. Ohm (Ω) is the
physical unit of resistance of a material. One
ohm is the amount of electrical opposition that
forces an electron movement through a material.
One volt across one ohm will result in a current
of one ampere.
The instrument that measures resistance is
called Ohm-meter. Ohm-meter must be
connected in parallel with the resistor to be
measured but that must be out of Electric
power. If measuring resistance while there is live voltage the instrument may get burnt.
Watt (W)
Watt is the unit of power or the rate of doing work in an electrical circuit. The power converted in an
electrical circuit is 1 watt when energy is converted at the rate of 1 joule-per-second. It is measured by Watt
Meter.
Hertz
Frequency is the number of times an event occurs in a given period. In electrical circuits, frequency is usually
given in cycle-per-second. By international agreement, the term Hertz (Hz) has been adopted to mean cycle-
per-second. By Frequency Meter. The standard unit of time is second.
Coulomb
Coulomb (Q) is the unit of electrical charge. One coulomb is a charge of 6.25 X 1018 electrons. A flow of one
coulomb past a point in one second is one ampere.
 Information Sheet-2 Measuring Instruments

Ranges of Electrical Units

As we noted earlier, electronics is a science which uses very large and very small units, such as a
thousand-ohm resistor, a millionth-farad capacitor, a thousand million-cycles-per-second, and so on.
To save time in writing and speaking these terms, symbols have been universally adopted to replace
those most commonly used terms.
Table of the most Common prefixes used in Electronics

Prefix Symbol Value

Pico p 10-12
Nano n 10-9
Micro µ 10-6
Milli m 10-3
Kilo k 103
Mega M 106
Giga G 109
Tera T 1012
Example I
2000 ohms = 2 x 106Ω = 2 kΩ
Or, as it is spoken, 2 kilo ohms or 2 "k" ohms.
Again,
0.000,000,01 farad = 0.01 x 10-6F = 0.01µF = 10 nF or 10,000 pF.
Information Sheet-3 Measurements and calculation

Measurements are ways that we tell others how much of an item we have. There are two systems of
measuring things-English and Metric. English measuring are only used in the United States, while metric
measurements are used nearly in any other countries.
Common English measures Common Metric measures
Distance
Distance
12 in=1 ft Millimeter (mm) 1000 mm= 1m
Inches (in)
3 ft=1 yd Centimeter (cm) 100 cm= 1m
Feet (ft)

Yards(yd) 1760 yd=1 mi Meter (m)

1 mi=5280 ft Kilometer (km) 1000 m= 1 km

Miles(mi)
Wight Weight

Ounces(oz) 16 oz=1ib Milligrams (mg) 100 mg= 1 g

Pounds(ib) 2000 ib= 1 t Grams (g)

Tons(t) 1 t= 2000 ib Kilograms (kg) 1000 g= 1kg, 1000 kg= 1 t

Volume Metric ton (t) 1000 kg= 1 t

Teaspoon (tsp) 3 tsp= 1tbsp Volume

Tablespoons (tbsp) 1 tbsp= 3 tsp Milliliters (mL) 1000 mL= 1 L

Fluid ounce (fl oz) 8 fl oz=1 cup Liters (L)

Pints (pt) 2 pt= 1qt, 8 qt=1gal Temperature

Quarts (qt) 4 qt= 1 gal Degrees Celsius (0c)

Gallons (gal) 2 gal= 1 peck Speed

pecks 4 pecks= 1 bushel Meters per second (m/s)

bushels 1 bushel= 4 pecks`

Universal measures
Temperature
Time
0 60 sec= 1 min
Degrees Fahrenheit ( F) Second (sec)
Speed Minutes (min) 60 min= 1 hr

Miles per hour (mph) Hours (hr) 24 hr = 1 day

Days 7 days = 1 wk

Weeks (wk) 4 wk= 1 mo

Months (mo) 12 mo= 1 yr

Years (yr) 1 yr= 365 days

Decades 1 decade= 10 yr

centuries 1 century = 100 yr

Millennium 1 millennium= 1000yr

Information Sheet-3 Measurements and calculation

Safe handling measuring instruments

As discussed at the beginning of this course safety is the first thing you must think before any task. Safety is
for your life, for your instrument and for the quality of your task.

Measuring live voltage and current in today’s high-energy environments can result in a severe hazard to
equipment and users if proper precautions are not applied. Whenever possible, work on de-energized circuits.
If you have to work on live circuits, following some steps can be helpful.

 Assess the environment before taking the

measurement.
 Don’t work alone in hazardous area.
 Make sure your test instrument is rated for the
measurement you are taking.
 Be familiar with and know how to use your
equipment.
 Make sure that your meter, and especially your test
leads and probes, are in proper working order.
 For single phase, connect neutral first, hot second.

Mathematics
In measuring steps, the measured quantities may need to be changed, or calculated. So having basic
mathematics knowledge is better.
Four basic operations
You have learnt the four basic operations of mathematics
since your elementary school. Let’s have simple review;
Addition (+), Subtraction (-), Multiplication (* or x),
Division (: or /)
These operations are commonly called arithmetic
operations. Arithmetic is the oldest and most elementary
branch of mathematics.
Addition; it is a mathematical operation that explains the
total amount of objects when they are put together in a
collection.
Subtraction; this is the arithmetic operation that is the
opposite of addition. It is used when you want to know
how many objects are left in the group after you take
away a certain amount of objects from that group.
Multiplication; multiplication of two numbers is equivalent to the addition of a number to itself as many times
as the value of other one number.
Division; it is the fourth basic math operation. Basically, you can say that dividing means splitting objects
into equal parts of groups.
Information Sheet-3 Measurements and calculation

Fractions, percentages and mixed numbers

A Fraction represents a part of a whole or more generally, any number of equal parts.

Percent means ‘for every 100’ or ‘out of 100’. The (%) symbol as a quick way to write a fraction with a
denominator of 100. Example; 14%= 14/100.
Information Sheet-3 Measurements and calculation

Measuring electrical quantities

Volt meter; A voltmeter measures electrical potential between it terminals.
Voltmeters are always placed in parallel with the circuit or circuit element where
the voltage measurement is desired.
Since the voltages across two or more parallel elements is the same, the voltage
measured by the meter will be the same as the element to which the meter is
connected. When using a non-auto-ranging meter, select the highest possible
range and reduce the range as necessary until the desired level of accuracy is
reached.
Ammeter; an ammeter measures the current that flows between its terminals.
An ammeter is always placed in series with the circuit or element
where the current flow is of interest. Since the current in each
element of a series circuit is the same, the current flow through the
meter will be the same as the current flow to the element of
interest.
Ohmmeter; an ohmmeter measures the electrical resistance
between its terminals. An ohmmeter is connected to the circuit or
circuit element of interest after the element has been isolated from
the rest of the circuit. Never connect an ohmmeter to an energized
circuit or the meter could be destroyed.
Multi meter; a digital multi meter or DMM is a useful instrument
for measuring voltage, current and resistance, and some meters
have a facility for testing transistors and capacitors.
Ohms law; the relationship between Voltage, Current and
Resistance is called ohms law.
Voltage (L)
𝐶𝑢𝑟𝑟𝑒𝑛𝑡 (𝐼) = Resistance (R)In Amperes, (A)
By knowing any two values using ohms law we can find the
missing value.
Information Sheet-3 Measurements and calculation

Characters of parallel circuit

 A parallel circuit has two or more paths for current to flow through.
 Voltage is the same across each components the parallel circuit.
 The sum of the currents through each path is equal to the total current that flows from the source.
 You can find total resistance in parallel circuit with the following formula.
1 1 1 1
= + + ….
Rt R1 R2 R3
 If one of the parallel paths is broken, current will continue to flow in all the other paths.
Example 1; for the circuit shown below find the voltage (V), the Current (I), the resistance (R) and the power
(P).

Example 2; Determine the following;

1. The current through resistor R,

2. The value of resistor
3. The voltage across the 10Ω resistor.
4. And the current through both braches.
Information Sheet-3 Measurements and calculation
Finding the value of a resistor by reading its color codes

 To calculate the value of a resistor using the color coded stripes on the resistor, use the following
procedure.

Step One: Turn the resistor so that the gold or silver stripe is at the right end of the resistor.

Step Two: Look at the color of the first two stripes on the left end. These correspond to the first two digits of
the resistor value. Use the table given below to determine the first two digits.

Step Three: Look at the third stripe from the left. This corresponds to a multiplication value. Find the value
using the table below.

Step Four: Multiply the two digit number from step two by the number from step three. This is the value of
the resistor in ohms. The fourth stripe indicates the accuracy of the resistor. A gold stripe means the value of
the resistor may vary by 5% from the value given by the stripes.

Resistor Color Codes (with gold or silver strip on right end)

Color First Stripe Second Stripe Third Stripe Fourth Stripe

Black 0 0 x1
Brown 1 1 x10
Red 2 2 x100
Orange 3 3 x1,000
Yellow 4 4 x10,000
Green 5 5 x100,000
Blue 6 6 x1,000,000
Purple 7 7
Gray 8 8
White 9 9
Gold 5%
Silver 10%

Example1: You are given a resistor whose stripes are colored from left to right as brown, black, orange, gold.
Find the resistance value.

Step One: The gold stripe is on the right so go to Step Two.

Step Two: The first stripe is brown which has a value of 1. The second stripe is black which has a value of 0.
Therefore the first two digits of the resistance value are 10.

Step Three: The third stripe is orange which means x 1,000.

Step Four: The value of the resistance is found as 10 x 1000 = 10,000 ohms (10 kilo-ohms = 10 kΩ).

The gold stripe means the actual value of the resistor mar vary by 5% meaning the actual value will be
somewhere between 9,500 ohms and 10,500 ohms. (Since 5% of 10,000 = 0.05 x 10,000 = 500)
information sheet-4 Maintain Measurement Instruments