HLAB1
HLAB1
HLAB1
Week: 4
Lab Duration: 3 hours
Total Marks: 20 (+1 bonus mark available)
Contribution to Final Assessment: 2%
Attendance: To pass this course, students must attend and complete at least 6 out
of 8 LABs, including HLAB5.
Pre-Lab Reading: The following resources will help you successfully complete the
lab.
• How to study for HLAB1 web page in wattle
• Week 3 Lectorial - includes pictorial diagrams for circuits to be constructed in this
lab. Please read this lab manual and submit any questions in advance (see wattle
for details).
• T3 V5-V6 Echo360 Lecture recordings and associated Textbook Sections 3.5 and
3.6.
• Completed Clab1 report (for obtaining the theoretical and simulated values)
• Appendices in HLAB1 document (this document)
• Video lectures in echo360: ‘HLAB1 How to use the digital multimeter’ and ‘HLAB1
How to use the power supply’
• Electrodoc or iTronixLite app (to identify resistor color codes)
Learning Objectives:
After completing this lab, students will be able to:
• Use Ohm’s law and series-parallel combinations of resistors to solve DC resistor
circuits.
• Identify resistor values using resistor colour codes.
• Use a DC power supply and construct DC resistor circuits on the breadboard.
• Use a digital multimeter to measure voltage, current and resistance.
• Appreciate the reasons for variations (if any) in theoretical calculations, simulation
values, and measured values.
The Australian National University School of Engineering 1
Important safety instructions:
• Electrical safety and well-being of all students during the hardware lab time is of
paramount importance and is taken seriously by myself, lab supervisors and lab
tutors. In this regard, please:
• Wear (general) enclosed footwear with good sole during the lab time (no flip
flops!).
• Wear safety goggles during the lab time (provided). Note that if you wear
prescription glasses then you do not need to wear safety goggles.
• Never place food or drink next to any equipment. Accidental spills can damage
or destroy the equipment and your experiment and give you an electric shock.
• If you do not understand something, please ask the tutor immediately.
• If you are unsure, please ask the tutor to check your circuit, before you turn the
power ON.
• When you are done for the day, make sure you power down all equipment.
1. Self-Test Questions
2. What other button must you press on the power supply to allow the power signal to be
available at the outputs?
3. What type of meter, besides a multimeter, could you measure voltage with?
4. What are the ports to use in the programmable multimeter, if it is to be used for current
measurement?
5. Is it possible to control the maximum current drawn from the voltage supply? If so, which
knob in the power supply should be utilized for this task?
9. Are breadboard lines connected to the three hocks that exist next to the breadboard?
How are the breadboard lines internally connected?
The first 4 bands make up the resistance nominal value. The first 3 bands make up the
significant digits where:
If the nominal value was 345 Ohm and the 5th band of the resistor was gold (5%) the value
range would be nominal ± 5% = 327.75 to 362.25.
In iTronixLite App, you can specify a resistor value and it gives you the color code. You can
then compare it with the resistor color code to make sure you are using the right value resistor.
In the Electrodoc app, you can select color codes and it gives you the corresponding resistor
value.
Consider the circuit shown in Fig. 1. Use Ohm’s law to theoretically find the current 𝐼𝐼1 and
record the circuit’s measured results in Section 1 of the Lab Report.
Please carefully read the following. If you are unsure, please ask the tutor before
proceeding with constructing the circuit in Fig. 1.
3. Connect Voltmeter in parallel to R1 and record the voltage drop across R1 in Table 1 of
Section 1 in the Lab Report.
[1 mark]
4. Connect Ammeter in series in the circuit as shown in Fig. 2. Note that Ammeter has a
very small internal resistance, which can be ignored. Record the value of current in
Table 1 of Section 1 in the Lab Report.
[2 marks]
5. Repeat steps 2 to 5 in Section 1.2 (in Lab Tasks) for R1 = 8.2kΩ. Record the results in
Table 2 of Section 1 in the Lab Report.
[1 mark]
6. Compare the theoretical and measured values of I1. Calculate in percentage by how
much the measured values differ from the theoretical values. Briefly elaborate and
explain one possible reason for your measured values to be different from the
theoretical values. Write your observations in Section 1 of the Lab Report.
[1 mark]
Consider the circuit shown in the Fig. 3. The results for this circuit are to be tabulated in
Table 3 of Section 2 in the Lab Report.
1. Construct the circuit in Fig. 3. You need to use two DC voltage sources available in the
DC power supply unit. Ask the tutors if you are unsure about the connections or
grounding in the circuit.
2. Connect Ohmmeter in parallel to R1 and record the measured value in Table 3 of Section
2 in the Lab Report. For measuring resistance, R1 should be disconnected from the circuit.
Ask the tutors if you are unsure.
3. Connect Voltmeter in parallel to R1 and record the voltage drop across R1 in Table 3 of
Section 2 in the Lab Report.
[1 mark]
4. Divide measured voltage by measured resistance to find the measured current through
the resistor R1. Note that this method of measuring the current avoids the use of
Ammeter and is a simpler method of measuring the current. Record the measured
current value in Table 3 of Section 2 in the Lab Report.
[1 mark]
5. Compare the simulated values with the theoretical and measured value. Write your
observations in Section 2 of the Lab Report.
[0.5 mark]
Consider the circuit shown in the Fig. 4. The results for this circuit are to be tabulated in
Table 4 of Section 3 in the Lab Report.
1. Construct the circuit in Fig. 4 by reversing the polarity of V1 in circuit for Task 3 (in Lab
Tasks).
2. Connect Voltmeter in parallel to R1 and record the voltage drop across R1 in Table 4 of
Section 2 in the Lab Report.
[1 mark]
3. Copy the measured value for R1 from Table 3 of Section 2 in the Lab Report.
4. Divide measured voltage by measured resistance to find the measured current through
the resistor R1. Note that use of Ammeter is not required in this step. Record the
measured current value in Table 4 of Section 2 in the Lab Report.
[1 mark]
5. Compare the simulated values with the theoretical and measured value. Write your
observations in Section 3 of the Lab Report.
[0.5 mark]
Consider the circuit shown in the Fig. 5. The results for this circuit are to be tabulated in
Table 6 of Section 4 in the Lab Report.
2. Connect Ohmmeter in parallel to R1 and record the measured value in Table 5 of Section
4 in the Lab Report. Repeat the process for R2 and R3. Before measuring the values, the
resistances should be disconnected from the circuit.
3. Connect the Voltmeter in parallel to R1 and record the voltage drop across R1 in Table 6
of Section 4 in the Lab Report. Repeat the process for both R2 and R3.
[3 marks]
4. Divide measured voltage across R1 by measured resistance for R1 to find the measured
current i1 through the resistor R1. Note that use of Ammeter is not required in this step.
Record the value in Table 6 of Section 4 in the Lab Report. Repeat the process for R2 and
R3.
[3 marks]
5. Comprehensively compare the theoretical, simulated, and measured value. Write your
observations in Section 4 of the Lab Report.
[1 mark]
A resistor ladder circuit is an electrical circuit made from repeating units of resistor. In
digital-to-analog (DAC) convertor circuits (students will study the theory of these circuits in
the second year ENGN2218 course), an R-2R ladder network is typically used.
You have already experienced DACs in action in real life! DACs are commonly used in music
players to convert digital data streams into analog audio signals. They are also used in
televisions and mobile phones to convert digital video data into analog video signals.
A simplified DAC circuit is shown in Fig. 6. For this circuit, the theoretical value of the output
voltage is given in Table 7 of Section 4 in the Lab Report.
1. Construct the circuit in Fig. 6. Use 1kΩ resistors only. You need to connect two 1kΩ
resistors in series to get a 2kΩ resistor. You will need seven 1kΩ resistors to construct
the circuit. This task tests your ability to breadboard a medium complexity circuit.
2. Connect the Voltmeter to the circuit node labelled "OutputVoltage" and record the
measured value of the output voltage in Table 7 of Section 4 in the Lab Report. Note
that the output voltage is measured at the circuit node labelled "OutputVoltage" in Fig.
6 with respect to the ground.
[3 marks]
All engineers should have a working knowledge of basic circuit analysis and electrical
measurement techniques. This lab will give you practical experience with the distribution of
current and voltage in DC circuits, and with the operation and limitations of the equipment
used to supply and measure these quantities. Some general rules:
1. Never adjust a power supply to exceed the specified voltage by more than about 10%.
Reason: Excessive voltage can increase the risk of (possibly dangerous) component
failure.
2. Never work on a “live” circuit. Switch off the power supply before making changes or
connections.
Reason: Your safety. Also, ohmmeters are connected in parallel with the resistance they
are required to measure without the power on. They inject their own test current, acting
as a current source in parallel with a voltmeter. Having an additional power source will
interfere with the measurement.
Reason: You will blow a fuse. Ammeters have very low input resistance (effectively a
short- circuit) and are wired in series so that they can measure the current through the
original circuit. With such a low resistance they effectively act as a wire. If wired in
parallel, they will act as a short-circuit and you will almost certainly blow the fuse.
Reason: It will act as an open circuit. Voltmeters have exceedingly high resistance and
are connected in parallel to measure the voltage across a component. The have high
resistance so as not to draw current away from the component of interest, thus affecting
the voltage drop across it.
7. Record your results in the lab manual. Any calculations, observations, tables and graphs
(if asked) must also be entered in the lab manual.
8. Record exactly what you see. If this differs from what you expect, record both and try to
explain any discrepancies.
A multimeter allows the measurement of different (multiple) quantities in a circuit. The Fig.
6 and Fig. 7 show one of the types of multimeters used in the lab. You may be using one with
a slightly different layout, but identical features.
1. The main dial allows you to choose the quantity that you want to measure.
2. It measures typically voltage (DC and AC), current (DC and AC) and resistance. The
individual meters with which you could also measure these quantities are called a
voltmeter, ammeter and ohmmeter, respectively.
4. Use Select button to choose between AC or DC, and Resistance/diode/short test modes.
5. Be cautious in measuring current in which case the red probe needs to be connected to
current terminal on the bottom as Ammeter is connected in series in the circuit.
Fig. 8 shows the DC power-supply face of one of the pieces of equipment in the lab (the other
half of this piece of equipment is a multimeter).
Figure 8: Note that in measuring current, the red probe is connected to a different terminal.
1. There are 3 power supplies: two variable DC supplies between 0 and 20V, with fine and
coarse adjustment knobs, and one fixed at 5V in the middle.
2. The grounds of each are separate (called floating powers). This enables series or parallel
connections between power supplies.
3. Each of the variable DC supplies has two knobs above it, to adjust the voltage and current
limits, respectively.
4. Use appropriate cables to connect to the power supply and the programmable
multimeter, to avoid impedance mismatch. If you are unsure which cables to use, please
ask the tutor.
The main power button for this piece of equipment is the narrow red button in the centre.
Also notice the OUTPUT ON button. Power is only supplied if this button is pressed in. This
button is to prevent from changing voltage or current limit while power is enabled. That is
once the voltage and current limit are set first and then enable the power.
Bands 1
Bands 2
Bands 3
Bands 4
Bands 5
R (Ω)
Bands 1
Bands 2
Bands 3
Bands 4
Bands 5
R (Ω)
Bands 1
Bands 2
Bands 3
Bands 4
Bands 5
R (Ω)
Fill in the theoretical values in the Sections 2.1, 3.1, 4.1 in Lab Tasks BEFORE you come to
the lab. This will be checked in the first 5-10 mins.
[0.5 Marks]
Theoretical 10 1.2
Measured
Theoretical 10 8.2
Measured
Briefly elaborate and explain one possible reason for your measured values to be different
from the theoretical values. Things to consider in your response include:
Theoretical 100
Simulated 100
Measured
Compare the simulated values with the theoretical and measured value. Write your
observations in two or three sentences below. Some additional things to consider in your
response include:
Theoretical 100
Simulated 100
Measured
Compare the simulated values with the theoretical and measured value. Write your
observations in two or three sentences below.
Measured
Tabulate the results of the circuit from Fig. 5 into Table 5. Note that the circuit is the same as
the circuit in Clab1, Task 3. Copy the theoretical and simulated values from Clab1.
R1 R2 R3 R1 R2 R3
Theoretical
Simulated
Measured
Comprehensively compare the theoretical, simulated, and measured value. Write your
observations in two to five sentences below. Some of the things to consider in your response
include (you do not have to consider all the factors; consider those that you think are relevant):
Total marks:
Uni IDs:
Date: