Multimeters

Multimeters take theoretical concepts like voltage, and currents by giving us the power to measures them first made in the 1820’s. There are two different types of multimeters: a manual range digital and a auto range meter. Manual range digital multimeters have to be set manually to the preferred setting and uses digital screen display. It differs from the Auto range multimeter because it lets you set the kind of measurement you want without stating the value. Checking circuit continuity is one of the easiest ways to use a multimeter, the multimeter is checking whether two points are electrically connected to one another. To check continuity with a multimeter the dial needs to be set to continuity and leads need to be plugged in; in order to tell if two points are connected you need to place the two leads on the circuit. If connected a beep will sound from the multimeter, if there is no beep the circuit is not connect electrically. Multimeters are not only used for checking continuity, but also used for checking resistance in circuits. To check the resistance you place the multimeter on the lowest resistance setting (200ᘯ), if the multimeter is showing the number one the resistance is too low and the setting needs to be changed. Keep turning the dial and testing the circuit with different resistances until the multimeter shows more than one digit. An alternative multimeter are smart tweezers, they are used for checking the resistance for smaller circuits with less surface area. Another option the multimeter provides is checking voltage. To check the voltage, the dual needs to be set to a DC or an AC voltage range. In testing a battery the dual must be set to DC range, first you have to know how much voltage is coming out of a battery, then when you have that figured out you need to set the dual to a range that is larger than the batteries voltage but not to big. (smallest range larger than your battery). By playing the leads on the positive and negative side of the battery the multimeter will get a reading letting you know if the battery is actually giving off the amount of voltage currents it's supposed to. Another way to use a multimeter is to check currents, to check currents electricity needs to be routed through the multimeter. To avoid blowing the fuse when testing currents there are two different ports that can be plugged in for the specific amount of ams being used. Anything below or at 10 ams would be plugged into the 10A port, and anything above 10 ams or at 200 ams would get plugged into the 200mA port. Use the leads to see the amount of currents flowing through a specific part of your circuit. Newly improved multimeters are now portable and can measure more variables like capacity and heat.