VOLT-OHM-METER

ALSO KNOWN AS THE MULTIMETER, A VOLT-OHM-METER IS A VERSATILE

AND ESSENTIAL TOOL FOR ANYONE WHO WORKS WITH ELECTRICAL SYSTEMS. IT
IS USED TO MEASURE ELECTRICAL CURRENT, VOLATE, AND RESISTANCE,
MAKING IT A CRITICAL INSTRUMENT FOR TROUBLESHOOTING PROBLEMS IN
ELECTRICAL SYSTEMS. MULTIMETERS COME IN VARIOUS TYPES, INCLUDING
DIGITAL AND ANALOG, AND THEY ARE USED IN MANY DIFFERENT SETTINGS,
INCLUDING AUTOMOTIVE REPAIR, ELECTRONICS, AND HOME APPLIANCES.
UNDERSTANDING MULTIMETERS ' PROPER USE AND CAPABILITIES IS CRUCIAL
FOR ENSURING ACCURATE MEASUREMENTS AND MAINTAINING SAFETY
STANDARDS.
HISTORY
THE DEVELOPMENT OF BASIC ELECTRICAL MEASUREMENTS BEGAN IN THE
TH
19 CENTURY WHEN EARLY DEVICES WERE DESIGNED TO MEASURE SINGLE
ELECTRICAL UNITS, SUCH AS VOLTAGE, CURRENT, OR RESISTANCE. AMONG
THOSE EARLY DEVICES ARE:
- GALVONEMETERS – INVENTED IN THE EARLY 1800s, GALVONEMETERES
WERE USED TO DETECT AND MEASURE SMALL ELECTRIC CURRENTS BY
OBSERVING THE DEFLECTION OF NEEDLE CAUSED BY ELECTROMAGNETIC
FORCES
- AMMETER – AN ELECTRICAL DEVICE THAT IS SPECIALIZED IN MEASURING
CURRENT.
- VOLTMETER – AN ELECTRICAL DEVICE THAT IS SPECIALIZED IN MEASURING
VOLTAGE.
- OHMMETER – AN ELECTRICAL DEVICE THAT IS SPECIALIZED IN MEASURING
RESISTANCE.

DURING THE 20TH CENTURY, THE IDEA OR CONCEPT OF MAKING AN

INSTRUMENT THAT COULD MEASURE MULTIPLE ELECTRICAL MEASUREMENTS
BEGAN WHEN THE FIRST MULTIMETER WAS INVENTED BY DONALD MACADIE, A
BRITISH POST OFFICE ENGINEER WHO INVENTED THE “AVOMETER” IN 1923. AN
AVOMETER HAS A MOVING-COIL MECHANISM WITH MULTIPLE SELECTABLE
RANGES AND BECAME WIDELY USED DUE TO ITS CONVENIENCE AND
RELIABILITY. THE DESIGN OF THE “AVOMETER” WAS INTEGRATED WITH THE
FUNCTIONALITIES OF AN AMMETER, VOLTMETER, AND OHMMETER INTO ONE
PORTABLE DEVICE/INSTRUMENT IN WHICH IT GREATLY SIMPLIFIED ELECTRICAL
MEASUREMENTS AND TROUBLESHOOTING.

ANALOG MULTIMETERS, WHICH ARE ELECTRICAL DEVICES THAT UTILIZE A

MECHANICAL NEEDLE THAT INDICATES AND DISPLAY MEASUREMENTS,
DOMINATED THE MARKET MOST OF THE 20TH CENTURY. EVEN THOUGH IT
DOMINATED THE MARKET AND WAS EFFECTIVE, THE ANALOG MULTIMETER
SHOWED SIGNS OF LIMITATIONS IN TERMS OF ACCURACY, READABILITY, AND
SUSCEPTIBILITY TO MECHANICAL WEAR. IT CAN ALSO BE DIFFICULT TO USE THE
ANALOG MULTIMETER SINCE THERE ARE SPECIFIC WAYS TO READ AN ANALOG
MULTIMETER.
DURING THE 1970S, WHEN DIGITAL TECHNOLOGY INCREASED IN
POPULARITY, THE DESIGN OF THE MULTIMETER DESIGNS HAD ITS REVOLUTION
WHEN THE DESIGN AND INVENTION OF DIGITAL MULTIMETER WAS INTRODUCED.
DIGITAL MULTIMETERS OR DMMs IN SHORT SHOWCASED ANALOG-TO-
DISPLAY, CONVERTERS TO PROVIDE PRECISE NUMERICAL READINGS ON DIGITAL
DISPLAYS, ENHANCING ACCURACY, RESOLUTION, AND EASIER TO USE. DURING
THIS PERIOD, THE MULTIMETER EXPERIENCED CHANGE, SUCH AS THE
INTEGRATION OF MICROPROCESSORS AND SPECIALED ICs WHICH ENABLED
MULTIMETERS TO PERFORM COMPLEX CALCULATIONS AND SUPPORT
ADDITIONAL MEASUREMENT FUNCTIONS. THE MULTIMETER ALSO HAS ITS
FEATURES ENHANCED WHERE NEW FEATURES ARE INCLUDED, SUCH AS AUTO-
RANGING, DATA HOLD, AND CONNECTIVITY OPTIONS, EXPANDING THEIR
VERSATILITY AND APPLICATION SCOPE. LASTLY, THE MATERIALS USED TO
CREATE THE MULTIMETER ALSO EXPERIENCED IMPROVEMENT WHERE
ADVANCED MATERIALS WERE USED TO IMPROVE THE DESIGN OF THE
MULTIMETER, WHICH LED TO HAVING A MORE COMPACT, RUGGED, AND USER-
FRIENDLY MULTIMETER SUITABLE FOR FIELDWORK AND HARSH ENVIRONMENTS.
TYPES OF MULTIMETERS
1. ANALOG MULTIMETER
 THE ANALOG MULTIMETER IS A MULTIMETER THAT IS A PERMANENT
MAGNET MOVING COIL (P MMC) METER-TYPE MEASURING INSTRUMENT THAT
HAS AN ANALOG DISPLAY THAT USES THE DEFLECTION OF A POINTER ON THE
SCALE TO INDICATE THE LEVEL OF MEASUREMENT BEING MADE. THE POINTER
DEFLECTS FROM ITS INITIAL POSITION INCREASINGLY AS THE MEASURING
QUANTITY INCREASES. IT WORKS ON THE PRINCIPLE OF D’ARSONAL
GALVANOMETER. SO, WHEN A CURRENT IS PASSED THROUGH ITS COIL, THE
COIL MOVES IN A MAGNETIC FIELD PRODUCED BY THE PERMANENT MAGNET. A
POINTER IS ATTACHED WITH THE COIL. WHEN CURRENT FLOWS IN THE COIL, A
DEFLECTING TORQUE ACTS ON THE COIL THAT WILL ROTATE IT BY AN ANGLE SO
THE POINTER MOVES OVER A SCALE. A PARI OF HAIRSPRINGS IS ATTACHED TO
THE SPINDLE TO PROVIDE THE CONTROLLING TORQUE. IT ALSO ACTS AS AN
AMMETER WITH A LOW SERIES RESISTANCE TO MEASURE DIRECT CURRENT. A
SHUNT RESISTOR IS CONNECTED IN PARALLEL WITH THE GALVANOMETER FOR
HIGH CURRENT MEASUREMENTS. WITHIN THE SHUNT RESISTOR, AN ANALO
MULTIMETER CAN MEASURE CURRENTS IN THE RANGES OF MILLI-AMPERES OR
AMPERES. BY ADDING A MULTIPLIER RESISTOR, AN ANALOG MULTIMETER
BECOMES A VOLTMETER AND CAN BE USED FOR THE MEASUREMENT OF DC
VOLTAGE IN THE RANGES OF MILLI-VOLTS OR KILOVOLTS. BY ADDING A BATTERY
AND A NETWORK OF RESISTORS, THE ANALOG MULTIMETER CAN WORK AS AN
OHMMETER. BY CHANGING THE VALUE OF SHUNT RESISTANCE IN THE RESISTOR
NETWORK, DIFFERENT RESISTANCE VALUES CAN BE MEASURED. ADDING A
RECTIFIER UNIT IN THE ANALOG MULTIMER CIRCUIT, THE AC VOLTAGES AND
CURRENTS CAN ALSO MEASURED.
TO USE AN ANALOG MULTIMETER, SET THE SWITCH TO THE CORRECT
MEASUREMENT TYPES AND RANGE FOR THE MEASUREMENT TO BE TAAKENM.
WHILE SELECTING THE RANGE, ENSURE THAT THE MAXIMUM RANGE IS ABOVE
WHAT IS EXPECTED. THE RANGE OF THE MULTIMETER IS THEN OPTIMIZED FOR
THE BEST READING. ONCE THE MEASUREMENT IS COMPLETED, IT IS
RECOMMENDED AS A PRECAUTION TO PLACE THE PROBES INTO THE VOLTAGE
MEASUREMENT SOCKETS AND THE RANGE TO MAXIMUM VOLTAGE. IN THIS WAY,
IF THE METER IS ACCIDENTALLY CONNECTED ACROSS A HIGH VOLATE POINT,
THERE IS A LITTLE CHANCE OF DAMAGE TO THE MULTIMETER.

SOME BENEFITS OF USING AN ANALOG MULTIMETER INCLUDE SIMPLICITY,

WHERE AN ANALOG MULTIMETER HAS STRAIGHTFORWARD CIRCUITRY AND IS
EASY TO OPERATE, MAKING IT SUITABLE FOR BASIC MEASUREMENTS. ANOTHER
WOULD BE HAVING A CONTINUOUS DISPLAY WHERE THE ANALOG MULTIMETER
HAS THE ABILITY TO PERFORM CONTINUOUS READING, WHICH CAN BE
ADVANTAGEOUS WHEN MONITORING FLUCTUATING SIGNALS. LASTLY. THE
BENEFIT WOULD BE HAVING THE ABILITY TO HAVE A FASTER RESPONSE TIME
COMPARED TO DIGITAL COUNTERPARTS, WHICH ALLOWED REAL-TIME TRACKING
OF CHANGES.
THE DISADVANTAGE OF USING AN ANALOG MULTIMETER IS THAT IT
PROVIDES READINGS OR MEASUREMENTS THAT HAVE LOWER ACCURACY IN
COMPARISON TO ITS DIGITAL COUNTERPART. ANOTHER DISADVANTAGE OR
LIMITATION IS THAT IT IS SUSCEPTIBLE OR PRONE TO PARALLAX ERRORS, WHICH
ARE ERRORS THAT OCCUR DUE TO INCORRECT POSITIONING OF THE EYES
WHILE TAKING A READING ONA MEASURING SCALE. IF THE VIEWING ANGLE IS
NOT PERPENDICULAR TO THE SCALE AT THE POINT WHERE WE ARE TAKING THE
READING, WE WILL GET LESS OR MORE VALUE OF THE MEASUREMENT THAN THE
ACTUAL VALUE. THE ANALOG MULTIMETER CAN ALSO BE AFFECTED OR
INFLUENCED BY EXTERNAL MAGNETIC FIELDS.
2. DIGITAL MULTIMETER

DIGITAL MULTIMETERS ARE MULTIMETERS WITH LCD OR LED SCREEN THAT

HAS THE FEATURE TO DISPLAY MEASUREMENTS NUMERICALLY. WHERE MOST
DIGITAL MULTIMETERS HAVE FOUR-DIGIT DISPLAYS, THE FIRST CAN ONLY BE
EITHER A 0 OR 1 AND A + / - INDICATION AS WELL. THERE MAY ALSO BE
INDICATORS LIKE AC / DC AS WELL. IT ALSO HAS A ROTARY SWITCH WHICH IS
CALLED THE DIAL OR SELECTION KNOB, WHICH IS USED TO SELECT THE TYPES
OF MEASUREMENTS TO BE MADE AND THE RANGE THAT IS NEEDED. THE DIGITAL
MULTIMETER ALSO HAS CONNECTING JACKS FOR THE PROBES WHERE THE
TYPICAL PORTS OF THE DIGITAL MULTIMETER ARE COMMON, WHICH IS USED
FOR ALL MEASUREMENTS WHERE THE NEGATIVE PROBE IS CONNECTED TO
THIS. THE VΩmA. PORT, WHICH IS USED FOR THE MOST MEASUREMENTS, AND
THE POSITIVE PROBE IS CONNECTED TO IT. LASTLY. THE 10A PORT IS USED TO
MEASURE THE LARGE CURRENTS IN THE CIRCUITS.NOWADAYS, DIGITAL
MULTIMETERS ARE THE MOST WIDELY USED TYPE OF MULTIMETERS DUE TO
THEIR ACCURACY AND VERSITALITY.
TO USE A DIGITAL MULTIMETER, INSERT THE PROBES INTO THE CORRECT
CONNECTING PORTS, THEN SET THE DIAL TO THE CORRECT MEASUREMENT
TYPE AND RANGE FOR THE MEASUREMENT TO BE MADE. WHILE SELECTING THE
RANGE, ENSURE THAT THE MAXIMUM RANGE IS ABOVE THAT IS EXPECTED.
OPTIMISE THE FOR THE BEST READING. IF POSSIBLE, ENABLE ALL THE LEADING
DIGITS TO NOT READ ZERO; IN THIS WAY, THE GREATEST NUMBER OF
SIGNIFICANT DIGITS CAN BE READ.
THE BENEFITS OF USING A DIGITAL MULTIMETER ARE HAVING HIGH
ACCURACY AND RESOLUTION, WHICH IS MAINLY THANKS TO DIGITAL
MULTIMETERS HAVING LED OR LCD SCREENS THAT CAN INSTANTLY DISPLAY
EXACT NUMERICAL MEASUREMENTS, WHICH ALLOWS DIGITAL MULTIMETERS TO
BE MORE SUITABLE FOR HIGHLY DETAILED AND SENSITIVE APPLICATIONS.
ANOTHER BENEFIT WOULD BE THE FEATURE OF AUTO-RANGING, WHERE A
DIGITAL MULTIMETER HAS THE FEATURE OF AUTOMATICALLY SELECTING THE
APPROPRIATE MEASUREMENT RANGE, WHICH GREATLY SIMPLIFIES
OPERATIONS, LESSENS THE DURATION OF THE APPLICATION OR OPERATION,
AND ALSO REDUCES THE RISK OF ENCOUNTERING ERRORS DURING THE
OPERATION OR APPLICATION. LASTLY, THE DIGITAL MULTIMETER ALSO HAS
ADDITIONAL FUNCTIONS, SUCH AS HAVING THE FEATURE TO MEASURE
CAPACITANCE, WHICH IS THE ABILITY OF A COMPONENT OR CIRCUIT TO
COLLECT AND STORE ENERGY IN THE FORM OF ELECTRICAL CHARGE,
FREQUENCY WHICH IS THE AT WHICH CURRENT CHANGES DIRECTION PER
SECOND, TEMPERATURE AND MANY MORE.
SOME ADVANTAGES OF DIGITAL MULTIMETERS OVER ANALOG
MULTIMETERS ARE EASIER AND EFFICIENT READING OF MEASUREMENTS WHERE
DIGITAL MULTIMETERS HAVE DIGITAL DISPLAYS THAT ELIMINATE PARALLAX
ERRORS AND CAN INSTANTLY DISPLAY EXACT NUMERICAL MEASUREMENTS.
ANOTHER ADVANTAGE WOULD BE DURABILITY, WHERE DIGITAL MULTIMETERS
HAVE FEWER MECHANICAL PARTS, RESULTING IN THE DURABILITY OF THE
DEVICE BEING INCREASED AND MAINTENANCE BEING REDUCED.