by The Wheatstone bridge is a type of electrical circuit that conducts unknown electrical resistance measurements. This could be the measurement of voltage or power that is undetermined and is subject to change. Both of the bridge circuit’s legs are balanced by the Wheatstone bridge, with one leg having the unknown component. Another name for the Wheatstone bridge is a resistance bridge
Samuel Hunter Christie was the original inventor of the Wheatstone bridge in 1833. Over the next 10 years, a British physicist named Sir Charles Wheatstone made improvements to the invention and brought it to the mainstream public.
Wheatstone Bridge Application
Electronic applications that conduct measurements are often going to have a Wheatstone bridge. These applications have balanced bridge circuits in order to measure things like pressure, light intensity, and strain. Wheatstone bridge circuits contain a variety of resistive sensors, such as thermistors, light-dependent resistors, potentiometers and strain gauges.
Overall, light measurement is the basic application of the Wheatstone bridge. A photo resistive device is needed to conduct the light measurement, which is why a light dependent resistor is used. This is basically a passive resistive sensor that takes visible levels of light and converts it based on resistance change. If you want to measure and keep track of the intensity of light, then you can use a light-dependent resistor for it.
When dark or dim light is present, the light-dependent resistor has about 900 Megha ohms of resistance. If there is a bright light present, the resistor is at about 30 ohms. When the Wheatstone bridge circuit and light dependent resistor are connected together, the light level changes can be measured.
Electronic Testing Equipment
Since Wheatstone bridge circuits are all about measuring voltage, they are used in a variety of electronic testing equipment applications. This type of equipment generates electrical signals that get sent to electronic devices as part of a test. As the devices respond to the signals, the equipment is able to identify any existing faults in the devices. Once those faults are identified, the electrical engineer or technician can proceed to fix those faults in any manner that is necessary. After they’re done, the electronic devices should function normally again.
The four main types of electronic testing equipment are voltmeters, ohmmeters, ammeters, and multimeters. Let me go over each one now:
Voltmeter
Electrical circuits have two points (or terminals), and electricity flows between them. A voltmeter measures the amount of voltage that exists between these two points. The traditional voltmeter is an analog, but now they have digital voltmeters too.
Ohmmeter
An ohmmeter is an electrical instrument which measures the amount of electrical resistance in devices. The measurements are made in ohms, which is why it is called an ohmmeter. Voltage can be applied to the resistance with the tiny battery that is built into the ohmmeter.
Ammeter
An ammeter is an instrument that can measure the amount of electric current flowing within an electric circuit. Amperes are the unit of measurement in which the instrument uses to conduct these measurements.
Multimeter
A multimeter is like a combination of the above three electronic instruments because it can measure resistance, voltage, and electric current. If you need to test a variety of items, such as power supplies, batteries, electric motors, and household wiring, then a multimeter is a good choice.
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Conclusion
The Wheatstone bridge concept and basic application may be hard for people to understand if they are new to electrical terminology. Any licensed electrical engineer or electrician will certainly understand these concepts and applications well. If you’re planning to construct electrical detection or testing equipment, then it is important that you understand the Wheatstone bridge concept completely.
