
26
Signal Conditioning
M
Enables easy connection to a large range
of sensors and transducers
M
Low cost across the range
M
Supported by PicoScope, PicoLog and
EnviroMon software
M
Automatic scaling / linearisation in software
Using signal conditioners
Pico signal conditioning provides a simple method of interfacing
a wide range of sensors and transducers (temperature, humidity,
pressure etc) to data loggers and oscilloscopes. The
conditioners provide power or excitation and amplify the sensor
output.
One or more signal conditioners can be plugged, via an adaptor,
into either an EnviroMon stand alone data logger or an ADC-16
PC based converter. The data logging software will then
automatically detect which signal conditioning module is
connected and scale the measurements into the correct units.
For example, if a PT100 temperature conditioner is connected,
data will be displayed and recorded in
o
C. If a current clamp is
connected then readings will be in Amps.
Signal conditioners can also be plugged into a general purpose
adaptor which provides outputs from standard BNC connectors
so that sensors can be interfaced to oscilloscopes,
multimeters,data acquisition products and chart recorders.
Pico products can be used for monitoring energy efficiency both
for environmental reasons and also for cost savings. The
methods and equipment used are equally suitable for studying
energy use in office or industrial applications.
Using Pico signal conditioning products, a three bedroom house
was wired up with sensors for temperature, humidity, light levels
and electrical power consumption. All the sensors were then
connected to an EnviroMon data logger. The EnviroMon network
cable enabled easy connection of all the sensors to the single
data logger. Data from the logger was remotely downloaded to
a computer using a telephone modem, so that several locations
could be monitored without regular site visits.
Water Heating
The trace opposite shows readings from three of the temperature
sensors in the house and also the overall electric power
consumption of the house. The mains power (in kW) shows a
big jump when the electric storage heaters turn on and a second
jump caused by the electric water heater.
To data
logger
The temperature sensor on the hot water tank showed up an
immediate problem. The water heating is controlled by both a
thermostat and time clock. The clock was set to start heating at
2am and finish at 8am. The red trace shows the heating of the
water. The peak in mains power consumption (blue trace, approx
2am) shows when the heating starts, by 3:45 the water is hot
and the thermostat cuts the heater out. The hot water however
is not required until 6am, so for over 2 hours the water cools
slowly, dropping in temperature by 8%. This represents wasted
energy. The rapid temperature drop suggests that the insulation
of the water tank could be improved, but an instant improvement
can be made by changing the time clock settings.
With the aid of the data logger we can see that the water takes
1 hour 45 min to heat from cold. The time clock was reset to
start at 4:15am and as expected the water was hot by 6am.
Standby power
Monitoring of the house showed that electric power consumption
never dropped below 150W even with all lights and the
refrigerator turned off. The main culprits were devices with
remote controls left on ‘standby’ such as the television, video
and
hi-fi.
In
particular
the
television drew
nearly 20W in
standby mode.
Some
badly
designed products
use almost the
same amount of
power in standby
as
in
normal
operation. Another
cause of power wastage was mains power adaptors. These
small DC power supplies commonly used around the house
(for phone chargers, electronic games, computer modems,
answer phones, clock radios etc) all use a few watts when
plugged in, even if they are not supplying any power. Over the
course of a year this adds up to a considerable waste of power
(over 1000kWH).
Monitoring energy efficiency in the home
The CM001 accepts two signal conditioners
To sensors
S