[edit] Resolution
The resolution of a multimeter is often specified in "digits" of resolution. The use of a digit count dates back to the 1970s when multimeter vendors were very proud of how many digits their products could display (this was important, because readout displays were costly). The vendors started to specify the maximum resolution of the multimeter based on the digital display. For example, the term 5½ digits refers to the number of digits displayed on the readout of a multimeter.
By convention, a half digit can display either a zero or a one, while a three-quarters digit can display a numeral higher than a one but not nine. Commonly, a three-quarters digit refers to a maximum count of 3 or 5. The fractional digit is always the most significant digit in the displayed value. A 5½ digit multimeter would have five full digits that display values from 0 to 9 and one half digit that could only display 0 or 1. Such a meter could show positive or negative values from 0 to 199,999. A 3¾ digit meter can display a quantity from 0 to 3,999 or 5,999, depending on the manufacturer.
[edit] Accuracy
Similarly, better circuitry and electronics have improved meter
accuracy. Older analog meters might have basic accuracies of three to five percent. Modern portable DMMs may have accuracies as good as ±0.01%, and high-end bench-top instruments can have accuracies in the hundredths of
parts per million figures.
[2] At the other end of the spectrum, meters with ±1% basic accuracy are available for less than US$20.
Manufacturers may provide calibration services so that a new meter may be purchased with a certificate of calibration indicating the meter has been adjusted to standards traceable to the
National Institute of Standards and Technology. Such manufacturers usually provide calibration services after sales, as well, so that older equipment may be recertified.
[edit] Common features
A benchtop multimeter from
Hewlett-Packard.
Modern multimeters are most commonly digital, and identified by the term
DMM or
digital multimeter. In such an instrument, the signal under test is converted to a voltage and an amplifier with an electronically controlled gain preconditions the signal. Since the digital display directly indicates a quantity as a number, there is no risk of
parallax causing an error when viewing a reading. A few analog units are available, however, and are sometimes considered better for detecting the rate of change of a reading; electronics expert
Forrest Mims suggests keeping both analog and digital meters in one's toolbox, and the 2003
ARRL handbook suggests that analog multimeters are often less susceptible to
radio frequency interference.
The inclusion of solid state electronics, from a control circuit to small embedded computers, has provided a wealth of convenience features in modern digital meters. Commonly available measurement enhancements include:
- Autoranging, which selects the correct range for the quantity under test so that the most significant digits are shown. For example, a four-digit multimeter would automatically select an appropriate range to display 1.234 instead of 0.012, or overloading. Autoranging meters usually include a facility to 'freeze' the meter to a particular range, because a measurement that causes frequent range changes is distracting to the user.
- Sample and hold, which will latch the most recent reading for examination after the instrument is removed from the circuit under test.
- Current-limited tests for voltage drop across semiconductor junctions. While not a replacement for a transistor tester, this facilitates testing diodes and a variety of transistor types.[3][4]
- A graphic representation of the quantity under test, as a bar graph. This makes go/no-go testing easy, and also allows spotting of fast-moving trends.
- A continuity tester that beeps when a circuit conducts.
- A low-bandwidth oscilloscope.[5]
- Automotive circuit testers, including tests for automotive timing and dwell signals.[6]
- Simple data acquisition features to record maximum and minimum readings over a given period, or to take a number of samples at fixed intervals.[7]
Digital meters often feature circuitry or software to accurately measure the AC voltage at any frequency within a specified range. These meters integrate the input signal using the
root mean square method, and will correctly read the true voltage of an input signal even if it is not a perfect sine wave.
Modern meters may be interfaced with a
personal computer by
IrDA links,
RS-232 connections,
USB, or an instrument bus such as
IEEE-488. The interface allows the computer to record measurements as they are made or for the instrument to upload a series of results to the computer.
[8]
As modern appliances and systems become more complicated, the multimeter is becoming less common in the technician's toolkit. More complicated and specialized equipment replaces it. Where a service man might have used an ohmmeter to measure resistance while testing an antenna, a modern technician may use a hand-held analyzer to test several parameters in order to determine the integrity of a network cable