Measurements

Courtesy of Mr. Ayman Odawa :)

Sensors, measurements, and instrumentation are the cornerstones of control systems for a wide range of engineering processes.  Measurements help us describe the world and everything in it. Measurements can describe length, weight, time, temperature, pressure, humidity and countless other properties. People use measurements whenever they make something, whether it is a food or a building.

Without measurement, the world would be a mess. Bridges would end in the middle of rivers if engineers didn’t take measurements before building. You would be late for school constantly without a clock to measure time. Your clothes wouldn’t fit if they didn’t match the measurements of your body.  Without a speedometer, a driver couldn’t stay at a safe speed. Without their built-in thermometers, refrigerators couldn’t keep food cold enough to stop the growth of harmful bacteria.

People have always needed measurement, but long ago there were no standards or systems. Instead, they used the length or width of their fingers, arms, and feet as units of measurement. The problem, of course, was that everyone’s fingers, arms, and feet were not the same size. So over time, most governments developed standard systems of measurement. That means weights and measures that everyone in a particular place could agree upon.

Today, there are two main systems of standardized measurement in the world: the metric system and the English system.

Measurements and Instrumentation subject provides the basic knowledge of the concept of measurement systems and introduces some basic instruments used in the measurement of electrical quantities such as voltage, frequency and period. The course also describes some industrial applications of sensors, such as the measurement of temperature, as well as the detection of different types of objects.