Page 3 - Important Information; Warranty; Copyright; WARNING REGARDING USE OF NATIONAL INSTRUMENTS PRODUCTS
Important Information Warranty The NI 4050 is warranted against defects in materials and workmanship for a period of one year from the date of shipment, as evidenced by receipts or other documentation. National Instruments will, at its option, repair or replace equipment that proves to be defective ...
Page 4 - Compliance; FCC/Canada Radio Frequency Interference Compliance*; Determining FCC Class; Class A; Class B; Federal Communications Commission
Compliance FCC/Canada Radio Frequency Interference Compliance* Determining FCC Class The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has rules to protect wireless communications from interference. The FCC places digital electronics into two classes. These classes are known as Class A (for use in industr...
Page 5 - Canadian Department of Communications; European Union - Compliance to EEC Directives
• Connect the equipment into an outlet on a circuit different from that to which the receiver is connected. • Consult the dealer or an experienced radio/TV technician for help. Canadian Department of Communications This Class B digital apparatus meets all requirements of the Canadian Interference-Ca...
Page 6 - Conventions; bold
Conventions The following conventions are used in this manual: » The » symbol leads you through nested menu items and dialog box options to a final action. The sequence File»Page Setup»Options directs you to pull down the File menu, select the Page Setup item, and select Options from the last dialog...
Page 7 - Contents
© National Instruments Corporation vii NI 4050 User Manual Contents Chapter 1Taking Measurements with the NI 4050 Cable and Probes ........................................................................................................... 1-1Introduction to the VirtualBench-DMM Soft Front Panel........
Page 8 - Glossary
Contents NI 4050 User Manual viii www.ni.com Appendix ASpecifications Appendix BTechnical Support Resources Glossary Index Figures Figure 1-1. Installing the NI 4050 and Cables ......................................................... 1-2 Figure 1-2. NI-DMM Soft Front Panel ............................
Page 9 - Cable and Probes
© National Instruments Corporation 1-1 NI 4050 User Manual 1 Taking Measurements with the NI 4050 Thank you for buying a National Instruments 4050 digital multimeter card. A system based on the NI 4050 offers the flexibility, performance, and size that makes it ideal for service, repair, and manufac...
Page 11 - Introduction to the VirtualBench-DMM Soft Front Panel
Chapter 1 Taking Measurements with the NI 4050 © National Instruments Corporation 1-3 NI 4050 User Manual Introduction to the VirtualBench-DMM Soft Front Panel The following sections explain how to make connections to your NI 4050 and take simple measurements using the VirtualBench-DMM, as shown in ...
Page 12 - dBm shows decibels above or below a 1 mW reference.
Chapter 1 Taking Measurements with the NI 4050 NI 4050 User Manual 1-4 www.ni.com The Function selector allows you select a measurement mode. Select Edit»Settings and click on the tabs for Current and Resistance or Temperature to control the data type acquired by VirtualBench-DMM. DC volts measures ...
Page 13 - Use the Soft Front Panel; Measure DC and AC Voltage
Chapter 1 Taking Measurements with the NI 4050 © National Instruments Corporation 1-5 NI 4050 User Manual % selects the percentage calculation. VirtualBench-DMM expresses the displayed reading as a percent deviation from the reference value entered in the Math Settings. Refer to Help»Online Referenc...
Page 14 - Measure 2-Wire Resistance
Chapter 1 Taking Measurements with the NI 4050 NI 4050 User Manual 1-6 www.ni.com The NI 4050 is protected against damage from voltages within ±250 VDC or 250 V rms in all ranges. You should never apply voltages above these levels to the inputs. Figure 1-4. Connecting Probes for Voltage Measurement ...
Page 15 - Measuring the Voltage Drop Across a Diode
Chapter 1 Taking Measurements with the NI 4050 © National Instruments Corporation 1-7 NI 4050 User Manual Figure 1-5. Connections for Resistance Measurement 2. Select 2-wire resistance mode. 3. Select the range for your measurement—200 Ω , 2 k Ω , 20 k Ω , 200 k Ω , 2 M Ω , 200 M Ω , or autorange. T...
Page 16 - Measure Current
Chapter 1 Taking Measurements with the NI 4050 NI 4050 User Manual 1-8 www.ni.com 2. Select diode mode. 3. Select the range for your measurement. Only the 2 V range is available for diode measurement. The value indicator will indicate the voltage drop measured. If the display indicates 2.200 VDC, th...
Page 17 - Measure Temperature
Chapter 1 Taking Measurements with the NI 4050 © National Instruments Corporation 1-9 NI 4050 User Manual Measure Temperature You can measure temperature using common temperature transducers such as resistive temperature devices (RTD) and thermistors. You can measure transducers in the 2-wire resist...
Page 18 - Safety Instructions
© National Instruments Corporation 2-1 NI 4050 User Manual 2 NI 4050 Operation This chapter contains safety instructions, measurement fundamentals and concerns, and scanning information. Safety Instructions Cautions To avoid personal injury or damage to electronic equipment, observe the following: D...
Page 19 - Measurement Fundamentals; Warm Up; Voltage Measurements; DC Voltage
Chapter 2 NI 4050 Operation NI 4050 User Manual 2-2 www.ni.com Measurement Fundamentals Warm Up The required warm-up time for the NI 4050 is 30 minutes. This warm-up time is important because measurements made with the NI 4050 multimeter can change with temperature. This change is called a thermal d...
Page 20 - Input Ranges; Measurement Considerations; Input Impedance
Chapter 2 NI 4050 Operation © National Instruments Corporation 2-3 NI 4050 User Manual Input Ranges The NI 4050 has five input ranges available for measuring DC voltages. These ranges are ±20 mV, ±200 mV, ±2.0 V, ±25V, and ±250 V. Each range has a 10% overrange, except for the 250 V range. The 250 V...
Page 21 - Thermal EMF; Normal Mode Rejection
Chapter 2 NI 4050 Operation NI 4050 User Manual 2-4 www.ni.com Thermal EMF Thermal EMFs, or thermoelectric potentials, are voltages generated at the junctions of dissimilar metals and are functions of temperature. Thermal EMFs in a circuit under test can cause higher than expected offsets that chang...
Page 22 - Common Mode Rejection
Chapter 2 NI 4050 Operation © National Instruments Corporation 2-5 NI 4050 User Manual Figure 2-2. Normal Mode Measurement Effects If you are measuring signals in the presence of large normal mode voltages, consult Appendix A, Specifications , to calculate the additional error to your system. Use th...
Page 23 - Effective Common Mode Rejection
Chapter 2 NI 4050 Operation NI 4050 User Manual 2-6 www.ni.com Figure 2-3. Common Mode Measurement Effects Using the equation in Figure 2-3, you can calculate the voltage error due to the common mode voltage. If you are measuring signals in the presence of large common mode voltages, consult Appendi...
Page 24 - AC Offset Voltage
Chapter 2 NI 4050 Operation © National Instruments Corporation 2-7 NI 4050 User Manual components and then measures the RMS value of the AC component. This method lets you measure a small AC signal in the presence of a large DC offset. Input Ranges The NI 4050 has five input ranges available for mea...
Page 25 - -Wire Resistance Measurements
Chapter 2 NI 4050 Operation NI 4050 User Manual 2-8 www.ni.com These additional errors are shown in Appendix A, Specifications . While the NI 4050 is characterized and specified over the 20 Hz to 25 kHz frequency range, measurements outside of this range can still be made with decreased accuracy. Re...
Page 26 - Continuity Measurements
Chapter 2 NI 4050 Operation © National Instruments Corporation 2-9 NI 4050 User Manual In the extended ohms range, the NI 4050 adds a 1 M Ω resistor in parallel with the test resistor, and then calculates the value of the resistor being tested. The test current for the 200 Ω , 2.0 k Ω , and 20 k Ω r...
Page 27 - Input Characteristics
© National Instruments Corporation A-1 NI 4050 User Manual A Specifications This appendix lists the specifications of the NI 4050. These specifications are guaranteed between 15 and 35 ° C unless otherwise specified. DC Voltage Accuracy (% of reading ± µV) Noise Rejection NMRR (10 Hz reading rate, 5...
Page 28 - DC Current
Appendix A Specifications NI 4050 User Manual A-2 www.ni.com DC Current Accuracy (% of reading ± µA ) DC current measurements require the use of the CSM current shunt modules. Input Characteristics 200 mA shunt Input protection ...............................Fuse F1 500 mA/250 V fast fusing Shunt re...
Page 29 - Additional AC Errors
Appendix A Specifications © National Instruments Corporation A-3 NI 4050 User Manual AC Voltage Accuracy (% of reading ± mV) Noise Rejection AC CMRR (DC to 60 Hz)...................... > 80 dB (with a 1 k Ω imbalance in LO lead) Input Characteristics Input resistance ................................
Page 30 - AC Current
Appendix A Specifications NI 4050 User Manual A-4 www.ni.com AC Current Accuracy (% of reading ± mA) AC current measurements require the use of the CSM current shunt module. Input Characteristics 200 mA shunt Input protection ...............................Fuse F1 500 mA/250 V fast fusing Shunt resi...
Page 31 - Resistance; Diode Testing
Appendix A Specifications © National Instruments Corporation A-5 NI 4050 User Manual Resistance Accuracy (% of reading ± Ω) Measurement mode ................................ 2-wire Ohms Test current ............................................ 100 µA for 200 Ω, 2 k Ω, 20 k Ω ranges 1 µA for 2 M Ω, 2...
Page 32 - General Specifications; Physical
Appendix A Specifications NI 4050 User Manual A-6 www.ni.com General Specifications Settling time ............................................Affected by source impedance and input signal changes Warm-up time .........................................30 minutes for measurements accurate within specif...
Page 33 - Technical Support Resources; NI Web Support; Online Problem-Solving and Diagnostic Resources
© National Instruments Corporation B-1 NI 4050 User Manual B Technical Support Resources This appendix describes the comprehensive resources available to you in the Technical Support section of the National Instruments Web site and provides technical support telephone numbers for you to use if you h...
Page 34 - Software-Related Resources; Worldwide Support
Appendix B Technical Support Resources NI 4050 User Manual B-2 www.ni.com Software-Related Resources • Instrument Driver Network —A library with hundreds of instrument drivers for control of standalone instruments via GPIB, VXI, or serial interfaces. You also can submit a request for a particular in...
Page 35 - Prefix
© National Instruments Corporation G-1 NI 4050 User Manual Glossary Prefix Meanings Value p- pico- 10 – 12 n- nano- 10 – 9 µ- micro- 10 – 6 m- milli- 10 – 3 k- kilo- 10 3 M- mega- 10 6 G- giga- 10 9 Numbers/Symbols % percent + positive of, or plus – negative of, or minus / per ° degree ± plus or min...
Page 44 - Index
© National Instruments Corporation I-1 NI 4050 User Manual Index A AC current specifications, A-4AC voltage measurement, 2-6 to 2-8 AC offset voltage, 2-7frequency response, 2-7 to 2-8input ranges, 2-7using VirtualBench-DMM Soft Front panel, 1-5 to 1-6 AC voltage specifications, A-3 C cables and pro...
