Category: Oscilloscopes

One of the essential pieces of equipment that a good electronics lab must be equipped with is an Oscilloscope. These machines are a mainstay for electronics engineers and technicians who are working with, designing, or troubleshooting high-speed electronics. Generally speaking, oscilloscopes allow the observation of signal voltages that are constantly in flux. As with many pieces of equipment, there are several different types, each possessing distinct functions and usage. For example, some of these scopes can convert non-electrical signals like sound or vibration into voltage in order to display fluctuations in the signals. Today, We’re going to look at the differences between several types of oscilloscopes.

Analog Oscilloscopes

The first type of oscilloscope that we are going to look at today is an analog oscilloscope, which is relatively straightforward. A signal is detected by a probe and directly displayed on the screen. It has the capability to display waveforms for quite a time preventing them from decaying right away. As its name suggests, this equipment deals with transient effects and analog signals although it can effectively handle low digital signals as well. Analog oscilloscope tend to be more precise in their readings because they are immune to aliasing problems that can occur with digital oscilloscopes. Because of this, the equipment is most commonly used for precision troubleshooting applications.Digital Oscilloscopes

Digital oscilloscopes come in a variety of different types. They are notable for their excellent performance when working with both bandwidth and sampling rate.

Digital Storage Oscilloscopes

Many digital oscilloscopes are actually classified as digital storage oscilloscopes. These machines have the ability to record transient events and stock the data for later processing including printing, archiving, and analysis. The recorded data can also be transferred to other media devices for permanent storage and/or analysis. Generally, digital storage oscilloscopes do not display a signal’s level of intensity in real time. However, many of them are capable of analyzing four or more signals at the same time.

Digital Phosphor Oscilloscope

Another classification worth mentioning is the digital phosphor oscilloscope. Interestingly, this variety combines many of the benefits of analog oscilloscopes and digital storage oscilloscopes. They are used to capture and analyze high-speed digital signals that require higher sampling rates.

Mixed Domain Oscilloscopes

If you need to perform troubleshooting or other testing that requires time/signal correlation, you may want to consider the mixed domain oscilloscope. It combines a logic analyzer with an RF spectrum analyzer, allowing you to see signals in each domain.

Mixed Signal Oscilloscopes

This version combines the essence of the digital oscilloscope and with the logic analyzer. It can stimulate digital logic transitions while assisting analog events analysis.

Digital Sampling Oscilloscope

The last type of digital oscilloscope that we wanted to mention was the digital sampling oscilloscope. This version is noted for having a lower dynamic range and higher bandwidth.

Other Types of Oscilloscopes

Handheld oscilloscopes are small pieces of equipment that are essential for field testing applications. Nevertheless, with their small size, the sampling rate and bandwidth are limited.

Recently, computer-based oscilloscopes have also been emerging. They make use of external devices which are connected to a USB port of a computer. Among all the versions of oscilloscope, these generally offer the best sampling rates and increase of bandwidth.

What does an oscilloscope do?

An oscilloscope is an electronic test instrument that is used in a variety of fields. One of the most common uses for the oscilloscope is to test medical equipment. Medical oscilloscopes are usually called R&D oscilloscopes. Some oscilloscope uses include testing signals with high frequency ranges and collecting electromechanical measurements. They have the ability to measure digital signals i.e., TTL, ECL, logic levels, along with visual display of signal abnormalities. This type of instrument is generally considered a necessity for medical laboratories that assist in research and development procedures.

Another common use for this type of equipment in a laboratory is maintenance of laboratory equipment. The scope assists equipment operators in calibrating lab equipment and ensuring that it is functioning properly. Laboratory equipment doesn’t provide the most accurate results if all the internal components of the equipment aren’t operating at their optimum levels. Scopes help researchers determine whether their equipment is emitting the best frequencies and signals for their lab work.

What is the importance of an oscilloscope?

In the medical field especially, it is essential that your laboratory instruments are kept up to the latest quality standards. If they aren’t and readings prove to be inaccurate because your lab equipment wasn’t properly calibrated, then your laboratory could be subject to lawsuits and other negative legal actions and penalties. Therefore, ensuring that all your medical equipment is compliant with the latest industry quality put into place is of the utmost importance.

When oscilloscopes are used to calibrate your equipment, it is essential that the company that performed the calibration services gives you a detailed report containing the condition of the instrument that was calibrated, the work that was performed on the instrument, a report of the calibration, and a sticker to place on the equipment with the date that the services were rendered. Different types of equipment are required to be calibrated in different time intervals, so you always want to make sure that your lab equipment is calibrated within the time frame that it is supposed to be.

What are the different types of oscilloscopes?

There are many different types of oscilloscopes available on the market, some of which include digitizers, dual-trace, signal analyzers, digital storages and many others. The type of scope that needs to be used on your equipment can best be determined by the company performing the calibration services for you. Their professionals have the intricate skills and knowledge of various types of laboratory equipment to determine which scopes would best analyze your particular type of equipment.

Any time your laboratory equipment is malfunctioning, scopes can be used to troubleshoot the devices to determine just what’s wrong with them. A skilled technician can read the information output provided by the scope to determine exactly what failed in an electronic component. This aids greatly in repairing electronic devices like laboratory equipment by pinpointing specific problems with the equipment that would have otherwise been non-discoverable by the human senses. Scopes are arguably ones of the most useful tools in the medical laboratory industry.

In many professional environments, there is a need to invest in the right testing equipment to complete specific tasks. More than that, it is necessary to keep this equipment in excellent condition so that it can provide reliable and accurate results on a regular basis. An oscilloscope is a type of testing equipment that has multiple applications, and you may have one or more in your facility that is leased or owned. By learning more about what this type of equipment does and how it needs to be maintained, you may be ready to schedule calibration service in the near future.

What Is An Oscilloscope

An oscilloscope is a type of electronic testing equipment that is designed to measure and display different voltage signals over time. In some cases, sound or vibration signals are converted to voltage signals and are displayed through the equipment. The equipment may be used in a wide range of industries, from automotive to healthcare, such as with an electrocardiogram. The equipment is available as basic or general purpose equipment, but there are also highly sophisticated machines available for sale as well as for rental.

Reliable Results Through Testing

This type of equipment is designed to measure signals that occur too quickly or faintly for direct human observation. More than that, the results of the testing conducted by an oscilloscope may also need to be displayed over a longer period of time than human observation provides for, and this type of equipment can be used to give reliable results extensively. Because of the incredible sensitivity of the equipment as well as the importance of reliable results, oscilloscope calibration with professional calibration services is important from time to time.

Keeping Your Equipment in Shape and Up To Date

Professional calibration services are available to keep equipment in good shape. The equipment in your facility may perform a very specific function that is critical to your facility’s operations, and in some industries, there are specific regulatory standards that must be met. Equipment may need to be tested regularly to ensure that it is in compliance with specific standards that have been established. This type of equipment may require tuning and adjustment from time to time in order to keep it properly in line with regulations and standards. Depending on the type of equipment used and how much your facility uses it, your oscilloscope may need regular service several times a year or even more frequently.

It is important for you to learn more about the maintenance recommendations as well as the regulations in place for the testing equipment in your facility. Professional services can be used to help you comply with recommendations and requirements for oscilloscope calibration in your facility.