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CHAPTER-5
MEASUREMENT OF SPEED, FREQUENCY& POWER FACTOR
MEASUREMENT OF SPEED
TACHOMETERS
The instruments which are used to measure the angular speed is Tachometer which may be
electrical or mechanical.
ELECTRICAL- (These are preferred over mechanical as these offer all advantages associated
with electrical transducers.)
1) Electromagnetic Tachometer generator
i. DC Tachometer generator
ii. AC Tachometer generator
1) DC Tachometer Generator

• It consists of a small armature coupled to the machine whose speed is to be measured.

When armature revolves in the field of a permanent magnet, EMF generated is
proportional to flux and speed.
• As the flux of the permanent magnet is constant the voltage generated is proportional to
speed. The polarity of output voltage indicates the direction of rotation. This EMF is
measured with the help of a moving coil voltmeter having a uniform scale and calibrated
in terms of speed.
Advantages
1. The direction of rotation is directly indicated by polarity of the output voltage.
2. The output voltage is typically 10 mV/rpm and can be measured with conventional type
DC voltmeter.
Disadvantages
1) Brushes require maintenance.
2) Input resistance of ammeter should be very high as compared to the output resistance of
generator.
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2i) AC Tachometer Generator

• The tachometer generator has rotating magnet which may be either a permanent magnet
or an electromagnet. The coil is on the stator and therefore problems associated with
commutator are absent. The rotation of the magnet causes an EMF to be induced in the
stator coil.
• The amplitude and frequency of this EMF are both proportional to the speed of rotation.
Thus the amplitude or frequency of induced voltage may be used as a measure of
rotational speed. When amplitude of induced voltage is used as a measure of speed the
output voltage of AC tachometer generator is rectified and is measured with a permanent
magnet moving coil instrument.
Limitations
1) Difficult to smooth out ripples in the output voltage wave and so these Tachometer
generators have a large number of poles so that the frequency of output voltage is high
even at low speeds.
2) High speed increases the impedance of the coils.
2ii) Drag Cup Rotor AC Tachogenerator
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In this case two stator field windings are mounted at right angles to each other i.e. they are in
space quadrature with each other. The windings are:
1) Reference winding
2) Quadrature winding
The Tachometer rotor is a thin aluminium cup called drag cup having low inertia and is highly
conductive which rotates in the air gap. When an AC voltage is applied to the reference winding
a reference flux produced links with the rotor cup which produces a quadrature flux and a
transformer EMF will be induced in quadrature coil. This EMF is proportional to the rotor speed
and is in phase with the voltage applied to reference coil.
Advantages
1) Have good arrangement which helps in finding out the direction of the applied speed with
the help of phase sensitive demodulator.
2) Linear relationship between output voltage and speed is obtained at low speeds.
3) Rugged and inexpensive drag cup rotors.
4) Ripple free output.
DIGITAL METHODS
1)Photoelectric Tachometer

• The tachometer consists of a disc which has a number of equidistant holes on its
periphery. At one side of the disc a light source is fixed and at the other side of disc, a
light sensor such as a photo tube or some photosensitive semiconductor device is placed
on line with the light source.
• When the opaque portion of the disc is between the light source and the light sensor, the
sensor is not illuminated and so produces no output .But when a hole appears between the
two, the light falling upon the sensor produces an output pulse.
• The frequency at which these pulses are produced depends upon the number of holes in
the disc and its speed of rotation. Since the number of holes is fixed, the pulse rate is a
function of speed of rotation. This pulse rate can be measured by an electronic counter.
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2)Toothed Rotor Variable Reluctance Tachometer

• The magnetic pickup consists of a housing containing a small magnet with a coil and
wound round it. When the rotor rotates, the reluctance of the air gap between pickup and
the toothed rotor changes giving rise to an induced EMF in the pickup coil. This output is
in form of pulses with a variety of wave shapes.
• The frequency of the pulses of induced voltage will depend upon the number of teeth.
The speed of rotation can be determined by measuring the frequency of pulses with an
electronic counter. Suppose the rotor has ‘T’ teeth, the speed of rotation is ‘n’ rps and
number of pulses per second is ‘P’,
Then the number of pulses per Revolution = T
pulses per second P P
So the speed n= = rps = x 60 rpm
number of teeth T T

• A typical rotor has 63 teeth. So if the counter counts the pulses in one second, the counter
will directly display the speed in RPM. Therefore it is simple, maintenance free, easy to
calibrate, and information from this device can be easily transmitted.
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MEASUREMENT OF POWER FACTOR

Single Phase Electrodynamometer

• Consists of a fixed coil which acts as the current coil. This coil is split up into two parts
and carries the current of the circuit under test. Therefore the magnetic field produced by
this coil is proportional to the main current ‘I’. Two identical pressure coils A and B
pivoted on a spindle constitute the moving system pressure coil ‘A’ has a non inductive
resistance ‘R’ connected in series with it and coil B has a highly inductive choke coil L
connected in series with it. The two coils are connected across the voltage of the circuit.
• R and L so adjusted that the two coils carry the same value of current of normal
frequency i.e. R= ωL. The current through coil B (Ib) lags current through coil A (Ia) by
an angle nearly equal to 90°. The angle between the planes of the coils is also made equal
to Δ is equal to 90° .There is no controlling device. Connections to moving coil are made
through thin silver or gold ligaments which are extremely flexible and thus give a
minimum control effect on the moving system.
Assumptions

i. Ib lags Ia exactly by 90°.

ii. Δ between planes of coils is exactly 90°.
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• Now there will be two deflecting torques one acting on coil A and other on coil B. The
coil windings are so arranged that torques due to two coils are opposite in direction.
Therefore the pointer will take up a position where these two torques are equal.

Torque (Deflecting) in coil A=Ta=KVIMmaxcosФsinθ

Where θ is angular deflection from the plane of reference.
Ф is phase angle of the circuit.
Mmax is maximum value of inductance between the two coils.
V is supply voltage, I is main current.
Torque (Deflecting) in coil B=Tb=KVIMmaxcos (90-Ф)sin(90+θ)
= KVIMmaxsinФcosθ

If Ta is in clockwise direction and this torque Tb acts in the anticlockwise direction. The value of
Mmax is same in two expressions, going to similar constructions of the coils.
The coils will take up such a position that the torques are equal.
Ta= Tb (Hence at equilibrium position.)
So, KVIMmaxcosФsinθ = KVIMmaxsinФcosθ;
This implies θ = Ф.

So the deflection of the instrument is a measure of angle of the circuit. The scale of the
instrument can be calibrated in directly in terms of power factor. The instrument must be
designed for and calibrated at the frequency of the supply on which it is to be used. In case the
meter is used for any other frequency or if supply contains harmonics it will give rise to serious
errors in the indication on account change in the value of reactance of choke coil.
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Three Phase Electrodynamometer Power Factor Meter

The two moving coils are so placed that the angle between their planes is 1200 .They are
connected across two different phase angles of the supply circuit. Each coil has series resistance.
There is no necessity for phase splitting by artificial means since the required field displacement
between currents Ia and Ib in the two moving coils can be obtained from the supply itself.
If V12,-Voltage across A coil, V13 -Voltage across B coil
Both Ia and Ib are in phase with V12, V13 respectively as both circuits are resistive.
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θ is angular deflection from the plane of reference.

Ф is phase angle of the circuit.
If V1=V2=V3=V
Torque (Deflecting) in coil A=Ta=KV12IMmaxcos(30+Ф)sin(60+θ)
=√3 KVIMmaxcos(30+Ф)sin(60+θ);
Torque (Deflecting) in coil B=Tb=KV13IMmaxcos(30-Ф)sin(120+θ)
=√3 KVIMmaxcos(30-Ф)sin(120+θ)
Ta and Tb act in opposite directions till equilibrium position is attained.
cos(30+Ф)sin(60+θ)=cos(30-Ф)sin(120+θ);
Solving this θ = Ф.
The angular deflection of the pointer from the plane of reference is equal to the phase angle of
circuit to which meter is connected.
Advantages of Electrodynamic Type Power Factor Meters
1. Losses are less because of minimum use of iron parts and also give less error over a small
range of frequency as compared to moving iron type instruments.
2. They high torque is to weight ratio.

MEASUREMENT OF FREQUENCY
Frequency Meters
Mechanical Resonance Type Frequency Meter (Vibrating Reed Type)

• Construction-: This meter consists of a number of thin steel strips called reeds. These
reeds are placed in a row alongside and close to an electromagnet have a laminated iron
core and its coil is connected in series with a resistance, across the supply whose
frequency is to be measured.
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• The reeds are approximately 4 mm wide and 0.5 mm thick. All the reeds are not same as
per dimensions or they carry different weights or flags at their tops. The natural
frequency of vibration of the reeds depends upon their weights and dimensions. Since the
reeds have different weights and sizes, their natural frequencies of vibration are different.
The reeds are arranged in ascending order of natural frequency with the difference in
frequency is usually 0.5. Thus the natural frequency of first reed may be 47 Hz; of the
second is 47.5 Hz, the next 48 Hz and so on.
• Reeds are fixed at the bottom end and are free at the top end. Since the reeds on a
frequency meter are arranged to be viewed end on, they have a portion bent over at the
free and to serve as a flag. The flags are painted white to afford maximum contrast
against their black background.
• When the frequency meter is connected across the supply whose frequency is to be
measured the coil of electromagnet carries a current ‘i' which alternates at the supply
frequency. The force of attraction between the reeds and electromagnet is proportional to
i2 and therefore this force varies twice the supply frequency.
• Thus the force exerted on reed varies every half cycle. All the reeds will tend to vibrate
but the reed whose natural frequency is equal to twice the supply frequency will be in
resonance and will vibrate most. Normally the vibration of other reeds is so slight as to be
unobservable. The tuning in these meters is so sharp that as the excitation frequency
departs from the resonant frequency the amplitude of vibration decreases rapidly
becoming negligible for a frequency perhaps 1-2% away from resonance.
When 50 Hz reed is vibrating with maximum amplitude, it is shown in figure.
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Electrical Resonance Type Frequency Meters

Ferro-dynamic Type Frequency Meter

• It consists of a fixed coil which is connected across the supply whose frequency is to be
measured. This coil is called magnetizing coil which is mounted on a laminated iron core.
This core has a cross-section which gradually varies over the length, being maximum
near the end where the magnetizing coil is mounted and minimum at the other end.
• A pointer is attached to the moving coil. The terminals of the moving coil are connected
to a suitable capacitor ‘C’. There is no provision for a controlling force.
• In below diagram the operation is explained the magnetizing coil carries a current ‘I’ and
this produces flux ‘Ф’. If we neglect the resistance of the coil and iron losses in the core,
flux ‘Ф’ is in phase with current I.AC flux induces emf ‘E’ in moving coil which lags I by
90° . Due to this EMF induced, circulates a current Im in moving coil.
• The phase of this current Im depends upon the inductance ‘L’ of the moving coil and
capacitance ‘C’.
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In fig B.4(a) Moving coil is assumed to be inductive.

So, Torque on the moving coil= Td α Im cos (90+α).
In fig B.4(b) Moving coil is assumed to be largely capacitive.
So, Torque on the moving coil= Td α Im cos (90-β).
In fig B.4(c) Moving coil is assumed to be resistive.
So, Torque on the moving coil= Td α Im cos900 = 0. That means the deflecting torque on the
moving coil is zero if, XC = XL

• Coming to the actual operation the capacitive reactance XC is constant but the inductive
reactance XL of moving coil is not constant. The inductance of moving coil depends on
its position that it occupies on iron core. This I inductance is maximum when its position
is close to the magnetizing coil and minimum when it is at the other end.
• The value of ‘C’ is so chosen, that the moving coil occupies a convenient near position
on the iron core when frequency is at its normal value.
• If XL greater than XC as in figure B.4(a) the coil must move away from the magnetizing
coil to attain equilibrium position where XL equal to XC.
• If XC is greater than XL as in figure B.4 (b) the coil must move towards the magnetizing
coil to attain equilibrium position.

Electrodynamometer type frequency metre

• The fixed coil is divided into two parts 1 and 2, the two parts of coil form separate
resonant circuits.
• L1,C1,FC1 (fixed coil1)are in series forming a resonant circuit of frequency F1 slightly
below the lower end of instrument scale XL1>XC1
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• L2,C2,FC2 (fixed coil 2)are in series forming a resonant circuit of frequency F2 slightly
higher than the upper end of the instrument scale XL2<XC2
• The torque on the moving coil is directly proportional to the current through the moving
coil which is sum of the currents in the two parts of the fixed coil.
• For applied frequency within range FC1circuit operates above resonant frequency; FC2
circuit operates below the resonant frequency. The former circuit is Inductive and latter is
Capacitive.
• Therefore, the torques produced by currents i1 and i2 (in Moving Coil) act in opposition
on moving coil and resultant Torque is function of frequency of the applied voltage and
the metre scale can be calibrated in terms of frequency which spreads over an angle of
about 900 .The controlling torque is provided by a small iron when mounted on a moving
system.
• This type of metre used in power systems for monitoring the frequency.

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