The transformer Ratio Bridges are becoming increasingly popular and are being

used for a wide range of applications.This is on account of versatility and accuracy

of Ratio Transformers, which are used in the transformer ratio bridges.In
fact, transformer ratio bridgesare replacing the conventional ac bridges at a rapid
rate.In this, we will discuss transformer ratio bridge working principle.

A transformer ratio bridge consists of voltage transformer whose performance

approaches that of an ideal transformer.An ideal transformer is one that has no
resistance, no core loss and no leakage flux (i.e., there is perfect coupling between
the windings).The ratio transformer is provided with a number of tappings in order to
obtain voltage division.

Voltage appearing across the windings of a transformer is :

E = 4 Kf N φm f volt

where N = number of turns

φm = maximum value of flux ; Wb,

f = frequency ; Hz,

Kf = form sector ,(Its value is 1.11 for sinusoidal flux).

For a given value of K flux φm and frequency f,

E = K1N
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 Construction and Working principle of Transformer

Transformer Ratio Bridges Working Principle:

The below figure shows an autotransformer provided with tappings. Suppose an
alternating voltage E is applied across the winding.Assuming that
the autotransformer is ideal type, the division of applied voltage E into output
voltages E1 and E2 is :

E1 = E. N1/N and E2 = E. N2/N

 Different values of E1 and E2 may be had by changing the position of the wiper
on the tappings.

However, in practice, it is impossible to construct an ideal transformer. But

the ideals of zero winding resistance, zero core loss and perfect coupling can be closely
achieved if the design features similar to those for instrument transformers am
used.The material used for the construction of core should be such that it gives the
smallest core losses at the desired operating frequency.

The magnetizing current is reduced by using a Toroidal Core.The added

advantage of a toroidal core is that winding put on it has minimum leakage reactance
giving an almost perfect coupling.The leakage reactance can be reduced further by
using a special type of construction for the windings as shown in the below figure
of transformer ratio bridges.

This winding takes the form of a Multiconductor Rope.In order to obtain a

decade of voltage division, the multiconductor rope has ten wires with successive sets
of turns connected in series and a tapping is taken from each joint.

The resistance of the windings can be reduced by using copper wire of heavy
cross-section.A 4-decade ratio transformer is shown.The successive decades are
obtained by using an arrangement similar to that in a Kelvin Varley
slide.This transformer arrangement gives a ratio error of less than 1 part in 10⁴.

title="transformer-ratio-bridges-working-principle-measurement-of-resistance" width="320"> Must

Read:

 Ideal Transformer | Elementary Theory of an Ideal Transformer

Applications of Ratio Transformers:
The ratio transformers can be used for :

(i) Measurement of resistance capacitance and inductance in comparison with

standard resistance, standard capacitance and standard inductance respectively,

(ii) Measurement of amplifier gain and phase shift, and

(iii) Measurement of transformer ratios.

Features of Ratio Transformers :

The ratio transformers have the following features :

(i) They can be used on a.c. only.

(ii) They have very small ratio errors.

(iii) They have a wide frequency range extending from 50 Hz to 50 kHz.

(iv) They have high input impedance and low input impedance.Thus the loading effects
in them are small.

Measurement of Resistance By Transformer Ratio Bridges:

The circuit used for measurement of an unknown resistance, R, in comparison
with a standard resistance, Rs is shown in the below figure.The position of the wiper
is adjusted till the detector D shows null.(The detectors used are the same as for
conventional ac bridges).

Measurement of Resistance By Transformer Ratio Bridges

Under balance conditions, the current through the detector is zero i.e., I 1 = 12.

A circuit used for measurement of low resistance is shown in the below figure.This
circuit is similar to that of Kelvin's double bridge.

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By using two transformers a form of Kelvin's double bridge for measurement of
low resistances may be devised as shown in the below figure, where

If the impedances of leads i.e., Z1, Z2, Z3, Z4, and Z5 are small and the
resistances R and Rs are of the same order, the unknown resistance is given
by:
R = (N1/N2)Rs

This form of Kelvin's bridge can, of course, only be used on ac but by plotting the
values R against frequency, an extrapolation may be used to find the dc value of R
with an accuracy of a few parts in a million.
How Does a NULL DECTORS Circuit Work?
To review, the bridge circuit works as a pair of two-component voltage
dividers connected across the same source voltage, with a null-detector meter
movement connected between them to indicate a condition of “balance” at zero
volts:

A balanced bridge shows a “null”, or minimum reading, on

the indicator.

Anyone of the four resistors in the above bridge can be the resistor of unknown
value, and its value can be determined by a ratio of the other three, which are
“calibrated,” or whose resistances are known to a precise degree. When the bridge
is in a balanced condition (zero voltage as indicated by the null detector), the ratio
works out to be this:
In a condition of balance:

One of the advantages of using a bridge circuit to measure resistance is that the
voltage of the power source is irrelevant. Practically speaking, the higher the
supply voltage, the easier it is to detect a condition of imbalance between the four
resistors with the null detector, and thus the more sensitive it will be. A greater
supply voltage leads to the possibility of increased measurement precision.
However, there will be no fundamental error introduced as a result of a lesser or
greater power supply voltage unlike other types of resistance measurement
schemes.

Impedance Bridge
Impedance bridges work the same, only the balance equation is
with complex quantities, as both magnitude and phase across the components of
the two dividers must be equal in order for the null detector to indicate “zero.” The
null detector, of course, must be a device capable of detecting very small AC
voltages. An oscilloscope is often used for this, although very sensitive
electromechanical meter movements and even headphones (small speakers) may
be used if the source frequency is within audio range.

Null Detector for AC

One way to maximize the effectiveness of audio headphones as a null detector is
to connect them to the signal source through an impedance-matching transformer.
Headphone speakers are typically low-impedance units (8 Ω), requiring substantial
current to drive, and so a step-down transformer helps “match” low-current signals
to the impedance of the headphone speakers. An audio output transformer works
well for this purpose: (Figure below)

“Modern” low-Ohm headphones require an impedance matching transformer for use as a sensitive
null detector.

Using a pair of headphones that completely surround the ears (the “closed-cup”
type), I’ve been able to detect currents of less than 0.1 µA with this simple detector
circuit. The roughly equal performance was obtained using two different step-down
transformers: a small power transformer (120/6 volt ratio), and an audio output
transformer (1000:8 ohm impedance ratio). With the pushbutton switch in place to
interrupt current, this circuit is used for detecting signals from DC to over 2 MHz:
even if the frequency is far above or below the audio range, a “click” will be heard
from the headphones each time the switch is pressed and released.
Connected to a resistive bridge, the whole circuit looks like the figure below.
Bridge with sensitive AC null detector.

Listening to the headphones as one or more of the resistor “arms” of the bridge is
adjusted, a condition of balance will be realized when the headphones fail to
produce “clicks” (or tones, if the bridge’s power source frequency is within audio
range) as the switch is actuated.
When describing general AC bridges, where impedances and not just resistances
must be in the proper ratio for balance, it is sometimes helpful to draw the
respective bridge legs in the form of box-shaped components, each one with a
certain impedance: (Figure below)

Generalized AC impedance bridge: Z = nonspecific

complex impedance.

For this general form of the AC bridge to balance, the impedance ratios of each
branch must be equal:
Again, it must be stressed that the impedance quantities in the above
equation must be complex, accounting for both magnitude and phase angle. It is
insufficient that the impedance magnitudes alone be balanced; without phase
angles in the balance as well, there will still be the voltage across the terminals of
the null detector and the bridge will not be balanced.
Bridge circuits can be constructed to measure just about any device value desired,
be it capacitance, inductance, resistance, or even “Q.” As always in bridge
measurement circuits, the unknown quantity is always “balanced” against a known
standard, obtained from a high-quality, calibrated component that can be adjusted
in value until the null detector device indicates a condition of balance. Depending
on how the bridge is set up, the unknown component’s value may be determined
directly from the setting of the calibrated standard or derived from that standard
through a mathematical formula.

Example of Bridge Circuits

A couple of simple bridge circuits are shown below, one for inductance (Figure
below) and one for capacitance:

Symmetrical bridge measures unknown inductor by

comparison to a standard inductor.

Symmetrical bridge measures unknown capacitor by comparison to a standard capacitor.

Simple “symmetrical” bridges such as these are so named because they exhibit
symmetry (mirror-image similarity) from left to right. The two bridge circuits shown

above are balanced by adjusting the

calibrated reactive component (Ls or Cs). They are a bit simplified from their real-
life counterparts, as practical symmetrical bridge circuits often have a calibrated,
variable resistor in series or parallel with the reactive component to balance out
stray resistance in the unknown component. But, in the hypothetical world of
perfect components, these simple bridge circuits do just fine to illustrate the basic
concept.

Wien Bridge
An example of a little extra complexity added to compensate for real-world effects
can be found in the so-called Wien bridge, which uses a parallel capacitor-
resistor standard impedance to balance out an unknownseries capacitor-
resistor combination. (Figure below) All capacitors have some amount of internal
resistance, be it literal or equivalent (in the form of dielectric heating losses) which
tend to spoil their otherwise perfectly reactive natures. This internal resistance may
be of interest to measure, and so the Wien bridge attempts to do so by providing a
balancing impedance that isn’t “pure” either:

Wein Bridge measures both capacitive Cx

and resistive Rx components of “real” capacitor.

Being that there are two standard components to be adjusted (a resistor and
a capacitor) this bridge will take a little more time to balance than the others we’ve
seen so far. The combined effect of Rs and Cs is to alter the magnitude and phase
angle until the bridge achieves a condition of balance. Once that balance is
achieved, the settings of Rs and Cs can be read from their calibrated knobs, the
parallel impedance of the two determined mathematically, and the unknown
capacitance and resistance determined mathematically from the balance equation
(Z1/Z2 = Z3/Z4).
It is assumed in the operation of the Wien bridge that the standard capacitor has
negligible internal resistance, or at least that resistance is already known so that it
can be factored into the balance equation. Wien bridges are useful for determining
the values of “lossy” capacitor designs like electrolytics, where the internal
resistance is relatively high. They are also used as frequency meters because the
balance of the bridge is frequency-dependent. When used in this fashion, the
capacitors are made fixed (and usually of equal value) and the top two resistors
are made variable and are adjusted by means of the same knob.
An interesting variation on this theme is found in the next bridge circuit, used to
precisely measure inductances.

Maxwell-Wein Bridge

Maxwell-Wein bridge measures an inductor in terms of a

capacitor standard.

This ingenious bridge circuit is known as the Maxwell-Wien bridge (sometimes

known plainly as the Maxwell bridge) and is used to measure unknown
inductances in terms of calibrated resistance and capacitance. (Figure above)
Calibration-grade inductors are more difficult to manufacture than capacitors of
similar precision, and so the use of a simple “symmetrical” inductance bridge is not
always practical. Because the phase shifts of inductors and capacitors are exactly
opposite each other, a capacitive impedance can balance out an inductive
impedance if they are located in opposite legs of a bridge, as they are here.
Another advantage of using a Maxwell bridge to measure inductance rather than a
symmetrical inductance bridge is the elimination of measurement error due to
mutual inductance between two inductors. Magnetic fields can be difficult to shield,
and even a small amount of coupling between coils in a bridge can introduce
substantial errors in certain conditions. With no second inductor to react within the
Maxwell bridge, this problem is eliminated.
For the easiest operation, the standard capacitor (Cs) and the resistor in parallel
with it (Rs) are made variable, and both must be adjusted to achieve balance.
However, the bridge can be made to work if the capacitor is fixed (non-variable)
and more than one resistor made variable (at least the resistor in parallel with the
capacitor, and one of the other two). However, in the latter configuration, it takes
more trial-and-error adjustment to achieve balance, as the different variable
resistors interact in balancing magnitude and phase.
Unlike the plain Wien bridge, the balance of the Maxwell-Wien bridge is
independent of source frequency, and in some cases, this bridge can be made to
balance in the presence of mixed frequencies from the AC voltage source, the
limiting factor being the inductor’s stability over a wide frequency range.
There are more variations beyond these designs, but a full discussion is not
warranted here. General-purpose impedance bridge circuits are manufactured
which can be switched into more than one configuration for maximum flexibility of
use.
A potential problem in sensitive AC bridge circuits is that of stray capacitance
between either end of the null detector unit and ground (earth) potential. Because
capacitances can “conduct” alternating current by charging and discharging, they
form stray current paths to the AC voltage source which may affect bridge balance:

Stray capacitance to the ground may introduce

errors into the bridge.

While reed-type meters are imprecise, their operational principle is not. In lieu of
mechanical resonance, we may substitute electrical resonance and design a
frequency meter using an inductor and capacitor in the form of a tank circuit
(parallel inductor and capacitor). One or both components are made adjustable,
and a meter is placed in the circuit to indicate the maximum amplitude of the
voltage across the two components. The adjustment knob(s) are calibrated to
show resonant frequency for any given setting, and the frequency is read from
them after the device has been adjusted for the maximum indication on the meter.
Essentially, this is a tunable filter circuit which is adjusted and then read in a
manner similar to a bridge circuit (which must be balanced for a “null” condition
and then read). The problem is worsened if the AC voltage source is firmly
grounded at one end, the total stray impedance for leakage currents made far less
and any leakage currents through these stray capacitances made greater as a
result:
 Stray capacitance errors are more severe
if one side of the AC supply is grounded.

Wagner Ground
One way of greatly reducing this effect is to keep the null detector at ground
potential, so there will be no AC voltage between it and the ground, and thus no
current through stray capacitances. However, directly connecting the null detector
to the ground is not an option, as it would create a direct current path for stray
currents, which would be worse than any capacitive path. Instead, a
special voltage divider circuit called a Wagner ground or Wagner earth may be
used to maintain the null detector at ground potential without the need for a direct
connection to the null detector. (Figure below)

Wagner ground for AC supply

minimizes the effects of stray capacitance to the ground on the bridge.

The Wagner earth circuit is nothing more than a voltage divider, designed to have
the voltage ratio andphase shift as each side of the bridge. Because the midpoint
of the Wagner divider is directly grounded, any other divider circuit (including either
side of the bridge) having the same voltage proportions and phases as the Wagner
divider, and powered by the same AC voltage source, will be at ground potential
as well. Thus, the Wagner earth divider forces the null detector to be at ground
potential, without a direct connection between the detector and ground.
There is often a provision made in the null detector connection to confirm the
proper setting of the Wagner earth divider circuit: a two-position switch, (Figure
below) so that one end of the null detector may be connected to either the bridge
or the Wagner earth. When the null detector registers zero signal in both switch
positions, the bridge is not only guaranteed to be balanced, but the null detector is
also guaranteed to be at zero potential with respect to ground, thus eliminating any
errors due to leakage currents through stray detector-to-ground capacitances:

The switch-up position allows

adjustment of the Wagner ground.

REVIEW:

 • AC bridge circuits work on the same basic principle as DC bridge circuits: that a
balanced ratio of impedances (rather than resistances) will result in a “balanced”
condition as indicated by the null-detector device.
 • Null detectors for AC bridges may be sensitive electromechanical meter
movements, oscilloscopes (CRT’s), headphones (amplified or unamplified), or any
other device capable of registering very small AC voltage levels. Like DC null
detectors, its only required point of calibration accuracy is at zero.
 • AC bridge circuits can be of the “symmetrical” type where an unknown impedance
is balanced by a standard impedance of similar type on the same side (top or bottom)
of the bridge. Or, they can be “nonsymmetrical,” using parallel impedances to
balance series impedances, or even capacitances balancing out inductances.
 • AC bridge circuits often have more than one adjustment, since both impedance
magnitude and phase angle must be properly matched to balance.
 • Some impedance bridge circuits are frequency-sensitive while others are not. The
frequency-sensitive types may be used as frequency measurement devices if all
component values are accurately known.
 • A Wagner earth or Wagner ground is a voltage divider circuit added to AC bridges
to help reduce errors due to stray capacitance coupling the null detector to ground.