Distortion Meter

Distortion meter
What is harmonics
• Harmonic distortion is the distortion in our signal that is
produced by the additional frequencies generated in the
signal.
• These frequencies are nothing but multiples of the original
frequency of our signal.
• Harmonic distortion occurs in sound waves
• It also occurs in electrical signals, that is, when a current is
passing through a circuit, it can induce vibrations in the
circuit and the vibrations produced would obviously be
some multiple of the current signal frequency.
• Hence these vibrations can cause distortion in our original
signal. This distortion in current can lead to many problems
like voltage fluctuation etc.
DISTORTION ANALYZERS
• The extent to which the output waveform of an- amplifier
differs from the waveform at the input is a measure of the
distortion introduced by the inherent nonlinear
characteristics of active devices such as bipolar or field-effect
transistors or by passive circuit components. The amount of
distortion can be measured with a distortion analyzer.
• In addition, most testing situations require a better
quantitative measure of harmonic distortion. Harmonic
distortion can be quantitatively measured very accurately
with a harmonic distortion analyzer, which is generally
referred to simply as a distortion analyzer.
• When an amplifier is not operating in a linear
fashion, the output signal will be distorted.
Distortion caused by nonlinear operation is called
amplitude distortion or harmonic distortion. It can
be shown mathematically that an amplitude-
distorted sine wave is made up of pure sine-wave
components including the fundamental frequency
f of the input signal and harmonic multiples of the
fundamental frequency, 2f, 3f, 4f . . . , and so on.
• The total harmonic distortion (THD). which
is frequently expressed as a percentage, is
defined as the ratio of the rms value of all
the harmonics to the rms value of the
fundamental, or
(harmonics) 2
THD 
fundamental
• This defining equation is somewhat
inconvenient from the standpoint of
measurement. An alternative working
equation expresses total harmonic
distortion as the ratio of the rms value of
all the harmonics to the rms value of the
total signal including distortion. That is,
(harmonics) 2
THD 
( funsamental ) 2  (harmonics) 2
On the basis of the assumption that any
distortion caused by the components within the
analyzer itself or by the oscillator signal are small
enough to be neglected. Eq. 2 can be expressed
as
2 2 2
THD 
E E
2 3
 ...  E n
Ef
where
THD = the total harmonic distortion
Ef = the amplitude of the fundamental frequency including the harmonics
E2E3En = the amplitude of the individual harmonics
THD = E(harmonics) fundamental

• EXAMPLE 1:
Compute the total harmonic distortion of
a signal that contains a fundamental
signal with an rms value of 10 V, a second
harmonic with an rms value of 3 V, a third
harmonic with an rms value of 1.5 V, and
a fourth harmonic with an rms value of
0.6 V.
• SOLUTION:
Using Eq. 3, we compute the total harmonic
distortion as THD  3  1.5  0.6
2 2 2
10
11 .6
  34.07%
10
Types of distortion analyzers
• There are several types of distortion
analyzers:
• Fundamental suppression
• Heterodyne type
• Tuned circuit
• Spectrum analyzer
Fundamental Suppression Distortion Analyzer
Principles of operation
• This type of THD analyzer filters out the fundamental frequency of a signal with
a notch filter, leaving only distortion products plus noise; the ratio of this remnant to
the signal amplitude is the THD.
• A fundamental suppression analyzer consists of three main sections: input section
with impedance matcher, a notch filter and amplifier section, and an
output metering circuit. Negative feedback from the bridge amplifier to the pre-amp
section may be applied to enable the rejection circuit to work more accurately.
• Working of a typical unit[
• The input is impedance-matched with the rejection circuit with the help of
an attenuator and an impedance matcher. This signal is then pre-amplified to a
desired level.
• The following section consists of a Wien bridge notch filter tuned to reject the
fundamental frequency and balanced for minimum output by adjusting the bridge
controls. The output, which is the remaining signal after the fundamental has been
suppressed, is amplified to a measurable level.
• A feedback loop from the bridge amplifier output to the pre-amp input helps to
eliminate any remaining contribution from the fundamental frequency. The output
from these blocks is measured, typically using an instrumentation amplifier driving
an analog or digital meter. The voltage at the meter is due to the harmonic distortion
products plus noise.
Harmonic Distortion analyzers
Fig.2a and Fig2b

• Fig2a is a harmonic distortion analyzer
used to measure THD.The signal source has
very low distortion and this can be checked
by reading its output distortion by
connecting directly in to the analyzer
• The signal from the source is fed in to the
amplifier under test. This generates
harmonics and the original fundamental
frequency. The fundamental frequency is
removed by the notch filter
• The switch SW is first placed in position 1
and the total content of fundamental and
harmonics is measured.
• Then the switch is moved to position 2 to
measure just the harmonics . The value of
THD is
THD= EH/ET*100
• Fig.2b shows an alternative arrangement,
where the values of Et and Eh are read
simultaneously and their ratio calculated
and displayed as THD on the indicator.
• For good accuracy the notch filter must
have excellent rejection and high pass
characteristics
• Switch S, is then set to the "distortion"
position, the rejection f:1ter is turned to
the fundamental frequency, and the
attenuator is adjusted for a maximum
reading on the voltmeter.
• Harmonic distortion[edit]
• Harmonic distortion is equivalent to adding harmonics to a signal. When a purely sinusoidal signal is in this
way, a series of harmonics is superimposed on the original signal, and can be detected with suitable
equipment.
• If the input is
• {\displaystyle {f_{i}}=a_{1}\cdot sin(\omega t)}The normalized output is
• {\displaystyle {f_{o}}=a_{1}\cdot sin(\omega t)+a_{2}\cdot sin(2\omega t)+a_{3}\cdot sin(3\omega t)+..}The
value of Total Harmonics Distortion (THD) is defined as the ratio of the harmonics to the fundamental; [1] i.e.,
• {\displaystyle THD={\frac {\sqrt {{a_{2}}^{2}+{a_{3}}^{2}+..}}{a_{1}}}}This ratio can be given in dB or in
percentage.
• The instrument[edit]
• A distortionmeter is actually a levelmeter with two switchable parallel circuits at the input. The first circuit
measures the total signal at the output of a system. (For low distortion levels this will be almost equal to
fundamental). That value is adjusted to read 100% or, equivalently, to 0 dB. The second circuit is a filter which
removes (as much as practical) the fundamental frequency. This can be a notch filter, one which passes all but
the fundamental, with negligible attenuation at other frequencies (including whatever harmonics might be
present). Alternatively, if the distortion products are at higher frequencies, a highpass filter can be used if its
cutoff rate is sufficiently steep to not affect the expected distortion products. The output of the filter is
measured as a percentage of the fundamental, and the reported value will be the distortion value.
Applications
• A typical application is to determine the THD of an
amplifier by using a very-low-distortion sinewave
input and examining the output. The figure
measured will include noise, and any contribution
from imperfect filtering out of the fundamental
frequency. Harmonic-by-harmonic measurement,
without wideband noise, can be measured by a
more complex wave analyser.
• Another application is measurement of the
effectiveness of an electronic filter with extremely
narrow pass band, such as a notch filter in
a parametric equalizer.
Applications
• Distortion meters are being widely used now a days
especially in music industry. To make the sound more
pleasing and musical, many frequencies are eliminated and
some are enhanced as well. For eliminating the unwanted
frequencies we use a distortion meter.
• Distortion meters also find extensive uses in electrical
circuits now a days. As mentioned earlier they are used to
eliminate the distortions in the currents and voltages
which can also prove fatal in some cases.
•
•
• Many advance electrical machines use
distortion meters to compensate for the
current distortions so that the expensive
appliance can be saved from damage due to
these distortions.
Thank you

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What is harmonic distortion?

What is a distortion analyzer used for?

Distortion meter

Fig.2a and Fig2b

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