Digital Ammeters

Digital ammeters are instruments that measure current flow in amperes and display current levels on a digital display. These devices provide information about current draw and current continuity in order to help users troubleshoot erratic loads and trends. They have both positive and negative leads and feature extremely low internal resistance. Digital ammeters are connected in series with a circuit (and never parallel) so that current flow passes through the meter. High current flow may indicate a short circuit, unintentional ground, or defective component. Low current flow may indicate high resistance or poor current flow within the circuit.

Digital ammeters can measure levels of alternating current (AC) and direct current (DC). Some devices that measure AC current also measure root mean square (RMS) power, which is the square root of the time average of the square of the instantaneous power. Many digital ammeters include a current sensor built into the meter or that clamps around the wire. Different types of digital ammeters can measure different ranges of AC current, DC current, and AC current frequency. Some devices are handheld and portable, while others are designed for benchtop or shop floor use. Battery-powered digital ammeters can be operated without plug-in power and are often suitable for outdoor use. 

Many digital ammeters provide special measurement types or advanced options or features. Some digital ammeters can test diodes or transistors. Others can monitor thermocouples or resistance temperature detector (RTD) values. Programmable digital ammeters provide internal data storage, allow users to establish activation triggers, and interface with computer hardware and software. External storage devices such as disc drives are available. In terms of advanced options, digital ammeters can adjust sampling rates automatically, display status information as a bar graph, and measure decibel readings. Output options include general purpose interface bus (GPIB), binary coded decimal (BCD), digital to analog (D/A), IEEE 488, and RS232.

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Part Numbers for Digital Ammeters