A probing matter
02 February 2010
The Handyprobe HP3 is a USB oscilloscope, spectrum analyser, voltmeter and data logger.
It has a differential input capable of measuring voltages from 200mV full scale up to 800V DC (566V AC), 10bit resolution, a high sampling rate of 100 MSamples per second, comtinuous streaming at 10MSamples per second and a record length of 1Msamples.
The high input range of the Handyprobe HP3 from TiePie engineering allows for measuring voltages from 200mV full scale up to 800V DC (566V AC) without the need of external attenuators or probes. Because of the Handyprobe HP3's differential input, measurements can be performed directly on the mains power or a motor driver without concerns about making a short circuit through the instrument’s ground. When measuring in communication bus systems there is no risk that the bus will be shorted by incorrectly connecting the instrument. With the Handyprobe HP3 there is never a risk of creating short circuits by making a wrong connection, which usually has severe consequences for the instrument and the device under test.
The 10bit resolution of the Handyprobe HP3 ensures a high measurement accuracy. The amplitude accuracy is 0.3% full scale, while other oscilloscopes usually have an accuracy of 2% to 3%. The high sampling rate of 100MSamples per second and long record length of 1MSamples make it possible to capture fast events with high accuracy.
Advanced driver technology makes it possible to continuously measure at a sustained rate of 10Msamples per second, making the Handyprobe HP3 the fastest data logging USB instrument in the world. The maximum measuring time is only limited by the available hard drive space.
Both input terminals of the Handyprobe HP3 differential input have a high impedance. There is no connection to ground as in conventional oscilloscopes which are used with coax cables and standard probes. The Handyprobe HP3 comes with a specially developed low noise differential measuring lead. It is highly insensitive to external interfering signals. The two ends can be placed up to two metres apart, while picking up very little interference. This is not possible with a conventional oscilloscope and standard probes of which the maximum distance between the tip and ground is usually limited to approximately 20cm. The measure lead for the Handyprobe HP3 does not have this limitation. Measuring between two distant points is no longer a problem. The measure lead consists of heat resistant silicone cable and shrouded banana plugs.
Typical applications for the Handyprobe HP3 with its high input range differential input are measuring in mains power systems, switch mode power supplies, power inverters, and serial communication busses such as CAN and Profibus. The high input range and the differential input make sure this can be done safely.
The Handyprobe HP3 comes with sophisticated measurement software that turns the HP3 into an oscilloscope, multimeter, spectrum analyser and transient recorder. The software provides for many real time processing operations, such as determining minimum or maximum values, limiting to specified range, averaging, filtering, applying gain and offset. Combining these mathematical processing blocks gives multiple possibilities in constructing complex mathematical operations. The results of these can be displayed in one or more graphs, or in numeric displays, and can be written to disk in various common formats.
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