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Reference
Measurement System
There are various ways to measure properties of waveforms. You can use
graticule, cursor, or automatic measurements. This section describes
auto-
matic measurements
; cursors and graticules are described elsewhere. (See
Cursor Measurements
on page 3-17 and
Measurements
on page 2-30.)
Automatic measurements are generally more accurate and quicker than, for
example, manually counting graticule divisions. The oscilloscope will continu-
ously update and display these measurements. (There is also a way to dis-
play all the measurements at once — see
Snapshot of Measurements
on
page 3-95.)
Automatic measurements calculate waveform parameters from acquired data.
Measurements are performed over the entire waveform record or the region
specified by the vertical cursors, if gated measurements have been re-
quested. (See page 3-91 for a discussion of gated measurements.) They are
not performed just on the displayed portions of waveforms.
The TDS 600A Digitizing Oscilloscope provides you with 25 automatic mea-
surements (see Table 3-5).
The following are brief definitions of the automated measurements in the
digitizing oscilloscope (for more details see
Appendix C: Algorithms,
page A-9).
Table 3-5: Measurement Definitions
Name Definition
Amplitude Voltage measurement. The high value less the low value measured over the
entire waveform or gated region.
Amplitude = High – Low
Area Voltage over time measurement. The area over the entire waveform or gated
region in volt-seconds. Area measured above ground is positive; area below
ground is negative.
Cycle Area Voltage over time measurement. The area over the first cycle in the waveform,
or the first cycle in the gated region, in volt-seconds. Area measured above
ground is positive; area below ground is negative.
Burst Width Timing measurement. The duration of a burst. Measured over the entire wave-
form or gated region.
Cycle Mean Voltage measurement. The arithmetic mean over the first cycle in the waveform
or the first cycle in the gated region.
Cycle RMS Voltage measurement. The true Root Mean Square voltage over the first cycle
in the waveform or the first cycle in the gated region.
Definitions