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Flowmeter directory - Flow controllers terms Category: Electronics and Engineering > Industrial automation Date & country: 16/12/2007, UK Words: 713

CECC
Cenelec Electronic Components Committee.

Cell
An ATM packet that is 53 bytes in length with a 5 byte header and 48 byte payload.

CDMA
Code Division Multiple Access. Also known as spread spectrum, allowing several users to share a channel by allocating 'codes' that allow each one to distinguish between them, even though they use the same frequency bands at the same time.

Cation
A positively charged ion (Na+, H+).

Cavitation
The boiling of a liquid caused by a decrease in pressure rather than an increase in temperature.

Carrier System
A method of obtaining communications channels over a single communications link by multiplexing the channels together at the transmitting end and demultiplexing them at the receiving end.

Calorie
The quantity of thermal energy required to raise one gram of water 1°C at 15°C.

CAM
Computer Aided Manufacturing.

CAE
Computer Aided Engineering.

Calibration
The comparison of transducer voltage outputs against the outputs of a reference standard.

CAD
Computer Aided Design.

Cable Telephony
The practice of using digital communications techniques to provide enhanced home telephone service via the existing home cable-TV connections.

Byte
The representation of a character in binary. Eight bits in length.

Burst Proportioning
A fast-cycling output form on a time proportioning controller (typically adjustable from 2 to 4 seconds) used in conjunction with a solid state relay to prolong the life of heaters by minimizing thermal stress.

Bus Network
A network topology that uses a single communications link to connect three or more terminals. Also called a Multi-Drop Network.

Burst Pressure
The maximum pressure applied to a transducer sensing element or case without causing leakage.

Burn-In
A long term screening test (either vibration, temperature or combined test) that is effective in weeding out infant mortalities because it simulates actual or worst case operation of the device, accelerated through a time, power, and temperature relationship.

Buffer Capacity (B)
A measure of the ability of the solution to resist pH change when a strong acid or base is added.

Buffer Amplifier
A unity gain amplifier used to isolate the loading effect of one circuit from another. Buffer amplifiers are almost always used between the signal source and the input of a high-speed A/D convertor.

Buffer
1. A storage area for data that is used to compensate for a speed difference, when transferring data from one device to another. Usually refers to an area reserved for I/O operations, into which data is read, or from which data is written.2. Any substance or combination of substances which, when dissolved in water, produces a solution which resists…

Brouter
A device that performs the functions of both a bridge and a router.

BTU
British thermal units. The quantity of thermal energy required to raise one pound of water at its maximum density, 1 degree F. One BTU is equivalent to .293 watt hours, or 252 calories. One kilowatt hour is equivalent to 3412 BTU.

Broadcast
The process of sending a message from one station to all other stations on the network.

Bridge Resistance
The nominal value of the individual legs that make up a complete Wheatstone bridge.

Bridge
A Wheatstone bridge configuration utilizing four active strain gages.

BPS
Bits per second.

Breakdown Voltage Rating
The dc or ac voltage which can be applied across insulation portions of a transducer without arcing or conduction above a specific current value.

Boiling Point
The temperature at which a substance in the liquid phase transforms to the gaseous phase; commonly refers to the boiling point of water which is 100°C (212°F) at sea level.

BNC
A quick disconnect electrical connector used to inter-connect and/or terminate coaxial cables.

Bit Rate
The rate of transfer of information necessary to ensure satisfactory reproduction of the information at the receiver.

Blackbody
A theoretical object that radiates the maximum amount of energy at a given temperature, and absorbs all the energy incident upon it. A blackbody is not necessarily black. (The name blackbody was chosen because the color black is defined as the total absorption of light energy.)

Bit
Acronym for binary digit. The smallest unit of computer information, it is either a binary 0 or 1.

Bipolar
The ability of a panel meter to display both positive and negative readings.

BIOS
Acronym for basic input/output system. The commands used to tell a CPU how it will communicate with the rest of the computer.

Binary Coded Decimal (BCD)
The representation of a decimal number (base 10, 0 through 9) by means of a 4 bit binary nibble.

Binary
Refers to base 2 numbering system, in which the only allowable digits are 0 and 1. Pertaining to a condition that has only two possible values or states.

Beta Ratio
The ratio of the diameter of a pipeline constriction to the unobstructed pipe diameter.

BIAS Current
A very low-level DC current generated by the panel meter and superimposed on the signal. This current may introduce a measurable offset across a very high source impedance.

Best Fit Straight Line (BFSL)
A line midway between two parallel straight lines enclosing all output vs. pressure values.

BCD, Serial
A digital data output format where every decimal digit is represented by binary signals on four lines and up to five decimal digits are presented sequentially. The total number of lines is four data lines plus one strobe line per digit.

BCD, Three-State
An implementation of parallel BCD, which has 0, 1 and high-impedance output states. The high-impedance state is used when the BCD output is not addressed in parallel connect applications.

BCD, Buffered
Binary-coded decimal output with output drivers, to increase line-drive capability.

BCD, Parallel
A digital data output format where every decimal digit is represented by binary signals on four lines and all digits are presented in parallel. The total number of lines is 4 times the number of decimal digits.

Baud Rate
The speed at which data is transmitted. Measured in symbols per second. This is not the same as bits-per-second since each symbol can carry several bits of information.

Baud
A unit of data transmission speed equal to the number of bits (or signal events) per second; 300 baud = 300 bits per second.

Basic Transportation Reference
The basic transportation section of the U.S. Government Test Specification MIL-STD-810D, Method 514.3, Paragraph I-3.2.1, Page 514.3-5. Basic transportation defines the test profiles that have been defined for equipment that is shipped as secured cargo; by land, by sea or by air. The test levels are based upon land transport stress levels because t…

Basic
A high-level programming language designed at Dartmouth College as a learning tool. Acronym for Beginner's All-purpose Symbolic Instruction Code.

Base Station
The central transmitter in a communications system that acts as the cell hub for communicating with handsets and/or mobile units.

Bandwidth
A symmetrical region around the set point in which proportional control occurs. In analog signals, the difference between a signal's lowest frequency component and its highest component as measured in Hz. The speed of a digital communications circuit in bits per second.

Backup
A system, device, file or facility that can be used as an alternative in case of a malfunction or loss of data.

AWG
American Wire Gage.

Axial Load
A load applied along or parallel to and concentric with the primary axis.

Automatic Reset
1. A feature on a limit controller that automatically resets the controller when the controlled temperature returns to within the limit bandwidth set. 2. The integral function on a PID controller which adjusts the proportional bandwidth with respect to the set point to compensate for droop in the circuit, i.e., adjusts the controlled temperature to…

Auto-Zero
An automatic internal correction for offsets and/or drift at zero voltage input.

Atomic Weight
The nominal atomic weight of an isotope is given by the sum of the number of neutrons and protons in each nucleus. The exact atomic weight differs fractionally from that whole number because neutrons are slightly heavier than protons and the mass of the nucleus is also affected by the binding energy.

ATC
Automatic Temperature Compensation.

Atomic Number (symbolized Z)
The number of protons in a nucleus. It determines the chemical properties of an element.

Asymmetry Potential
The potential developed across the glass membrane with identical solutions on both sides. Also a term used when comparing glass electrode potential in pH 7 buffer.

ASTM
American Society for Testing and Materials.

Assembly Language
A machine oriented language in which mnemonics are used to represent each machine language instruction. Each CPU has its own specific assembly language.

ASIC
Application specific integrated circuit.

ASME
American Society of Mechanical Engineers.

Assembler
A program that translates assembly language instructions into machine language instructions.

ASCII
American Standard Code for Information Interchange. A seven or eight bit code used to represent alphanumeric characters. It is the standard code used for communications between data processing systems and associated equipment.

ARPANET
Advanced Research Projects Agency Network. A pioneering long haul network funded by ARPA. It served as the basis for early networking research, as well as a central backbone furing the development of the internet.

ARP
Address Resolution Protocol. An Internet protocol which runs on ethernets and token rings and maps Internet addresses to MAC addresses.

Application Program
A computer program that accomplishes specific tasks, such as word processing.

ARCHIE
A system for locating files that are publicly available by anonymous FTP.technical glossary, technical terms, glossary, technical glossary

Apparent Power
A value of power for AC circuits that is calculated as the product of RMS current times RMS voltage, without taking the power factor into account.

ANSI
American National Standards Institute.

Anti-reset Windup
This is a feature in a three-mode PID controller which prevents the integral (auto reset) circuit from functioning when the temperature is outside the proportional band.

Anion
A negatively charged ion (Cl-, NO3-, S2- etc.)

Angular Frequency
The motion of a body or a point moving circularly, referred to as the circular frequency O which is the frequency in cycles per second (cps) multiplied by the term (2) and expressed in radians per second (2pf).

Angstrom
Ten to the minus tenth meters (10-10) or one millimicron, a unit used to define the wave length of light. Designated by the symbol Å.

Anemometer
An instrument for measuring and/or indicating the velocity of air flow.

Analog Output
A voltage or current signal that is a continuous function of the measured parameter.

Analog Ground
In high-speed acquisition applications, system ground is generally physically separated into analog and digital grounds in an attempt to suppress digital switching noise and minimize its effect on noise-sensitive analog signal processing circuitry. Input signal conditioners, amplifiers, references, and A/D converters are usually connected to analog…

Amplifier
A device which draws power from a source other than the input signal and which produces as an output an enlarged reproduction of the essential features of its input.technical glossary, technical terms, glossary, technical glossary

Ampere (amp)
A unit used to define the rate of flow of electricity (current) in a circuit; units are one coulomb (6.25 x 108 electronics) per second.

Ambient Temperature
The average or mean temperature of the surrounding air which comes in contact with the equipment and instruments under test.

Ammeter
An instrument used to measure current.

Ambient Pressure
Pressure of the air surrounding a transducer.

Ambient Conditions
The conditions around the transducer (pressure, temperature, etc.)..technical glossary, technical terms, glossary, technical glossary

AM
Amplitude Modulation

Ambient Compensation
The design of an instrument such that changes in ambient temperature do not affect the readings of the instrument.

Alphanumeric
A character set that contains both letters and digits.

Alumel
An aluminum nickel alloy used in the negative leg of a Type K thermocouple (Trade name of Hoskins Manufacturing Company).

Alpha Radiation
Radiation consisting of helium nuclei (atomic wt. 4, atomic number 2) that are discharged by radioactive disintegration of some heavy elements, including uranium-238, radium-226, and plutonium-239.

Alpha Particle
The nuclei of a helium (with two neutrons and two protons each) that are discharged by radioactive decay of many heavy elements, such as uranium-238 and plutonium-239.

Alpha Decay
The emission of a nucleus of a helium atom from the nucleus of an element, generally of a heavy element, in the process of its radioactive decay.

Alloy 405-426
The combination of compensating alloys used with tungsten 5% rhenium vs. tungsten 26% rhenium thermocouples as extension cable for applications under 870°C.

Alloy 203-225
The combination of compensating alloys used with tungsten 3% rhenium vs. tungsten 150 rhenium thermocouples as extension cable for applications under 200°C.

Alloy 200-226
The combination of compensating alloys used with tungsten vs. tungsten 26% rhenium thermocouples as extension cable for applications under 200°C.

Alloy 11
A compensating alloy used in conjunction with pure copper as the negative leg to form extension wire for platinum-platinum rhodium thermocouples Types R and S.

Aliasing
In a sampled data system, the analog input must be sampled at a rate of at least twice the bandwidth of the signal in order to avoid loss of data (Nyquist Theorem). Adhering to the Nyquist Theorem prevents in-band 'alias' signals, which are beat frequencies between the analog signal and the sampling clock that inherently occur.

Aliased Imaging
This is a technique, commonly applied to Direct Digital Synthesis, for using intentional aliasing as a source of high-frequency signals.

AIX
Advanced Interactive Executive: IBM's version of UNIX.

Adsorption (of water vapor)
Retention (of water vapor) as a surface layer on a material ..technical glossary, technical terms, glossary, technical glossary

AEC
Atomic Energy Commission, 1947-1974. Broken up in 1974 into the Energy Research and Development Administration (ERDA) and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC). EDRA later became the Department of Energy.

Address
The label or number identifying the memory location where a unit of information is stored.