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Frank Milburn's Blog PCB for a Kelvin (4-Wire) Milliohm Meter
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Engagement
  • Author Author: fmilburn
  • Date Created: 18 Oct 2018 5:49 AM Date Created
  • Views 9451 views
  • Likes 13 likes
  • Comments 112 comments
  • kelvin measurement
  • current source
  • 4 wire measurement
  • milliohm measurement
  • op amps
Related
Recommended

PCB for a Kelvin (4-Wire) Milliohm Meter

fmilburn
fmilburn
18 Oct 2018

EDIT 24 Oct 2018  The schematic in this post contains an error.  It will be reposted after receipt of the PCB and testing.

 

I am developing an inexpensive but reasonably accurate meter for measuring resistance in the milliohm range.  The previous posts are listed in the related links at the bottom.  In this post the design for the working prototype is expanded to include a second current source for measuring resistance up to 400 ohm and provision made for future auto-ranging.  A new schematic and a PCB design are presented along with an update on meter options.

 

Revised Schematic

The revised schematic is shown below:

image

The added current source is identical to the first but designed for 1 mA current.  A dual N-Channel MOSFET with pull-down resistors is connected just above ground to allow selection of a source.  It will add maybe an ohm to ground.  There are jumpers and bypass resistors so that the second current source and MOSFETs can be omitted if desired.  This has not been incorporated into the working prototype so a second eye and comments on the design are welcome.  An additional 5V set of pins was added so a source other than the USB connection could be used as well.  Thanks for ideas and suggestions shabaz  image.

PCB Design

The PCB was done in KiCad (5.0.0) which is a new version for me and I am still finding my way around the changes.  The layout was done with ease of hand soldering in mind which led to what I consider poor routing so I may redo it and hope send it to the board house tomorrow.  There were a couple of unfinished wires when the renders below were made but those are finished now and it passes electrical check.

image

image

 

Panel Meters and Alternate Current Sources

The panel meter I ordered from China came in earlier in the week but they were a disappointment.  Although they advertised 5 digit resolution they are not much better than 3 and show zero when down in the low millivolt range so they aren't much use for this project.  There is a zeroing procedure which I tried without much luck and a small pot which doesn't seem to do much.  I also ordered a ammeter but haven't had a chance to really test it.  It looks like I will be using patch cables and a multimeter for the display.

image

 

I also finally got the other current sources I was going to test for the project but time is running out and the LM334 really works good so I will put those aside for a later time.

 

Next Steps

This week I also plan to finish preparation of the BOM and order the parts that aren't in hand but there probably won't be any more posts until after the PCBs are back in about 2 weeks time.  As always, comments and corrections are appreciated.

 

Related Links

Testing Current Sources for a Kelvin (4-Wire) Milliohm Meter

More on Current Sources and a Kelvin (4-Wire) Milliohm Meter

Even More on Current Sources and a Kelvin (4-Wire) Milliohm Meter

Working Prototype of a Kelvin (4-Wire) Milliohm Meter

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Top Comments

  • fmilburn
    fmilburn over 6 years ago +7
    Hi Shabaz, From you description, it looks like I ordered the wrong meter... Could also have a particularly bad sample. I spent a fair amount of time trying to calibrate it again this evening without luck…
  • shabaz
    shabaz over 6 years ago in reply to fmilburn +7
    Hi Frank, Some good news, and some uncertainty : ) The good news is that it is assembled, it was a breeze using the PCB. Also it is just the right size for the enclosure, it all fits hopefully : ) I've…
  • shabaz
    shabaz over 6 years ago +6
    Hi Frank, Sorry to hear the panel meters were no good : ( I'll check the ones I have, in case any function better. (By the way from the back of it, if there is a 5 or 6-pin SOT-23, that should have been…
  • fmilburn
    fmilburn over 4 years ago in reply to andbro

    There is an updated post here:  New Improved DIY Milliohm Meter V2.0

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  • fmilburn
    fmilburn over 5 years ago in reply to shabaz

    Hi shabaz,

    This evening I was finally able to dig through some of my boxed things and find the milliohm meter and my 0805 resistors.  Working on a folding table where some day my kitchen table will be I was able to make what were the worst soldering joints I have ever created (and that is saying something) and get the 10k resistors attached between the sense and current pads on the back side of the PCB.  It works!  I haven't been able to test on my "calibrated" resistors yet as they are still in a box somewhere but on short pieces of wire measuring from 10 milliohms down to less than 1 milliohm it is stable and consistent.

     

    I went ahead and ordered a label maker as well.  Time to get organized!  Thanks again for your guidance and help on this project.  I plan to lay out a new PCB when things are a bit more normal for me.

    Frank

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  • fmilburn
    fmilburn over 5 years ago

    That looks great!  I am without a label printer currently as the old one broke years ago - did not know there was transparent tape.  Nice that it works over the LED.  I worked on the new PCB a bit last night but did not get very far.  Still planning to get something done in the next week or so....

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  • shabaz
    shabaz over 5 years ago in reply to fmilburn

    Thanks! : )

    Experimented with labeling today:

    image

    I had a low-cost (£50 in the UK) handheld label printer (Brother PT-E300) and I'd been using opaque label tape for ages. However, it turns out that transparent labels exist for it too. I cut them with scissors around the box shape that can be printed. And, since it's transparent, I could put the label on top of the LED hole.

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  • fmilburn
    fmilburn over 5 years ago in reply to shabaz

    That looks really nice. One of the nice things about the PCB is that it is small and allows about any case to be used.  Your layout is really neat and tidy.

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