Pico Technical Support and Discussion Forum

Hi

Thanks autonerdz for previous replies.

Appreciate if anyone can help me with the following. Just a query.

If I am looking at a waveform on the view, I can set the timebase to say 2ms/div.

As you know I could also set it to say 20ms/div or any other speed fast or slow. These speeds are what I am looking at on the view-agreed.

My question is-how fast then is a sensor signal[all by itself] going down a wire in the first place?

Thanks Peter.

So I can better understand your question, are you asking how fast the electrons are moving along the conductor?

Thanks.

Peter,

I would not call the time base setting a speed but a capture time. 20ms/div is a 200ms capture time. The scope speed would be how often the scope would sample over that capture time. There are several settings that affect the sample rate speed (samples per second) depending on which scope you are using.

The frequency or speed of a sensor signal would depend on the type of sensor and the engine RPM.

The important thing here is that the scope speed (sample rate frequency) be sufficient to handle the sensor signal speed (signal frequency) to reconstruct the signal with accuracy.

The PicoScope automotive scopes are unique in that they can accomplish very long capture times while maintaining a robust sample rate. This allows the technician to capture relatively high frequency sensor signals over long periods of time without loss of waveform detail. You can still zoom in and examine the waveform detail down to an electron microscope level.

No other automotive scope can come close.

_________________
Tom Roberts
(The Picotologist)
http://www.autonerdz.com
skype: autonerdz
THE PicoScope Automotive Authority
In North America