Universal instrument can measure temperature using any of eight types of thermocouple over their complete ranges
The six-channel temperature measurement VIPod101/T measures temperature using any thermocouple and shows the results on a PC screen.
It is part of the Vinstrumentation range from Kyle Electronic Design.
Plugging into the parallel port, this VIPod has a voltage resolution of 0.5 microvolts.
This allows, for example, a type J thermocouple to detect changes of 1/100th of a degree Celsius.
The VIPod has its own CJC sensor or can take a CJC signal from a remote source.
Up to four VIPods can be connected together to measure 24 temperatures or V101/Ts and other VIPod types can be connected to form a measurement and control system.
All channels can be calibrated from the PC.
The Vips software provided can display the temperatures as a chart, list or as digital panel meters.
Also available for display is the temperature measured by the CJC and the voltage measurement before conversion to temperature.
These signals can be used in the teaching of the principles of thermocouple measurements.
DLL drivers are provided to allow use of the VIPod from other software.
At £150, the low cost VIPod101/T is a universal instrument that can measure temperature using any of eight types of thermocouple over their complete ranges.
This is invaluable in a laboratory as it allows an instant temperature reading from any thermocouple, says Kyle.
The Save/Load Settings feature of the software allows all the settings for an experiment, including thermocouple calibrations, to be retrieved at the click of a mouse.
Without the thermocouple connection board, the VIPod101 alone can be used as an eight-channel high-resolution voltage measurement module.
The VIPod101/T replaces the VIPS T100 giving higher resolution and more flexibility at a lower cost.
