16201 5/10 Turn Current Coil
Introduction
The 5/10 turn 16201 Current coil is used as a tool for calibrating clamp type current meters that operate by two different principles – as current transformers (AC only), and by the Hall Effect (both AC and DC). As it is typically impractical to calibrate 1000A rated current clamp meters with a 1000A source, one can easily use 10 turns of the 16201 coil in conjunction with a 1620A current source calibrator to effectively multiply the current of the current source calibrator by a factor of 10. Now it is easy to support the calibration and verification of these clamp-on type current meters.
Using the Coil
Clamp-on current meters operate as current transformers, with varying degrees of magnetic coupling between the primary and secondary. The position of the clamp meter with respect to the cable also affects the magnetic coupling between the primary and the secondary of the current transformer, which causes variation in reading of the current meter. This is important to understand in order to make the most accurate and repeatable measurements.