13.07.2015 Views

Principles of naval engineering - Historic Naval Ships Association

Principles of naval engineering - Historic Naval Ships Association

Principles of naval engineering - Historic Naval Ships Association

SHOW MORE
SHOW LESS

Create successful ePaper yourself

Turn your PDF publications into a flip-book with our unique Google optimized e-Paper software.

PRINCIPLES OF NAVAL ENGINEERINGBecause there will always be some error <strong>of</strong>measurement, and because the error may actuallybe considerably greater than that indicatedby the percentage <strong>of</strong> guaranteed accuracy, thecalibration <strong>of</strong> any measuring device requiresthe highest possible precision.Instrument sensitivity is sometimes confusedwith instrument accuracy. This is a big mistake.The sensitivity <strong>of</strong> an instrument refers to theability <strong>of</strong> the instrument to respond to changesin the value <strong>of</strong> the measured variable. K aninstrument can respond to very small changesin the measured variable, it is a very sensitiveinstrument; if larger changes in the measuredvariable are required to produce effective motion<strong>of</strong> the measuring element, the instrument is lesssensitive.Sensitivity is quite directly related to frictionwithin an instrument. An instrument thathas relatively small energy losses because <strong>of</strong>friction will, all other things being equal, bemore sensitive than an instrument with relativelylarge friction losses.156

Hooray! Your file is uploaded and ready to be published.

Saved successfully!

Ooh no, something went wrong!