Since Fluke's acquisition of the Precision Measurement Division of Wavetek Wandel Goltermann (Wavetek-Datron) the combination of the two companies has accelerated its shared mission of innovative product development. The first sign of this commitment is the launch of the Fluke 7000 Series Volt Maintenance System, the first of many Wavetek-Datron products to be adapted and sold under the Fluke brand.
The decision to incorporate the 7000 Series automated voltage measurement system into the Fluke brand alongside the Fluke 732B and 734A DC references gives customers the option of choosing the system which best suits their individual needs. The Fluke 7000 system can also be used to automate measurements of new and existing Fluke 732B and 734A units, says the company.
The fully automated Fluke 7000 system offers calibration laboratories the benefit of a 10 V d.c. reference with a drift rate predictable within ñ0,15 ppm per year, providing performance surpassed only by helium-cooled Josephson Junction Arrays, according to Fluke. The software incorporated within the 7000 Series volt maintenance system automates all the routine measurements required to compile a detailed performance history while maintaining traceability to National Standards. This ensures consistency of measurement and the freedom from human error needed to achieve the highest confidence levels.
The 7000 Series Volt Maintenance System brings precision DC voltage metrology within the reach of a far greater number of commercial and institutional calibration. Fluke adds that time-consuming measurement routines are also eliminated and less skill is required to reduce measurement uncertainty.
At the heart of the volt maintenance system is a zener-diode-based 10 V reference module which even by itself can achieve a stability of better than 1 ppm per year. To confirm this outstanding stability, Fluke says that all reference modules are verified against a 10V Josephson Array at the National Physics Laboratory in Great Britain. A patented zener diode conditioning technique ensures the performance of the individual zener reference modules is altered by no more than 0,2 ppm, even if the module's internal batteries become exhausted and/or the unit is subjected to low temperatures during transit.
By configuring up to 10 reference modules into a Fluke 7000 Series 'Nanoscan' chassis, users can create 'statistical references' in which the outputs are averaged to produce a drift rate predictable to ±0,15 ppm/year; a noise level (0,01 to 10 Hz) of less than 0,015 ppm; and a temperature coefficient (15 to 35°C) of less than 0,02 ppm/°C.
The Nanoscan chassis, designed primarily for use within a calibration laboratory environment, has an integral digital null detector that performs inter-comparisons between individual reference module outputs and the average output, or between the average output and an external 10 V reference source such as a Josephson Array. When linked to a PC running Fluke 7050 volt maintenance software, all of these measurements can be automated, archived and statistically analysed. This procedure also allows the drift rate of the average output to be predicted to extremely high confidence levels.
Another benefit is the optional scan modules that allow external references to be included in the Nanoscan's comparisons can replace individual reference modules. This enables users with existing DC voltage standards, such as the Fluke 734B, to continue benefiting from their known history when setting up a new 7000 Series system.
The Fluke 7000 Series also features a 'transref chassis' option accommodating up to four reference modules and generating an average output comparable with other standards, providing a simple means of importing or exporting traceability. Protected inside its rugged transit case, the transref is suitable for transportation by normal carrier services in an unpowered status.
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