When using digital multimeters, you have to deal with various operations such as measuring voltage, resistance, and current. For each of these operations, there are different types of settings. To identify these settings, you should have a good understanding of the multimeter symbols. In this article, we will specifically be discussing multimeter voltage symbols.
When it comes to multimeter voltage symbols, you should know three types of symbols. Modern digital multimeters have symbols for AC voltage, DC voltage, and Multivolts.
Different Types of Units in Multimeter
Before we dive into the multimeter symbols, there are a few other sub-topics that we need to discuss. Different types of units are one of them.
Having said that, whether you are using a digital multimeter or analog multimeter, you need a common knowledge of units and subunits. Because we are discussing the voltage, we will keep the explanation of the units only for voltage. But remember, you can apply the same theory to current and resistance.
To represent voltage, we used V, aka volts. V is the primary unit, and here are the subunits.
K for kilo: 1KV is equal to 1000V
M for mega: 1MV is equal to 1000KV
m for milli: 1mV is equal to 0.001V
µ for kilo: 1KV is equal to 0.000001V(1)
The Symbols
Whether using an analog multimeter or a digital multimeter, you might encounter several different symbols. So here are some of the symbols that you might encounter while using an analog multimeter or digital multimeter.
- 1: Hold Button
- 2: AC Voltage
- 3: Hertz
- 4: DC Voltage
- 5: Direct Current
- 6: Current Jack
- 7: Common Jack
- 8: Range Button
- 9: Brightness Button
- 10: AV Multivolts
- 11: Ohms
- 12: Diode Test
- 13: Alternating Current
- 14: Red Jack
Multimeter Voltage Symbols
There are three voltage symbols in a multimeter(2). When you measure voltage using a multimeter, it is a must to be knowledgeable about these symbols. So, here are some details about them.
AC Voltage
When you measure the alternating current (AC), you should set up the multimeter for AC voltage. The wavy line over the letter V represents the AC voltage. In older models, the letters VAC represents the AC voltage.
DC Voltage
To measure the direct current voltage, you can use the DC voltage setup. The solid line and dotted line over the letter V represent the direct current voltage.(3)
Multivolts
With the Multivolts setting, you can check the AC and DC voltages more accurately. The one wavy line over the letter mV Represent the Multivolts.
Wrapping Up
From the post above, we truly hope that you were able to get a good idea about multimeter voltage symbols. So, the next time you use a multimeter to measure voltage, you won’t be confused.
References
(1) Symbol Info – https://www.familyhandyman.com/article/multimeter-symbol-guide/
(2) More Symbols – https://www.themultimeterguide.com/multimeter-symbols-guide/
(3) More Symbol Photos- https://www.electronicshub.org/multimeter-symbols/
