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How to Turn a Hall Effect Signal Into a Reluctor Signal With a Series Capacitor

A hall effect signal is usually represented by a square wave form. A reluctor signal is a series of voltage spikes which can be used to represent data which can be processed by a computer. Cars use these types of signals for engine management signals. Most sensors generate square waves. By using a series capacitor and resistor circuit, the square wave can be converted to a reluctor signal for computer processing. The trick is managing the RC time constant.

Things You'll Need

Square wave signal generator
Capacitor
Resistor

Instructions

- 1
  Set the signal generator on the work table. Determine the needed time constant (RC) by choosing a resistor value and capacitor value which makes this statement true: the frequency of the square wave is greater than R times C, where R is the resistance of the resistor and C is the capacitance of the capacitor.
- 2
  Take the chosen capacitor and resistor, and connect them to the signal generator. Connect the negative terminal of the capacitor to the positive terminal of the signal generator. Connect one terminal of the resistor to the positive terminal of the capacitor.
- 3
  Connect the second terminal of the resistor to the negative terminal of the signal generator. Turn the signal generator on and set it to produce a square wave. The frequency of the square wave should be greater than R times C. Measure the output signal of this circuit across the resistor.

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