BK Precision BK Precision 1823A Manual

Instruction Manual

Model 1823A 2.4GHz Universal Frequency Counter

Test Equipment Depot - 800.517.8431 - 99 Washington Street Melrose, MA 02176

FAX [phone] - TestEquipmentDepot.com

Introduction

Thank you for purchasing our product. Electronic measuring instruments
produced by us are high technology products made under strict quality control.
We guarantee their exceptional precision and utmost reliability. For proper use of
the product, please read this operation manual carefully.

Note

1. To fully maintain the precision and reliability of the product use it within the
range of standard setting (temperature 10 °C~35 °C, humidity 45%~85%)

2. After turning of power, please allow a pre-heating period of as long as some
30 minutes before use.

3. This equipment should be used with a triple line power cord for safety.

4. For quality improvement the exterior design and specification of the product
can be changed without prior notice.

5. If you have further questions concerning use, please contact our service
center or sales outlet.

Safety Summary

Please take a moment to read these operating instructions thoroughly and
completely before operating this instrument. Pay particular attention to
WARNINGS used for conditions and actions that pose hazard to the user and
CAUTIONS used for conditions and actions that may damage the instrument.

Always to inspect the instrument and other accessories for any sign of

l

damage or abnormality before every use.

Never ground yourself and keep your body isolated from ground.

l

Never touch exposed wiring, connections or any live circuit conductors.

l

Do not install substitute parts or perform any unauthorized modification to

l

the instrument.

Use caution when working above 60V DC or 30V AC rms. Such voltages

l

pose a shock hazard.

l Remember that line voltage is present on some power input circuit points

such as on-off switches, fuse, power transformers, etc., even when the
equipment is turn off.

l Also, remember that high voltage may appear at unexpected points in

defective equipment.

Safety Symbols

DANGEROUS VOLTAGE
AC-ALTERNATING CURRENT

DC-DIRECT CURRENT

SEE EXPLANATION IN MANUAL
GROUND
FUSE

Test Equipment Depot - 800.517.8431 - 99 Washington Street Melrose, MA 02176

FAX [phone] - TestEquipmentDepot.com

CONTENTS

1. PRODUCT DESCRIPTION

1-1. Introduction ------------------------------------------------------ ( 4 )
1-2. Technical Specifications -------------------------------------- ( 5 )
1-3. Equipment Ratings --------------------------------------------- ( 8 )
1-4. Supplied Accessories ------------------------------------------ ( 8 )

2. INSTALLATION

2-1. Initial Inspection ------------------------------------------------- ( 9 )

2-2. Connecting AC Power ----------------------------------------- ( 9 )
2-3. Cooling and Ventilation ---------------------------------------- ( 9 )
2-4. Position ------------------------------------------------------------ ( 9 )
2-5. Warming-Up ------------------------------------------------------ ( 9 )

3. OPERATION

3-1. Controls, indicators and connectors ------------------------ (11)
3-2. Operating instruction ------------------------------------------- (14)

3-3. Frequency Measurements ------------------------------------- (14)
3-4. Period Measurements ------------------------------------------ (15)
3-5. Total Measurements -------------------------------------------- (15)
3-6. Time interval measurement(A-B)----------------------------- (16)
3-7. Ratio Measurement (A/B)-------------------------------------- (17)
3-8. Use of RS-232C Serial Interfacing-------------------------- (18)

4. MAINTENANCE

4-1. Fuse Replacement ---------------------------------------------- (19)
4-2. Adjustment and Calibration ----------------------------------- (19)

4-3. Cleaning and decontamination ------------------------------- (19)

5. OTHERS

5-1. BNC Cable Considerations ----------------------------------- (20)
5-2. Use of Attenuator probes ------------------------------------- (20)
5-3. Line Frequency Measurements ------------------------------ (21)

Test Equipment Depot - 800.517.8431 - 99 Washington Street Melrose, MA 02176

FAX [phone] - TestEquipmentDepot.com

1. PRODUCT DESCRIPTION

1-1. Introduction

This reciprocal UNIVERSAL COUNTER series are microprocessor controlled
instruments for frequency measurements at high resolutions within a short period
of time. The 7 digit display with one second gate time is due to uniquely
developed LSI as well as the expanding/reciprocal systems. It covers a
frequency range from 0.1Hz to 2.4 GHz based on 10MHz time base T.C.O
(temperature controlled oscillator) and also featuring,

l Trigger Function
l Time Interval Measurement Function
l Frequency Ratio Measurement Function
l Common or Separate Input Selection
l External Frequency Standard Input with 9 Digits LED Display
l Attenuator
l Check
l Period
l Total
l Low Pass Filter
l Line Filter

A self-test mode is also provided for a quick check of several facets of operation.
Each operating mode can be selected by front panel push button switches with
automatic decimal points and indicators. The high accuracy, sensitivity and
versatility of this counter makes it an extremely valuable instrument to scientists,
engineers, experimenters and communications technicians. Light weight and
compact size make it practical for use by the hobbyist or field technicians.

Test Equipment Depot - 800.517.8431 - 99 Washington Street Melrose, MA 02176

FAX [phone] - TestEquipmentDepot.com

1-2. Technical Specifications (after a 30 minute warm-up period)
n INPUT A CHARACTERISTICS

• FREQUENCY RANGE : 0.1Hz to 100MHz (DC Coupled)

30Hz to 100MHz (AC Coupled)

• SENSITIVITY : 0.1Hz to 1Hz: 250mV

1Hz to 100MHz: 30mV

• COUPLING : AC or DC Selectable

• IMPEDANCE : 1 M Ω Resistance, Shunted by < 40pF

• ATTENUATOR : x 1 or x 10 Switch Selectable

• LOW PASS FILTER : -3dB Point of 100KHz, Switch Selectable

• TRIGGER LEVEL : + 350mV to - 350mV (PRESET 0V)

• SLOPE : Positive or Negative Slope Switch Selectable

* NOTE: Trigger error is typically ±0.3% of reading by the number of cycles
averaged for input signals having better than 40dB S/N ratio and greater than
100mV amplitude.

• RESOLUTION AND NUMBER OF DISPLAYED DIGIT (Table 1)

Time Base Selector INT EXT INT EXT INT EXT INT EXT
Gate Time 0.01S 0.1S 1S 10S
Number Of Displayed Digit 5 6 6 7 7 8 8 9
Frequency (Input A,B) RESOLUTION

0.1 Hz-0.99 Hz 10 uHz 1 uHz 1 uHz 0.1 uHz 0.1 uHz 10nHz 10nHz 1nHz
1 Hz-9.9 Hz 0.1 mHz
10 Hz-99 Hz 1 mHZ 0.1 mHz
100 Hz-999 Hz 10 mHz 1 mHz 1 mHz 0.1 mHz
1 KHz-9.9 KHz 0.1 Hz 10 mHz
10 KHz-99 KHz 1 Hz 0.1 Hz 0.1 Hz 10 mHz 10 mHz 1 mHz 1 mHZ 0.1 mHz
100 KHz-999 KHz 10 Hz 1 Hz 1 Hz 0.1 Hz 0.1 Hz 10 mHz 10 mHz 1 mHZ
1 MHz-9.9 MHz 100 Hz 10 Hz 10 Hz 1 Hz 1Hz 0.1 Hz 0.1 Hz 10 mHz
10 MHz-99 MHz 1 KHz 100 Hz 100 Hz 10 Hz 10 Hz 1 Hz 1 Hz 0.1 Hz
100 MHz 10 KHz 1 KHz 1 KHz 100 Hz 100 Hz 10 Hz 10 Hz 1 Hz

10 uHz 10 uHz 1 uHz 1 uHz 0.1 uHz 0.1 uHz 10nHz

0.1 mHz 10 uHz 10 uHz 1 uHz 1 uHz 0.1 uHz

0.1 mHz 10 uHz 10 uHz 1 uHz

10 mHz 1 mHz 1 mHz 0.1 mHz 0.1 mHz 10 uHz

• ACCURACY

0.1Hz to 100Hz : ± Time base Error ± 1 count ± 1Hz

101Hz to 100MHz: ± Time base Error ± 1 count ± (Resolution Table 1 x 20)

• PERIOD RANGE : 10 nS to 10 S

• DISPLAY : n. u. m., Sec with decimal point

• TOTAL RANGE : DC to 30 MHz

CAPACITY : 0 to 999 999 999
OVER FLOW : “OF”

Test Equipment Depot - 800.517.8431 - 99 Washington Street Melrose, MA 02176

FAX [phone] - TestEquipmentDepot.com

• MAX. INPUT VOLTAGE LEVEL

300

250

200

150

100

50

MAX INPUT VOLTAGE (ACV & DCV)

25

5

0

100 500 1K 1M

FREQUENCY (Hz)

5M

10M 50M 100M

FIG 1. MAX. Input Level. (Input A,B)

n INPUT B. CHARACTERISTICS = Same as Input A

n TIME INTERVAL(A→B)

• RANGE : 0.1 uSec-10Sec(0.1Hz-10MHz)

• LSD : 100nSec

• RESOLUTION : ± LSD ± Trigger Error*

• ACCURACY : ± LSD ± Trigger Error ±Time base error ± 1 counts

• MULTIPLIER : 1,10,100,1000 (Gate Time: 10S,1S,0.1S,0.01S)

n RATIO(A/B)

• RANGE : 0.1Hz to 10MHz(input A)

: 0.1Hz to 10MHz(input B)

• RESOLUTION : ± LSD ±(B TrIg. ERROR x FREQ. A)/N

• ACCURACY : ±1 COUNT of A ± B TRIG. ERROR x FREQ. A.

n INPUT C. CHARACTERISTICS

h FREQUENCY RANGE: 80 MHz to 2.4 GHz
h SENSITIVITY: 25mV from 80 MHz to 150 MHz

20mV from 150 MHz to 2.0 GHz
60mV from 2.0GHz to 2.4GHz

• COUPLING : AC only

• IMPEDANCE : 50 Ω ±5%

• MAX. INPUT LEVEL : 3 Vrms sine wave

• RESOLUTION AND NUMBER OF DISPLAYED DIGIT

Time Base Selector INT EXT INT EXT INT EXT INT EXT
Gate Time 0.01S 0.1S 1S 10S
Number Of Displayed Digit

5 6 6 7 7 8 8 9
Frequency (Input C) RESOLUTION
80 MHz-99 MHz 1 KHz 100 Hz 100 Hz 10 Hz 10 Hz 1 Hz 1 Hz 0.1 Hz
100 MHz-999 MHz 10 KHz 1 KHz 1 KHz 100 Hz 100 Hz 10 Hz 10 Hz 1 Hz
1 GHz-2.4GHz 100 KHz

10 KHz 10 KHz 1 KHz 1 KHz 100 Hz 100 Hz 10 Hz

(Table 2)
n TIME BASE CHARACTERISTICS

• TYPE : TCO (Temperature controlled oscillator)

• FREQUENCY : 10.000000 MHz

• STABILITY : ±1 PPM(±1 count)

• LINE VOLTAGE STABILITY : Less than ± 1 PPM with ± 10% line voltage

variation.

• TEMPERATURE STABILITY : ±5 PPM from 0°C to 50°C

• MAX. AGING RATE : ±5 PPM/year

• INT. STD. OUT : 10 MHz(internal standard frequency output)

• LEVEL : 1 Vpp or more.

• IMPEDANCE : Approx. 600Ω

• EXT. STD. IN : 10 MHz(external standard frequency input)

• LEVEL : 1.5 Vrms to 5Vrms

• IMPEDANCE : Approx. 600Ω

n DISPLAY CHARACTERISTICS

• DISPLAY : Nine Digit 0.56" LED with M/n, K/u, Hz, m, Sec, G.T, Hold,
and “OF” indicators. Function and Gate time: User Selected.

“OF” Display Shown When Count exceeds 999 999 999

• HOLD : In Frequency and Period, TOTAL. Mode measurement in

progress is stopped, and the last complete measurement is
displayed. When Hold is released, a new measurement

begins.