In measurement technology, the resolution describes the The smallest change in an analogue signal that can still be distinguished after digitization. Since computers only process digital values, analog measurement signals - for example voltages, currents or sensor outputs - must first be processed by a Analog-to-digital converter (A/D converter) are converted into digital values.
During this conversion, the continuous value range of a signal is converted into a finite number of discrete stages (quantization) subdivided. The resolution indicates how many such levels there are between the smallest and the largest displayable measured value are available. The higher the resolution, the more finely a signal can be differentiated and displayed.
The resolution of an A/D converter is usually expressed in Bit specified. A converter with
- 12 bit Resolution can, for example 4096 different values,
- 16 bit Resolution 65,536 Values represent.
A higher resolution therefore enables a More precise mapping of small signal changes, as the distance between two digital steps becomes smaller.
In measurement data acquisition systems - such as solutions from Delphin Technology - the resolution is an important parameter for the Quality and accuracy of measured value acquisition. It determines how finely measurement signals are digitized and how precisely changes in a physical measurement value can be recorded and processed in the system.
It should be noted that the effective measurement accuracy depends not only on the resolution of the A/D converter, but also on other factors such as Noise, signal quality, measuring range and device accuracy.