Put a current meter anywhere with this very handy display. This panel meter requires a DC voltage to run, and then has two thick gauge wires to measure current draw. A shunt is already on board so its very easy to hook up!
Since current sensors are a little more complex than volt meters, and its easy to confuse the wires, please read carefully to understand how to wire it together! The current meter has two sets of wires, one thin (red and black) and one thick (red or white, and black). The thin wire set is for powering the meter itself and must be 4.5-30VDC. There is reverse-polarity protection on these wires. The thick wire set is for the in-line current sensing. The black sensing wire is tied to the black power wire internally, so depending on how you want to use the meter, you may need a separate power circuit (see the next paragraph)
The easiest and safest way to use the meter is to have no electrical connection between the powering and sensing current. That is, connect something like a 9V battery to the thin power wires and you can put the current sensor in anywhere you want. As long as the circuits are totally separate this will work great.
Another option is to have one circuit power the meter while it is sensing the same circuit. To do this, you'll need to make sure that you are low-side sensing. This is because the ground power wire is connected to the black current sense wire. To make sure you don't accidentally short your power supply, you'll need to arrange your circuit so that the ammeter sits 'right below' the "ground" of whatever you are sensing. See the image above for a diagram showing how to measure motor current, for example. Make sure the DC power is between 4.5V and 30V in this case.
The display has a microcontroller that will read the current through the shunt resistance, compare it to a stable reference and display the current in Amps on a 3-digit 0.56" tall 7-segment display. It works from 4.5V up to 30V and is reverse-polarity protected so it will be good for nearly any electronic project! The meter itself draws about 20mA to power the microcontroller and display. This particular LED display is a nice contrast red, which Adafruit found very readable. To mount to your enclosure, simply cut a 45.5mm × 26.5mm rectangle and snap it in.
Dimensions:
Power specifications:
Exact shipping can be calculated on the view cart page (no login required).
Products that weigh more than 0.5 KG may cost more than what's shown (for example, test equipment, machines, >500mL liquids, etc).
We deliver Australia-wide with these options (depends on the final destination - you can get a quote on the view cart page):
Non-metro addresses in WA, NT, SA & TAS can take 2+ days in addition to the above information.
Some batteries (such as LiPo) can't be shipped by Air. During checkout, Express Post and International Methods will not be an option if you have that type of battery in your shopping cart.
International Orders - the following rates are for New Zealand and will vary for other countries:
If you order lots of gear, the postage amount will increase based on the weight of your order.
Our physical address (here's a PDF which includes other key business details):
Unit 18, 132 Garden Grove Parade
Adamstown
NSW, 2289
Australia
Take a look at our customer service page if you have other questions such as "do we do purchase orders" (yes!) or "are prices GST inclusive" (yes they are!). We're here to help - get in touch with us to talk shop.
Have a product question? We're here to help!
Makers love reviews as much as you do, please follow this link to review the products you have purchased.
Product Comments