Online performance monitoring and testing of electrical equipment using Virtual Instrumentation

With the advancement in signal processing technology and the advent of new sophisticated sensors, there is a need to change the way experiments are conducted in laboratories where conventional methods are still used. This paper proposes a method of experimentation where a programmable computer acts like a virtual instrument and can be programmed to do experiments without having to use old and conventional equipment like ammeters, voltmeters, wattmeters, power analyzers and even oscilloscopes. Online performance monitoring and testing of an induction motor and a transformer have been carried out through Virtual Instrumentation to show the benefits of such a method.