How do variable resistors work

Position it so that the shaft is facing towards the ceiling and the three terminals are facing towards you. In this position, you can easily identify the terminals from left to right as terminal 1, 2, and 3. Ground the first terminal of the potentiometer. In this application, terminal 1 will provide the grounding. To do this, solder both ends of the wire to the terminal and chassis of the electrical component respectively.

This will ground the potentiometer. And it can be turned all the way to zero at the minimum position. The input line from the circuit should connect to it.

Solder this connection just like the previous one. Solder the wire just like in the first 2 terminals. After wiring, test using a voltmeter. Turning the shaft clockwise or counterclockwise can adjust the signal on your device. You talk about voltage then change to signal. All in all a confusing paragraph. Your email address will not be published. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.

Notify me of follow-up comments by email. Notify me of new posts by email. I agree to these terms. What is a Variable Resistor? Preset Resistor. Potentiometer Schematic Symbol. Previous How Resistive Sensors Work. Related Posts. David Gilbert on May 21, at am. Potentiometers Potentiometers are used to measurePotentiometers cannot measure. Voltage Divider and Potentiometers A voltage divider is a simple circuit that converts a large voltage into a smaller one.

Rheostats are much related to the potentiometers in terms of construction, but they are not used as a potential divider, instead, they are used as variable resistors. One connection is connected at one end of the resistive element, the other is at the wiper of the variable resistor.

In the ancient times, rheostats were used as the power controlling devices, which were connected in series with the load, just like a bulb. At present rheostats are not used as a power controller any longer as it is an inefficient method. For power control, rheostats are replaced in high-efficiency switching electronics. At preset variable, resistors are wired as the rheostats, which are used in circuits to perform the tuning or calibration.

A digital variable resistor is a type of variable resistor that is used whenever the change of resistance is not performed by the mechanical movement, but by the electronic signals. They can also change resistance in discrete steps and are frequently controlled by digital protocols such as I2C or by simple up and down signals.

Presets are just like a small versions of a variable resistor. They can be placed easily on a PCB and can also be adjustable when needed. The value of the resistance is normally adjusted with the help of a screw-driver. They are frequently used in applications that have an adjustable frequency tone of the alarm or adjustable sensitivity circuits.

These are the cheapest among the devices that are mentioned above. These are also highly specific presets that have multi-turn options.

In this type of presets, the resistances are increased or decreased gradually and therefore the screw has to be rotated number of times. A Variable Resistor is used as a rheostat when one end of the resistance is tracked and the wiper terminal is connected to the circuit and the other terminal of the resistance track remains open.

In this case, the electrical resistance is connected between the track terminal and wiper terminal which depends upon the position of the wiper slider on the resistances track.

A variable resistor can also be used as a potentiometer when both ends of the resistance track are connected to the input circuit and one of the said ends of resistance track and wiper terminal is connected to the output circuit. In this case, all three terminals are in use. Sometimes, in the electronics circuit, there may be a requirement of adaptable resistance, but this modification is required only once or very often.

Does it have something to do with the amount of coils? Hello Jason, A variable resistor is very important. It allows you to build a circuit with some degree of control. For example, a volume knob can be a variable resistor.

It can act as a control on the amount of current flowing.