Elenco Upgrade Kit SC500 to SC750 - Manual (Page 94)

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By using the microphone audio input and the flexible processing
power of the personal computer, we have created an inexpensive
and easy-to-use way of looking at electronic signals. However,
no electronic oscilloscope or spectrum analyzer ever made works
on all electronic signals, and similarly Winscope has limitations.
The projects in this booklet were written to minimize those
limitations.
Winscope can only measure changing signals (AC voltages, >20
Hz frequency) and cannot measure fixed voltages (DC voltages,
such as a battery), due to the design of the microphone input.
Fixed voltages are not very exciting to look at anyway. Slow-
changing or transient signals (such as when you first turn on
power to a circuit) will be displayed in a distorted form.
Winscope works best on signals up to about 5kHz, since its
sampling rate is limited to 44kHz. If you attempt to measure
higher frequency signals, then you will get wrong results due to
undersampling. This is a narrow range but it covers human voice
and most (but not all) music.
AM and FM radio frequencies
cannot be measured. Every measurement you make will have
some amount of random “chatter” superimposed on the signal of
interest. This chatter is due to the limited sampling rate and from
the PC-interface cable picking up energy from other electronic
instruments in the vicinity (including room lights and your
computer), hence it cannot be avoided.
Limitations of WINSCOPE and Its Interface
Winscope has 2 input channels that can be displayed at the
same time. This is commonly done by electronic engineers using
an oscilloscope, to show the relationship of one (or more) signals
to another. However, use of this requires a second microphone
input, which most computers do not have. If the sound card in your computer has this then you may use all of Winscope
features for 2 channels, which include X-Y and correlate modes.
Use of these Winscope capabilities is beyond the introductory
level of this product, use the Help menu in Winscope for
information about using these features.
Using WINSCOPE’s Full Capabilities
WARNING:
SHOCK HAZARD - NEVER connect the probe to AC power
or a wall electricity outlet for any reason since serious injury
or damage may result. !
To make a copy of the Winscope display screen, hold down the Alt button and press the PrtScn button on your
computer when Winscope is the active window. You can then paste it into word processing programs such as
Microsoft Word.
Exporting Graphs from WINSCOPE