Drawing voltage of a circuit in parallel

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the setup of two circuits powered by a voltage from a proximity probe, focusing on issues related to voltage drop when attempting to run both circuits in parallel. The scope includes practical circuit design and troubleshooting.

Discussion Character

  • Technical explanation
  • Debate/contested
  • Experimental/applied

Main Points Raised

  • One participant describes having two circuits powered by a proximity probe, one displaying voltage directly and the other requiring a stepped-down voltage for a programmable chip.
  • Another participant questions the amount of voltage drop experienced and suggests that the voltage source may lack sufficient current capacity to support both circuits simultaneously.
  • There is a suggestion to measure the current used by each circuit and to test the voltage source with a resistor that draws the combined current to assess voltage drop.
  • Questions are raised about the method of stepping down the voltage and whether the voltage is AC or DC, with a caution against using a voltage divider for DC voltage.
  • A participant later reports resolving the issue by increasing the resistor values, which eliminated the voltage drop.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

The discussion includes multiple viewpoints regarding the cause of the voltage drop and the appropriate methods for troubleshooting, but there is no consensus on the initial problem's specifics or the best approach to resolve it.

Contextual Notes

Participants have not fully clarified the definitions of the voltage source, the nature of the circuits, or the specifics of the voltage stepping method, leaving some assumptions unresolved.

03esmit
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I have created a 2 circuits, that run off a voltage produced from a proximity probe (they have their own power suplies), one that takes the voltage straight off and then outputs the voltage on a digital display, and one that needs to be stepped down in the ratio 5:1 so that the voltage can be fed into a programmable chip which gives differnet outputs for differnet voltages. each of the circuits works fine on their own, but i cannot combine the circuits so that i can have both running at the same time. how should i set this up, as my parallel circuit does not seem to work as it lowers the voltages.

thanks
 
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How much of a voltage drop did you get? It sounds like your voltage source does not have enough current capacity to run both circuits.

As a test, can you measure (or estimate) the current used by each circuit separately? Then test the voltage source by using an appropriate sized resistor (that would draw the combined current of the two circuits) and see how much voltage drop you get.

Make sure the resistor exceeds the power requirement.

Another question: how are you stepping down the voltage? Is this AC or DC? Hopefully you are not using a voltage divider to step down a DC voltage, but if you are then that is the problem.
 
More questions about your circuits:

Is your proximity probe source actually powering the two circuits, or do the circuits have separate power supplies and they are only there to measure the voltage out of the probe?

What is the voltage, both open-circuit and under load? AC or DC?
 
thanks for the help, i solved the problem by massivly uping the resistor values that i measured the power off, therefore meaning that i was not getting a voltage drop anymore
 
You're welcome, glad you were able to make it work.
 

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