Circuit Diagram

What is a Circuit Diagram?

A circuit is a pavement that the electric current takes to traverse, and a circuit diagram is a graphical demonstration of an electrical circuit.

In EEE or Electrical & Electronics Engineering, students employ various drawings or diagrams to display a certain electrical ckt. These electrical circuits are demonstrated by lines to represent wires and symbols to represent electrical & electronic constituents, as it aids in better apprehending the connection between distinct components. Electricians depend upon an electric circuit diagram for initiating any building wiring.

In this article, we will learn how to draw a simple electric circuit diagram.

Circuit Diagram

A simple circuit diagram comprises three following components essential for operating an electrical circuit:

• A Voltage source

• A conductive pathway (a path that facilitates the motion of charges), and

• A resistor (that can be bulb/motor, which requires electricity to do work)

Types of Electric Circuit Diagrams

• Block Diagram

A Block diagram is one of the easiest approaches to display the complex circuit in its simplest form. Without considering the complex interconnections or wiring, it displays the functioning of the principal components of an electric circuit in the form of blocks, and the lines connecting them are to showcase the relationship between these blocks.

Example: A block diagram displaying the process of converting an audio signal into a desired frequency modulated signal can be described through the following diagram:

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• Schematic Circuit Diagram

The schematic diagram of an electric ckt displays all the electrical components & interconnections of the ckt by employing systemized symbols and lines. 

These diagrams are employed in presenting the series & parallel combinations and the accurate linking between their terminals. For example, in drawing a schematic diagram of a voltage amplifier, we employ symbols for displaying the electrical components and lines to present the interlinking between their terminals. The below diagram displays the circuit diagram of a voltage amplifier:

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•  Pictorial Circuit Diagram

The pictorial ckt diagram is one of the fundamental diagrams that employs simple images of electrical components. These diagrams present a sketch of the particular electrical components and the interconnection between these.  These diagrams are simple to understand for those who are not familiar with their physical appearance.  

These diagrams employ various electrical components' without considering their real location, how the wiring is marked or routed; however, it does represent the order in which these components are connected.

The below diagram is the simple pictorial circuit diagram of an automobile starter and ignition system:

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•  Single Line Diagram (SLD)/One-Line Diagram

An SLD diagram has a higher use in real life. This diagram is the one-line representation of a circuit. 

We use a single line diagram to simplify presenting the typical complex three-phase power circuits by displaying all the electrical components.

However, these circuits don't represent the electrical interlinking of the components; but they do display the size & rating of the electric constituents. 

Simple Circuit Diagram

For drawing an electric circuit diagram, we need to understand the following elements used in an electric circuit:

• Cell

1. An electric cell

2. A battery or combination of cells

• Switch 

1. Open

2. Closed

• Connecting wire

• Wires crossing without joining

• Resistor 

• An electric bulb

• A wire joint

• Rheostat: A variable resistor (found in ceiling fan regulators)

• Measuring instruments:

1. Voltmeter: To measure the electric potential

2. Ammeter: To measure the electric current

Simple Circuit Diagram Symbols

Below are the symbols of the elements employed in an electric circuit:

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Basic Circuit Diagram

A circuit diagram is a simple representation of the electrical components of a circuit by employing either the images of the different parts or the standardized symbols. It displays the relative positions of all the electrical elements & their interconnections. While getting electrical fitting at our newly built home, we often use a ckt diagram to provide a visual representation to an electrician. The below figure demonstrates a simple circuit diagram:

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We can draw a simple electrical circuit diagram in the following way:

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Now, we will learn how to build a basic circuit by using the electric elements.

How to Build A Simple Electric Circuit?

Electricity is the primary source of our life. While using it, we all find a way out to draw a simple circuit diagram to experiment with how a circuit works, so today, we are going to the same.

Aim: We aim to set up an electric circuit.

Required Materials

• A simple electric bulb or an LED

• Two small button batteries (cells)

•  Copper wire for interconnections

• A scotch tube

• A wire cutter

Step-by-step Instructions

• Cut the copper wire into two pieces.

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• Now, pile the two-button batteries (the two balls, as shown in the above diagram) in such a way that they face each other, i.e., the plus-end of one battery is touching the negative-end of the other battery.

• Connect one wire to one node (or leg) of a bulb (a simple/LED) and the other piece of wire to another node of the bulb.

• Now, we can observe that the light goes off after all the interconnection; this illustrates that our simple circuit is complete.

• We can try connecting & disconnecting the wire and record our observations.