Voltage Dividers

In an electrical circuit, the input voltage supplied from a voltage source may not fit the requirements of a circuit component. The use of voltage dividers provides us with a method to work around this issue and output a desired fraction of the input voltage. Watch the video below to learn how voltage dividers work and how they may be used in biomedical instrumentation applications.


Self-Assessment Questions:

Click here to test your understanding of Voltage Dividers.


Discussion Questions:
  1. The video mainly focused on a direct current (DC) circuit. Consider what purpose a voltage divider circuit containing alternating circuit (AC) components (capacitor or inductor) would have in an AC circuit.
  2. The video described many characteristics of a voltage divider circuit. What are some advantages and disadvantages of each of them?
  3. A potentiometer is an adjustable resistor that allows the user to manually adjust the resistance ratio of the two halves. Consider its use in a voltage divider circuit.
  4. After reviewing Yoshiwaki et al.’s article on voltage divider use in ECG signals,  consider how they use voltage dividers in the development of their new technology.

Continue Reading:
  • M. Yoshiwaki, A. Murai, Y. Sakaue and M. Makikawa, “A new approach to estimate ECG signal source using voltage divider technology,” 2014 Proceedings of the SICE Annual Conference (SICE), 2014, pp. 1460-1465. Read the article here.
    • Published by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, researchers at Ritsumeikan University developed a new ECG signal source estimation method that uses voltage divider technology.
  • Voltage Dividers. Electronics Tutorials. Read the article here.
    • A brief overview of voltage dividers (resistive, capacitive, and inductive) and their associated calculations.

About the Creator:

This video was created by a student in the Rice Bioengineering Class of 2023 (used with permission).

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