Application Note

“We cover a wide spectrum of
equipment which all involves the
use of one type of meter or
another,” explained Kerns. “I’ve
used a Fluke ProcessMeter for
about a year and I just purchased
another one for my crew.”
The 787 is used as a volt/ohm
meter in troubleshooting and as
a current signal transmitter for
4-20 mA signals for various elec-
tronic controllers. “The reason I
went to the 787 was because of
the built-in 4-20 mA current
source/simulator. We use this for
calibrating electronic tempera-
ture, pressure sensing, and other
equipment using current signals.”
Bringing light to
darkness
For Doug Gray and Jon Peterson,
instrument technicians for
Alyeska Pipeline Service Com-
pany, reality is working in the
dark 75 percent of the time.
Alyeska operates the Trans-
Alaska Pipeline, an 800-mile,
48-inch, fully-insulated pipeline
that transports North Slope crude
oil from Prudhoe Bay to Valdez.
Gray is responsible for the
calibration, maintenance, and
repair of process control and life
support equipment. He uses a
Fluke ProcessMeter for personal
protection in determining if a cir-
cuit has been properly isolated
for work, in measuring input
voltages to controlled devices,
feed back voltages, 4-20 mA
transmitter output, and as a
source for 4-20 mA.
“I like the meter’s large dis-
play. It’s easy to read in tight
places and lights up enough to
be used in the dark,” said Gray.
“And being able to source current
provides me two pieces of equip-
ment in one. I have to travel to
remote sites wearing heavy
clothes and the less I have to
pack with me, the better.”
Peterson works on instrumen-
tation and controls, fire detection
systems and electrical mainte-
nance. “I’ve used a ProcessMeter
for two years calibrating control
loops on relief valve and gas tur-
bine controls,” explained Peter-
son. “We chose Fluke’s
ProcessMeter because it’s
smaller, its battery lasts much
longer, and the meter’s range is
continuous.”
Working in the arctic environ-
ment and at remote locations is
challenging and having equip-
ment they can depend on is crit-
ical. “Fluke has always provided
a quality device,” said Gray. “I
acquired my electronics degree
using Fluke equipment in college
and it is the test equipment pre-
ferred by my company and by
industry.”
789 – The super-sized
ProcessMeter
So how do you make a mission-
critical tool even better? When
Fluke recently introduced the
Fluke 789 ProcessMeter, it added
a display that’s 200-percent
larger than the 787, with
enhanced backlighting and two
brightness settings for easy
readability.
Fluke went back to these
same technicians to have them
test the functionality of the 789
in the same work environments
as before. And while the super-
sized display was the most
notable improvement, the addi-
tion of a 24-volt loop power
supply, a HART
®
mode with a
built-in 250 ohm resister with
loop power, improved battery
power with four AA batteries,
0-100 % mA span check buttons
to toggle from 4 to 20 mA, and
an infrared I/O serial port com-
patible with FlukeView
®
Soft-
ware were also valued changes.
“What I liked best about the
789 is the enlarged, easy-to-
read display, the molded-on
case, and the 0-100 % span
check for the 4-20 mA output,”
said Bethlehem Steel’s Phil May.
“I like that the 789 is a com-
bination of multiple meters and
source devices,” added Doug
Gray of Alyeska Pipeline. “And
it’s compact and durable.”
Some sites used the 789 for
a specific measurement while
others used it for a variety of
measurements.
“I used the 789 for voltage
checks, current readings and
current sourcing,” said Greg
Fletcher of Amgen.
Phillips Alaska’s Bob Curtis
reported that his crew used the
789 on a variety of equipment,
for a wide range of measure-
ments, including:
•
Voltmeter function to measure
power supplies, loop voltages,
and control circuit voltage;
•
Current meter function to
measure loop currents;
•
Frequency function for meas-
uring ac line frequency, fre-
quency from turbine meters
for flow measurement, and
frequency from magnetic
speed pickups on rotating
equipment (turbines, pumps,
etc.);
•
Analog output primarily for
driving 4-20 mA loops to
signal inputs for I/P’s and
valve positioners, and to simu-
late 4-20 mA inputs to DCS
for loop checking;
•
Resistance function to check
grounds on a newly installed
Bently Nevada’s 3500 Series
Machinery Protection System.
To these technicians, the 789
was more than super-sized – it
was a valuable improvement to
an already valuable tool.
3 Fluke Corporation Fluke ProcessMeter™ proves that less can be more
Fluke Corporation
PO Box 9090, Everett, WA USA 98206
Fluke Europe B.V.
PO Box 1186, 5602 BD
Eindhoven, The Netherlands
For more information call:
In the U.S.A. [phone] or
Fax [phone]
In Europe/M-East/Africa (31 40) 2 675 200 or
Fax [phone]
In Canada (800) 36-FLUKE or
Fax [phone]
From other countries [phone] or
Fax [phone]
Web access: http://www.fluke.com
©2003 Fluke Corporation. All rights reserved.
Printed in U.S.A. 1/2003 2067485 A-ENG-N Rev A
Fluke. Keeping your world
up and running.