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Tutorial: 7 of 10
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Thevenins Theorem
In the previous 3 tutorials we have looked at solving complex electrical circuits using Kirchoff's Circuit Laws, Mesh Analysis and finally Nodal Analysis but there are many more "Circuit Analysis Theorems" available to calculate the currents and voltages at any point in a circuit. In this tutorial we will look at one of the more common circuit analysis theorems (next to Kirchoffs) that has been developed, Thevenins Theorem. Thevenins Theorem states that "Any linear circuit containing several voltages and resistances can be replaced by just a Single Voltage in series with a Single Resistor". In other words, it is possible to simplify any "Linear" circuit, no matter how complex, to an equivalent circuit with just a single voltage source in series with a resistance connected to a load as shown below. Thevenins Theorem is especially useful in analyzing power or battery systems and other interconnected circuits where it will have an effect on the adjoining part of the circuit.
As far as the load resistor RL is concerned, any "one-port" network consisting of resistive circuit elements and energy sources can be replaced by one single equivalent resistance Rs and equivalent voltage Vs, where Rs is the source resistance value looking back into the circuit and Vs is the open circuit voltage at the terminals. For example, consider the circuit from the previous section.
Firstly, we have to remove the centre 40 resistor and short out (not physically as this would be dangerous) all the emfs connected to the circuit, or open circuit any current sources. The value of resistor Rs is found by calculating the total resistance at the terminals A and B with all the emfs removed, and the value of the voltage required Vs is the total voltage across terminals A and B with an open circuit and no load resistor Rs connected. Then, we get the following circuit.
We now need to reconnect the two voltages back into the circuit, and as VS = VAB the current flowing around the loop is calculated as:
so the voltage drop across the 20 resistor can be calculated as: VAB = 20 - (20 x 0.33amps) = 13.33 volts. Then the Thevenins Equivalent circuit is shown below with the 40 resistor connected.
and from this the current flowing in the circuit is given as:
which again, is the same value of 0.286 amps, we found using Kirchoffs circuit law in the previous tutorial.
Thevenins theorem can be used as a circuit analysis method and is particularly useful if the load is to take a series of different values. It is not as powerful as Mesh or Nodal analysis in larger networks because the use of Mesh or Nodal analysis is usually necessary in any Thevenin exercise, so it might as well be used from the start. However, Thevenins equivalent circuits of Transistors, Voltage Sources such as batteries etc, are very useful in circuit design.
1. Remove the load resistor RL or component concerned. 2. Find RS by shorting all voltage sources or by open circuiting all the current sources. 3. Find VS by the usual circuit analysis methods. 4. Find the current flowing through the load resistor RL.
In the next tutorial we will look at Nortons Theorem which allows a network consisting of linear resistors and sources to be represented by an equivalent circuit with a single current source in parallel with a single source resistance.
Nortons Theorem
Tutorial: 8 of 10
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Nortons Theorem
In some ways Norton's Theorem can be thought of as the opposite to "Thevenins Theorem", in that Thevenin reduces his circuit down to a single resistance in series with a single voltage. Norton on the other hand reduces his circuit down to a single resistance in parallel with a constant current source. Nortons Theorem states that "Any linear circuit containing several energy sources and resistances can be replaced by a single Constant Current generator in parallel with a Single Resistor". As far as the load resistance, RL is concerned this single resistance, RS is the value of the resistance looking back into the network with all the current sources open circuited and IS is the short circuit current at the output terminals as shown below.
The value of this "constant current" is one which would flow if the two output terminals where shorted together while the source resistance would be measured looking back into the terminals, (the same as Thevenin). For example, consider our now familiar circuit from the previous section.
To find the Nortons equivalent of the above circuit we firstly have to remove the centre 40 load resistor and short out the terminals A and B to give us the following circuit.
When the terminals A and B are shorted together the two resistors are connected in parallel across their two respective voltage sources and the currents flowing through each resistor as well as the total short circuit current can now be calculated as:
If we short-out the two voltage sources and open circuit terminals A and B, the two resistors are now effectively connected together in parallel. The value of the internal resistor Rs is found by calculating the total resistance at the terminals A and B giving us the following circuit.
Having found both the short circuit current, Is and equivalent internal resistance, Rs this then gives us the following Nortons equivalent circuit.
Ok, so far so good, but we now have to solve with the original 40 load resistor connected across terminals A and B as shown below.
Again, the two resistors are connected in parallel across the terminals A and B which gives us a total resistance of:
The voltage across the terminals A and B with the load resistor connected is given as:
Then the current flowing in the 40 load resistor can be found as:
which again, is the same value of 0.286 amps, we found using Kirchoffs circuit law in the previous tutorials.
1. Remove the load resistor RL or component concerned. 2. Find RS by shorting all voltage sources or by open circuiting all the current sources. 3. Find IS by placing a shorting link on the output terminals A and B. 4. Find the current flowing through the load resistor RL.
In a circuit, power supplied to the load is at its maximum when the load resistance is equal to the source resistance. In the next tutorial we will look at Maximum Power Transfer. The application of the maximum power transfer theorem can be applied to either simple and complicated linear circuits having a variable load and is used to find the load resistance that leads to transfer of maximum power to the load.
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In our Thevenin equivalent circuit above, the maximum power transfer theorem states that "the maximum amount of power will be dissipated in the load resistance if it is equal in value to the Thevenin or Norton source resistance of the network supplying the power". In other words, the load resistance resulting in greatest power dissipation must be equal in value to the equivalent Thevenin source resistance, then RL = RS but if the load resistance is lower or higher in value than the Thevenin source resistance of the network, its dissipated power will be less than maximum. For example, find the value of the load resistance, RL that will give the maximum power transfer in the following circuit.
Example No1.
We can now complete the following table to determine the current and power in the circuit for different values of load resistance.
Using the data from the table above, we can plot a graph of load resistance, RL against power, P for different values of load resistance. Also notice that power is zero for an open-circuit (zero current condition) and also for a short-circuit (zero voltage condition).
From the above table and graph we can see that the Maximum Power Transfer occurs in the load when the load resistance, RL is equal in value to the source resistance, RS that is: RS = RL = 25. This is called a "matched condition" and as a general rule, maximum power is transferred from an active device such as a power supply or battery to an external device when the impedance of the external device exactly matches the impedance of the source. One good example of impedance matching is between an audio amplifier and a loudspeaker. Improper impedance matching can lead to excessive power loss and heat dissipation.
One very useful application of impedance matching in order to provide maximum power transfer between the source and the load is in the output stages of amplifier circuits. Signal transformers are used to match the loudspeakers higher or lower impedance value to the amplifiers output impedance to obtain maximum sound power output. These audio signal transformers are called "matching transformers" and couple the load to the amplifiers output as shown below.
The maximum power transfer can be obtained even if the output impedance is not the same as the load impedance. This can be done using a suitable "turns ratio" on the transformer with the corresponding ratio of load impedance, ZLOAD to output impedance, ZOUT matches that of the ratio of the transformers primary turns to secondary turns as a resistance on one side of the transformer becomes a different value on the other. If the load impedance, ZLOAD is purely resistive and the source impedance is purely resistive, ZOUT then the equation for finding the maximum power transfer is given as:
Where: NP is the number of primary turns and NS the number of secondary turns on the transformer. Then by varying the value of the transformers turns ratio the output impedance can be "matched" to the source impedance to achieve maximum power transfer. For example,
Example No2.
If an 8 loudspeaker is to be connected to an amplifier with an output impedance of 1000, calculate the turns ratio of the matching transformer required to provide maximum power transfer of the audio signal. Assume the amplifier source impedance is Z1, the load impedance is Z2 with the turns ratio given as N.
Generally, small transformers used in low power audio amplifiers are usually regarded as ideal so any losses can be ignored. In the next tutorial about DC Theory we will look at Star Delta Transformation which allows us to convert balanced star connected circuits into equivalent delta and vice versa.
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can be easily transformed or changed it into an equivalent configuration of the other type by using either the Star Delta Transformation or Delta Star Transformation process. A resistive network consisting of three impedances can be connected together to form a T or "Tee" configuration but the network can also be redrawn to form a Star or type network as shown below.
As we have already seen, we can redraw the T resistor network to produce an equivalent Star or type network. But we can also convert a Pi or type resistor network into an equivalent Delta or type network as shown below.
Having now defined exactly what is a Star and Delta connected network it is possible to transform the into an equivalent circuit and also to convert a into an equivalent circuit using a the transformation process. This process allows us to produce a mathematical
relationship between the various resistors giving us a Star Delta Transformation as well as a Delta Star Transformation. These transformations allow us to change the three connected resistances by their equivalents measured between the terminals 1-2, 1-3 or 2-3 for either a star or delta connected circuit. However, the resulting networks are only equivalent for voltages and currents external to the star or delta networks, as internally the voltages and currents are different but each network will consume the same amount of power and have the same power factor to each other.
This now gives us three equations and taking equation 3 from equation 2 gives:
Adding together equation 1 and the result above of equation 3 minus equation 2 gives:
Then to summarize a little the above maths, we can now say that resistor P in a Star network can be found as Equation 1 plus (Equation 3 minus Equation 2) or Eq1 + (Eq3 - Eq2). Similarly, to find resistor Q in a star network, is equation 2 plus the result of equation 1 minus equation 3 or Eq2 + (Eq1 - Eq3) and this gives us the transformation of Q as:
and again, to find resistor R in a Star network, is equation 3 plus the result of equation 2 minus equation 1 or Eq3 + (Eq2 - Eq1) and this gives us the transformation of R as:
When converting a delta network into a star network the denominators of all of the transformation formulas are the same: A + B + C, and which is the sum of ALL the delta resistances. Then to convert any delta connected network to an equivalent star network we can summarized the above transformation equations as:
If the three resistors in the delta network are all equal in value then the resultant resistors in the equivalent star network will be equal to one third the value of the delta resistors, giving each branch in the star network as: RSTAR = 1/3RDELTA
Example No1
Convert the following Delta Resistive Network into an equivalent Star Network.
The value of the resistor on any one side of the delta, network is the sum of all the two-product combinations of resistors in the star network divide by the star resistor located "directly opposite" the delta resistor being found. For example, resistor A is given as:
with respect to terminal 1. By dividing out each equation by the value of the denominator we end up with three separate transformation formulas that can be used to convert any Delta resistive network into an equivalent star network as given below.
Star Delta Transformations allow us to convert one circuit type of circuit connection to another in order for us to easily analyise a circuit and one final point about converting a star resistive
network to an equivalent delta network. If all the resistors in the star network are all equal in value then the resultant resistors in the equivalent delta network will be three times the value of the star resistors and equal, giving: RDELTA = 3RSTAR
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In the above circuit, node D is chosen as the reference node and the other three nodes are assumed to have voltages, Va, Vb and Vc with respect to node D. For example;
again is the same value of 0.286 amps, we found using Kirchoff's Circuit Law in the previous tutorial. From both Mesh and Nodal Analysis methods we have looked at so far, this is the simplest method of solving this particular circuit. Generally, nodal voltage analysis is more appropriate when there are a larger number of current sources around. The network is then defined as: [ I ] = [ Y ] [ V ] where [ I ] are the driving current sources, [ V ] are the nodal voltages to be found and [ Y ] is the admittance matrix of the network which operates on [ V ] to give [ I ].
1. Write down the current vectors, assuming currents into a node are positive. ie, a (N x 1) matrices for "N" independent nodes. 2. Write the admittance matrix [Y] of the network where:
o o o o o o
Y11 = the total admittance of the first node. Y22 = the total admittance of the second node. RJK = the total admittance joining node J to node K.
3. For a network with "N" independent nodes, [Y] will be an (N x N) matrix and that Ynn will be positive and Yjk will be negative or zero value. 4. The voltage vector will be (N x L) and will list the "N" voltages to be found.
We have now seen that a number of theorems exist that simplify the analysis of linear circuits. In the next tutorial we will look at Thevenins Theorem which allows a network consisting of linear resistors and sources to be represented by an equivalent circuit with a single voltage source and a series resistance.
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Circuit Analysis
In the previous tutorial we saw that complex circuits such as bridge or T-networks can be solved using Kirchoff's Circuit Laws. While Kirchoffs Laws give us the basic method for analysing any complex electrical circuit, there are different ways of improving upon this method by using Mesh Current Analysis or Nodal Voltage Analysis that results in a lessening of the math's involved and when large networks are involved this reduction in maths can be a big advantage. For example, consider the circuit from the previous section.
One simple method of reducing the amount of math's involved is to analyse the circuit using Kirchoff's Current Law equations to determine the currents, I1 and I2 flowing in the two resistors. Then there is no need to calculate the current I3 as its just the sum of I1 and I2. So Kirchoff's second voltage law simply becomes:
Equation No 1 : Equation No 2 :
We now write Kirchoff's voltage law equation in the same way as before to solve them but the advantage of this method is that it ensures that the information obtained from the circuit equations is the minimum required to solve the circuit as the information is more general and can easily be put into a matrix form. For example, consider the circuit from the previous section.
These equations can be solved quite quickly by using a single mesh impedance matrix Z. Each element ON the principal diagonal will be "positive" and is the total impedance of each mesh. Where as, each element OFF the principal diagonal will either be "zero" or "negative" and represents the circuit element connecting all the appropriate meshes. This then gives us a matrix of:
Where:
[ V ] gives the total battery voltage for loop 1 and then loop 2. [ I ] states the names of the loop currents which we are trying to find. [ R ] is called the resistance matrix.
and this gives I1 as -0.143 Amps and I2 as -0.429 Amps As : I3 = I1 - I2 -0.143 - (-0.429) = 0.286 Amps
which is the same value of 0.286 amps, we found using Kirchoffs circuit law in the previous tutorial.
1. Label all the internal loops with circulating currents. (I1, I2, ...IL etc) 2. Write the [ L x 1 ] column matrix [ V ] giving the sum of all voltage sources in each loop. 3. Write the [ L x L ] matrix, [ R ] for all the resistances in the circuit as follows;
o o o o o o
R11 = the total resistance in the first loop. Rnn = the total resistance in the Nth loop. RJK = the resistance which directly joins loop J to Loop K.
4. Write the matrix or vector equation [V] = [R] x [I] where [I] is the list of currents to be found.
As well as using Mesh Current Analysis, we can also use node analysis to calculate the voltages around the loops, again reducing the amount of mathematics required using just Kirchoff's laws. In the next tutorial about DC Theory we will look at Nodal Voltage Analysis to do just that.
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Here, the 3 currents entering the node, I1, I2, I3 are all positive in value and the 2 currents leaving the node, I4 and I5 are negative in value. Then this means we can also rewrite the equation as; I1 + I2 + I3 - I4 - I5 = 0 The term Node in an electrical circuit generally refers to a connection or junction of two or more current carrying paths or elements such as cables and components. Also for current to flow either in or out of a node a closed circuit path must exist. We can use Kirchoff's current law when analysing parallel circuits.
Starting at any point in the loop continue in the same direction noting the direction of all the voltage drops, either positive or negative, and returning back to the same starting point. It is
important to maintain the same direction either clockwise or anti-clockwise or the final voltage sum will not be equal to zero. We can use Kirchoff's voltage law when analysing series circuits. When analysing either DC circuits or AC circuits using Kirchoffs Circuit Laws a number of definitions and terminologies are used to describe the parts of the circuit being analysed such as: node, paths, branches, loops and meshes. These terms are used frequently in circuit analysis so it is important to understand them.
Circuit - a circuit is a closed loop conducting path in which an electrical current flows. Path - a line of connecting elements or sources with no elements or sources included more than once. Node - a node is a junction, connection or terminal within a circuit were two or more circuit elements are connected or joined together giving a connection point between two or more branches. A node is indicated by a dot. Branch - a branch is a single or group of components such as resistors or a source which are connected between two nodes. Loop - a loop is a simple closed path in a circuit in which no circuit element or node is encountered more than once. Mesh - a mesh is a single open loop that does not have a closed path. No components are inside a mesh. Components are connected in series if they carry the same current. Components are connected in parallel if the same voltage is across them.
Example No1
Find the current flowing in the 40 Resistor, R3
The circuit has 3 branches, 2 nodes (A and B) and 2 independent loops. Using Kirchoffs Current Law, KCL the equations are given as; At node A : At node B : I1 + I2 = I3 I3 = I1 + I2
Using Kirchoffs Voltage Law, KVL the equations are given as; Loop 1 is given as : Loop 2 is given as : Loop 3 is given as : 10 = R1 x I1 + R3 x I3 = 10I1 + 40I3 20 = R2 x I2 + R3 x I3 = 20I2 + 40I3 10 - 20 = 10I1 - 20I2
As I3 is the sum of I1 + I2 we can rewrite the equations as; Eq. No 1 : Eq. No 2 : 10 = 10I1 + 40(I1 + I2) = 50I1 + 40I2 20 = 20I2 + 40(I1 + I2) = 40I1 + 60I2
We now have two "Simultaneous Equations" that can be reduced to give us the value of both I1 and I2 Substitution of I1 in terms of I2 gives us the value of I1 as -0.143 Amps Substitution of I2 in terms of I1 gives us the value of I2 as +0.429 Amps As : I3 = I1 + I2
The negative sign for I1 means that the direction of current flow initially chosen was wrong, but never the less still valid. In fact, the 20v battery is charging the 10v battery.
1. Assume all voltages and resistances are given. ( If not label them V1, V2,... R1, R2, etc. ) 2. Label each branch with a branch current. ( I1, I2, I3 etc. ) 3. Find Kirchoff's first law equations for each node. 4. Find Kirchoff's second law equations for each of the independent loops of the circuit. 5. Use Linear simultaneous equations as required to find the unknown currents.
As well as using Kirchoffs Circuit Law to calculate the various voltages and currents circulating around a linear circuit, we can also use loop analysis to calculate the currents in each independent loop which helps to reduce the amount of mathematics required by using just Kirchoff's laws. In the next tutorial about DC Theory we will look at Mesh Current Analysis to do just that.
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when the quantities being measured are very large or very small. The following table gives a list of some of the standard units used in electrical formulas and component values.
G M k none c m n p
So to display the units or multiples of units for either Resistance, Current or Voltage we would use as an example:
1kV = 1 kilo-volt - which is equal to 1,000 Volts. 1mA = 1 milli-amp - which is equal to one thousandths (1/1000) of an Ampere. 47k = 47 kilo-ohms - which is equal to 47 thousand Ohms. 100uF = 100 micro-farads - which is equal to 100 millionths (1/1,000,000) of a Farad. 1kW = 1 kilo-watt - which is equal to 1,000 Watts. 1MHz = 1 mega-hertz - which is equal to one million Hertz.
To convert from one prefix to another it is necessary to either multiply or divide by the difference between the two values. For example, convert 1MHz into kHz. Well we know from above that 1MHz is equal to one million (1,000,000) hertz and that 1kHz is equal to one thousand (1,000) hertz, so one 1MHz is one thousand times bigger than 1kHz. Then to convert Mega-hertz into Kilo-hertz we need to multiply mega-hertz by one thousand, as 1MHz is equal to 1000 kHz. Likewise, if we needed to convert kilo-hertz into mega-hertz we would need to divide by one thousand. A much simpler and quicker method would be to move the decimal point either left or right depending upon whether you need to multiply or divide. As well as the "Standard" electrical units of measure shown above, other units are also used in electrical engineering to denote other values and quantities such as:
Wh The Watt-Hour, The amount of electrical energy consumed in the circuit by a load of one watt drawing power for one hour, eg a Light Bulb. It is commonly used in the form of kWh (Kilowatt-hour) which is 1,000 watthours or MWh (Megawatt-hour) which is 1,000,000 watt-hours. dB The Decibel, The decibel is a one tenth unit of the Bel (symbol B) and is used to represent gain either in voltage, current or power. It is a logarithmic unit expressed in dB and is commonly used to represent the ratio of input to output in amplifier, audio circuits or loudspeaker systems. For example, the dB ratio of an input voltage (Vin) to an output voltage (Vout) is expressed as 20log10 (Vout/Vin). The value in dB can be either positive (20dB) representing gain or negative (-20dB) representing loss with unity, ie input = output expressed as 0dB. Phase Angle, The Phase Angle is the difference in degrees between the voltage waveform and the current waveform having the same periodic time. It is a time difference or time shift and depending upon the circuit element can have a "leading" or "lagging" value. The phase angle of a waveform is measured in degrees or radians. Angular Frequency, Another unit which is mainly used in a.c. circuits to represent the Phasor Relationship between two or more waveforms is called Angular Frequency, symbol . This is a rotational unit of angular frequency 2 with units in radians per second, rads/s. The complete revolution of one cycle is 360 degrees or 2, therefore, half a revolution is given as 180 degrees or rad. Time Constant, The Time Constant of an impedance circuit or linear firstorder system is the time it takes for the output to reach 63.7% of its maximum or minimum output value when subjected to a Step Response input. It is a measure of reaction time.
In the next tutorial about DC Theory we will look at Kirchoff's Circuit Law which along with Ohms Law allows us to calculate the different voltages and currents circulating around a complex circuit.
Ohms Law
Tutorial: 2 of 10
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Ohms Law
The relationship between Voltage, Current and Resistance in any DC electrical circuit was firstly discovered by the German physicist Georg Ohm, (1787 - 1854). Georg Ohm found that, at a constant temperature, the electrical current flowing through a fixed linear resistance is directly proportional to the voltage applied across it, and also inversely proportional to the resistance. This relationship between the Voltage, Current and Resistance forms the bases of Ohms Law and is shown below.
By knowing any two values of the Voltage, Current or Resistance quantities we can use Ohms Law to find the third missing value. Ohms Law is used extensively in electronics formulas and calculations so it is "very important to understand and accurately remember these formulas".
It is sometimes easier to remember Ohms law relationship by using pictures. Here the three quantities of V, I and R have been superimposed into a triangle (affectionately called the Ohms Law Triangle) giving voltage at the top with current and resistance at the bottom. This arrangement represents the actual position of each quantity in the Ohms law formulas.
and transposing the above Ohms Law equation gives us the following combinations of the same equation:
Then by using Ohms Law we can see that a voltage of 1V applied to a resistor of 1 will cause a current of 1A to flow and the greater the resistance, the less current will flow for any applied voltage. Any Electrical device or component that obeys "Ohms Law" that is, the current flowing through it is proportional to the voltage across it ( I V ), such as resistors or cables, are said to be "Ohmic" in nature, and devices that do not, such as transistors or diodes, are said to be "Non-ohmic" devices.
Again, the three quantities have been superimposed into a triangle this time called the Power Triangle with power at the top and current and voltage at the bottom. Again, this arrangement represents the actual position of each quantity in the Ohms law power formulas.
and again, transposing the basic Ohms Law equation above for power gives us the following combinations of the same equation to find the various individual quantities:
One other point about Power, if the calculated power is positive in value for any formula the component absorbs the power, that is it is consuming or using power. But if the calculated power is negative in value the component produces or generates power, in other words it is a source of electrical energy. Also, we now know that the unit of power is the WATT, but some electrical devices such as electric motors have a power rating in the old measurement of "Horsepower" or hp. The relationship between horsepower and watts is given as: 1hp = 746W. So for example, a twohorsepower motor has a rating of 1492W, (2 x 746) or 1.5kW.
As well as using the Ohm's Law Pie Chart shown above, we can also put the individual Ohm's Law equations into a simple matrix table as shown for easy reference when calculating an unknown value.
Example No1
For the circuit shown below find the Voltage (V), the Current (I), the Resistance (R) and the Power (P).
Power within an electrical circuit is only present when BOTH voltage and current are present for example, In an Open-circuit condition, Voltage is present but there is no current flow I = 0 (zero), therefore V x 0 is 0 so the power dissipated within the circuit must also be 0. Likewise, if we have a Short-circuit condition, current flow is present but there is no voltage V = 0, therefore 0 x I = 0 so again the power dissipated within the circuit is 0. As electrical power is the product of V x I, the power dissipated in a circuit is the same whether the circuit contains high voltage and low current or low voltage and high current flow. Generally, power is dissipated in the form of Heat (heaters), Mechanical Work such as motors, etc Energy in the form of radiated (Lamps) or as stored energy (Batteries).
Although electrical energy is measured in Joules it can become a very large value when used to calculate the energy consumed by a component. For example, a single 100 W light bulb connected for one hour will consume a total of 100 watts x 3600 sec = 360,000 Joules. So
prefixes such as kilojoules (kJ = 103J) or megajoules (MJ = 106J) are used instead. If the electrical power is measured in "kilowatts" and the time is given in hours then the unit of energy is in kilowatt-hours or kWh which is commonly called a "Unit of Electricity" and is what consumers purchase from their electricity suppliers. Now that we know what is the relationship between voltage, current and resistance in a circuit, in the next tutorial about DC Theory we will look at the Standard Electrical Units used in electrical and electronic engineering to enable us to calculate these values and see that each value can be represented by either multiples or sub-multiples of the unit.