A digital tachometer is an instrument used to measure the rotation speed of any mechanical object and provide an accurate reading on a digital display. Most commonly, the tachometer is used in vehicles on dashboards to measure the revolutions per minute (RPMs) of the engine. While traditional tachometers use a dial and a needle to indicate the current reading and markings that indicate dangerous and safe levels, digital tachometers provide numerical readings on a display, which makes them the obvious choice.
In addition to their wide use in automobiles, digital tachometers are also used in airplanes, laser instruments and even in medicine. Today, there is a wide range of digital tachometers and some are able to measure speeds up to 250,000 RPM.
Here are some of the most popular digital tachometer models used for industrial applications:
- Testo 460 Pocket Pro – This digital tachometer is used to optically measure RPM of rotating objects, such as shafts, ventilators, impellers, etc. It provides readings on a pretty large LED display for a pocket tachometer. With a single display and only three buttons, Testo 460 is simple and easy to use, but highly accurate. The backlit display allows users to read out the measurements easily, even in the most difficult light conditions.
- Testrite T-8 – Testrite T-8 is a contact/non-contact digital tachometer that provides accurate and quick RPM speed measurements of rotating objects. This is one of the most commonly used digital tachometers, mostly because it is suitable for a variety of industrial applications with its wide measurement range with high resolution. Testrite T-8 comes with a 40-readings storage memory and a built-in laser pointer for easier targeting of the area to be measured.
- AEMC CA1725 – AEMC CA1725 is an infrared digital tachometer with a capacity to get measurements up to 100,000 RPM. Despite using infrared, this device is easy and simple to use and provides great measurement possibilities with or without contact. The AEMC CA1725 has a combination of digital and analog bar graph LCD display, which provides measurements very accurately. With a lot of programming possibilities and multiple functions and automatic data acquisition and storage routines, this digital tachometer is widely used not only for industrial applications, but for automotive applications, accurate environments, laboratory measurements, conveyor systems and others.
- AEMC CA1727 – This digital tachometer model is an upgrade to the AEMC CA1725. It is quite similar to the previous model in all aspects, but it offers an USB interface and a TachoGraph software for analyzing and processing the measurements on a computer.