Hi, I got given this project, in which I have to some hardware in it, iv never done hardware before and really need to get started.
Now my aim is to measure how fast a propeller is spinning, another student will worry about storing that data somewhere. I could do that by measuring the voltage produced by a turbine as the turbine is connected to an alternator. The voltage produced by the alternator will vary between 0 and 300mV(p-p) depending on the rotational speed of the turbine. My frequency will also be speed dependent and will vary between a small range of (0-5Hz). Im using a PIC16F87X PIC, that has an inbuilt ADC converter. What I need to know is that does the analogue input has to be DC. If not Could I just measure the AC, and write a program that just measures what the amplitude of the waveform is? Sorry for the broad questions, but any feedback will be appreciated.
Thanks