Summary of LITTLE BEE, AFFORDABLE HIGH-PERFORMANCE CURRENT & MAGNETIC FIELD PROBE
Little Bee is an open-hardware, affordable high-performance current and magnetic field probe for debugging power electronics. It provides isolated, accurate measurements from DC to the MHz range using an Anisotropic Magneto-Resistive (AMR) sensor. The probe uses a clip and a ferrite toroid with an air gap to convert wire current into a measurable magnetic field, maintaining accuracy despite wire position. Little Bee aims to broaden access to test equipment for applications like electric vehicles, alternative energy, and high-efficiency power supplies.
Parts used in the Little Bee:
- Anisotropic Magneto-Resistive (AMR) magnetic sensor
- Clip for current sensing
- Ferrite toroid with an air gap
- Sensor tip that rests in the air gap
- Probe housing and mechanical components (clip and enclosure)
- Electronics for signal conditioning and isolation
A campaign for a current probe called Little Bee was launched on Crowdsupply. Little Bee is an affordable and high-performance current probe and magnetic field probe that enables you to debug and analyze electronic devices more effectively. This device comes in handy because current probes available today are expensive, therefore having a limited number of users. Current probes are gaining ground today because of the popularity of power electronics like electric vehicles, alternative energy, and high-efficiency power supplies. Regarding the aim of the project, the company says:
We hope to make the world of power electronics accessible to more people by delivering a much-needed piece of test equipment as open hardware and at an affordable price.
Little Bee can function as a traditional current probe, providing isolated measurements of the current in a wire with higher accuracy, and It can also measure currents over a wide bandwidth: from DC to the MHz range. Thanks to its Anisotropic Magneto-Resistive (AMR) magnetic sensor, Little Bee’s performance can be compared to other current probes based on fluxgate magnetometers, and probes with hybrid features that offer AC current transformers with DC hall effect sensors. Little Bee offers the same level of performance, but with a much lower cost.
The AMR sensor functions by sensing magnetic fields, producing a voltage proportional to the magnetic field strength. It features a clip, which enables current sensing by translating the current in a wire into a magnetic field. It is also equipped with a ferrite toroid with an air gap in which the sensor tip rests. The synergy between the current in the wire and the magnetic field in the air gap varies little as the wire moves around the center of the toroid. This enables accurate current sensing despite variations in the test setup.
Read more: LITTLE BEE, AFFORDABLE HIGH-PERFORMANCE CURRENT & MAGNETIC FIELD PROBE
- What is Little Bee?
Little Bee is an open-hardware, affordable high-performance current and magnetic field probe for debugging electronic devices. - Can Little Bee measure DC and high-frequency currents?
Yes. Little Bee measures currents from DC to the MHz range. - How does Little Bee sense current?
It uses an AMR magnetic sensor with a clip and a ferrite toroid with an air gap to translate wire current into a magnetic field that the sensor reads. - Does Little Bee provide isolated measurements?
Yes. Little Bee can function as a traditional current probe, providing isolated measurements of current in a wire. - How does the ferrite toroid help measurement accuracy?
The ferrite toroid with an air gap stabilizes the magnetic field in the gap so the synergy between wire current and the field varies little as the wire moves, maintaining accurate sensing. - Is Little Bee comparable to fluxgate or hybrid probes?
Yes. Thanks to its AMR sensor, Little Bee’s performance can be compared to probes based on fluxgate magnetometers and hybrid probes, while offering lower cost. - Why was Little Bee created?
The project aims to make power electronics test equipment more accessible by delivering an affordable open-hardware current probe. - What applications benefit from Little Bee?
Applications in power electronics such as electric vehicles, alternative energy, and high-efficiency power supplies benefit from Little Bee.
