In the new millennium, the knowledge half-life of digital and analogue instrumentation is less than four years. Consider Theo A.M. Classen’s recent statement: “Usefulness of a product = Log (Technology)”1. This requires us to carefully ponder, then to become skilled in, the level of technology built in new Digital and Analogue Instrumentation and products that we often take for granted. Simply stated, millions of transistors combined with millions of bytes of software equals the current level of technology developed over a period of just 50 years. All made possible only since the invention of the basic building block,
the transistor.
Aresponse from the readership of my firstwork on digital and analogue instrumentation (cir. 1996) encouraged me, and the IEE Publishing Director, Dr Robin Mellors-Bourne, to create this newvolume, instead of merely reprinting the first edition of the book. Iwas astounded by the almost exponential increase in technological advances occurring in the five years following publication of the first book digital and analogue instrumentation, making this a work of nearly 700 pages, compared with a mere 290 pages for the previous book.
Commencing with my initial position of an electronics engineer in the aviation industry in the mid-1970s, through a research career culminating in the directorship at the Arthur C. Clarke Institute in Sri Lanka, and now to a full-time academic position
in New Zealand, I answered the call to dedicate time over this period of my life to share hard-won experience. In writing this work, I hope to encourage and inspire readers to develop greater depth of knowledge in today’s complex digital and analogue instrumentationand
instrumentation systems, and to more fully appreciate and understand the incredible assistance that these devices regularly provide in an increasingly complex world. I wish to conclude this brief preface with a valuable statement of insight by
Sri Sathyajith Sai Baba on teaching: “A good educator chooses the concept of inspiration compared to the possible explanation or complaining”.