Shunt (electrical) called a "crowbar" as it is likened to dropping an actual crowbar across a set of bus bars (exposed electrical conductors). An ammeter shunt allows the measurement of current values too large to be directly measured by a particular ammeter. In this case the shunt, a manganin resistor of accurately known resistance, is placed in parallel with the moving coil galvanometer, thus all of the current to be measured will flow through it. In order not to disrupt the circuit, the resistance of the shunt is normally very low. The voltage drop across the shunt is proportional to the current
Mechanical–electrical analogies Mechanical–electrical analogies Mechanical–electrical analogies are the representation of mechanical systems as electrical networks. At first, such analogies were used in reverse to help explain electrical phenomena in familiar mechanical terms. James Clerk Maxwell introduced analogies of this sort in the 19th century. However, as electrical network analysis matured it was found that certain mechanical problems could more easily be solved through an electrical analogy. Theoretical developments in the electrical domain that were particularly useful where the representation of an electrical network as an abstract topological diagram (the circuit diagram) using the lumped element model and the ability of network analysis