Designers of systems for industrial automation and healthcare are increasingly employing advanced sense, detect, and image and video capture technology for digitization and analysis. However, the analysis is only as good as the input data, the acquisition of which relies upon high-performance, high-dynamic range, precise and stable signal conditioning, and conversion blocks. The design of these blocks using discrete circuit methods requires considerable design resources, board space, and time, all of which add to overall cost.
At the same time, designers need to ensure their end systems remain competitive, which means lowering cost and time to market as much as possible while ensuring outstanding performance.
A typical data acquisition system is shown in Figure 1. The signal of interest is picked up by a sensor which outputs an electrical signal in response to some physical phenomena. The sensor’s outputs may be single-ended or differential and may require some signal conditioning such as filtering. In order to obtain the maximum possible dynamic range from the analog-to-digital converter (ADC), the signal must be amplified to match the ADC’s input voltage range. The amplifier gain and offset are generally controlled by precision resistors which must be carefully matched for dynamic and temperature drift considerations. Temperature dependencies usually require that components are in close physical proximity. Dynamic conditions include noise and distortion levels which must be minimized.
Post time: May-30-2022