Use 15 boards or one IC?

Product

February 04, 2011

Size, Weight, and Power (SWaP) reduction is imperative on the military scene, and National Semiconductor's Analog Front-End (AFE) Integrated Circuits (ICs) are helping.

Size, Weight, and Power (SWaP) reduction is imperative on the military scene, and National Semiconductor’s Analog Front-End (AFE) Integrated Circuits (ICs) are helping: Just one of these configurable AFE ICs for sensor systems is touted to handle the same load as 25 components strapped onto 15 boards. Not only that, sensor system designs that formerly took weeks to design now only take a few minutes when the AFE ICs, along with National Semiconductor’s WEBENCH–Sensor AFE Designer bench-top evaluation tool, are used.

Here’s how it works: WEBENCH and the AFE ICs allow engineers to choose a sensor, then design and configure their ware. Next, configuration data is downloaded and sent directly to a sensor AFE, and voila! Either the LMP91000 or LMP90100 AFE ICs can be used in this scenario. LMP90100 is a multichannel, 24-bit sensor AFE suited to high-performance transducer and transmitter applications and renders an average draw of less than 0.7 mA within the -40 °C to +125 °C temp range. In contrast, the LMP91000 is a low-power, configurable potentiostat offering a sensor-to-ADC integrated signal path, ideal for two-terminal oxygen sensors and gas and micro-power chemical sensing applications. Its 10 microAmps average voltage/output gain make it ideal for 4 mA to 20 mA transmitter applications and battery-operated systems.