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M
Low-Voltage, Low-Power,
16-Bit Smart ADC
______________________________________________________________________________________
15
Figure 6 shows the characteristics of an individual
Lucas-NovaSensor model NPH8-100-EH, 0 to 15psig,
silicon pressure sensor.
Figure 7 shows the result of the compensated sen-
sor/MAX1462 pair.
Using the Compensated
Sensor/MAX1462 Pair
After calibration and removal from the test system, the
MAX1462 and the sensor form a mated pair. The START
pin can be connected to V
DD
or left unconnected if the
sensor does not require a significant warmup time. Now
operation is simple: just apply power and latch the
parallel output D when EOC falls. Temperature is digi-
tized during the first half of t
ADC
, so the MAX1462 pro-
vides a minimum sensor warmup time of 35ms. Using a
2MHz resonator, the conversion time (t
CONV
) is nominally
67ms. If the Repeat Mode bit is set, conversions repeat at
a rate of 15Hz.
If the sensor requires more than 35ms of warmup time,
START may be used to initiate conversion (Figure 5). If
the Repeat Mode bit is set, START should remain high. If
the Repeat Mode bit is reset, START may be used to con-
trol externally the conversion rate of the MAX1462. After
the 12-bit parallel output D is latched, end the conversion
by taking START low for at least one clock cycle.
The output DAC converts the parallel digital output into
a serial bitstream on OUT. A simple external lowpass
filter, using the MAX1462 op amp, converts the OUT
bitstream into a ratiometric analog voltage (Figure 8).
The filter shown is an inverting configuration, but the
Gain and D
OFF
coefficients of the characteristic equa-
tion can be adjusted to obtain either polarity. If the op
amp is not used, it can be powered down using the
Op
Amp Power-Down
bit in the configuration register.
The MAX1462 requires a minimum of external compo-
nents:
One power-supply bypass capacitor (C1) from V
DD
to V
SS
.
One 2MHz ceramic resonator (X
1
).
Two 10k
resistors for the AGND pin.
If an analog output is desired, two 500k
resistors
and a 1μF capacitor are needed for filtering.
MAX1462 Evaluation/
Development Kit
The MAX1462 evaluation kit (EV kit) speeds the devel-
opment of MAX1462-based transducer prototypes and
test systems. First-time users of the MAX1462 are
strongly encouraged to use this kit, which includes:
1) Evaluation board, with a MAX1462 sample and a sili-
con pressure sensor, ready for customer evaluation.
2) Interface board that must be connected to a PC par-
allel port.
3) MAX1462 communication/compensation software
(Windows compatible), which enables programming
of the MAX1462 one module at a time.
4) Detailed Design/Applications manual, developed for
sensor-test engineers.
The evaluation kit order number is MAX1462EVKIT.
-10
-4
-6
-8
0
-2
8
6
4
2
FSO
10
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
UNCOMPENSATED SENSOR ERROR
TEMPERATURE (
°
C)
E
OFFSET
Figure 6. Sensor Characteristics Before Compensation
-0.20
-0.10
-0.15
0
-0.05
0.15
0.10
0.05
0.20
0
20
10
30
40
50
60
70
COMPENSATED TRANSDUCER ERROR
TEMPERATURE (
°
C)
E
FSO
OFFSET
Figure 7. Compensated Sensor/MAX1462 Pair
Chip Information
TRANSISTOR COUNT: 59,855
SUBSTRATE CONNECTED TO V
SS