Online Tool for Developing Sensor Signal Path Solutions

National Semiconductor introduced what’s said to be the industry’s first sensor signal path design tool that enables engineers to quickly move from concept to simulation to prototyping of common sensor solutions used in medical, industrial and high-end consumer products.

The WEBENCH Sensor Designer tool reduces design time and cost by configuring a complete sensor signal path solution with just a few keystrokes. Prior to this design tool, an engineer would have to consume valuable development time matching sensor characteristics and performance with an operational amplifier’s (op amp’s) DC performance and an ADC’s resolution and accuracy. Additional time would then be required for circuit evaluation and prototyping.

The WEBENCH Sensor Designer tool streamlines the sensor interface and data conversion design, allowing the engineer to focus on the other parts of the overall system. With a few keystrokes, National’s WEBENCH Sensor Designer tool matches the industry’s leading bridge pressure sensors, photo detector sensors and thermocouple sensors with National’s PowerWise energy-efficient op amps and pin- and function-compatible 8-, 10-, 12-, 14- and 16-bit ADCs.

For example, the WEBENCH Sensor Designer tool can combine the PowerWise LMP7731 precision amplifier with the new ADC161S626 16-bit, 250 kilo-samples per second (KSPS), differential input ADC. The LMP7731 features low input voltage noise of 2.9 nV/sqrt Hz with a 1/f noise corner of only 3 Hz, while the ADC161S626 provides signal accuracy of +/- 0.003 percent over the -40 degrees C to 85 degrees C temperature range. Each signal path solution amplifies, conditions and digitizes the sensor output to directly link to a microcontroller or digital signal processor (DSP). The tool also allows users to order a customize evaluation kit for prototyping their simulated WEBENCH solution in the lab.

National Semiconductor