A Unique Approach to Developing Sensor Signal Path Solutions

SIGNAL PATH designer®
No. 125
Introduction
One of the challenges in developing sensor systems
is the time it takes for system designers to develop,
validate, and prototype a solution. Complete solutions
need to address sensor drive and output requirements,
sample rate, signal path calibration, performance,
sensor diagnostics, and power consumption needs.
Simplifying the cycle and reducing development time
can mean a faster time-to-market and more designs
completed per year. Most existing approaches address
only a few of these issues and are time consuming and
complicated to develop.
Taking a New Approach
National Semiconductor has released a family of
configurable Sensor Analog Front End ICs (Sensor
AFEs) to help solve these challenges. Along with
WEBENCH® Sensor Designer software and a bench-top
development platform, they comprise an integrated
hardware/software solution that allows a system
designer to select a sensor, design and configure a
solution, then download configuration data to the
Sensor AFE for validation.
ThisarticledescribeshowtheLMP90100,theindustry’s
first multi-channel, low-power, 24-bit Sensor AFE
with continuous background calibration and sensor
diagnostics, is used to easily interface with multiple
types of sensors at the same time. The LMP90100
WEBENCH Sensor Designer software is used to
select and configure an RTD (temperature sensor) and
pressure sensor signal path. A development platform
is also available to evaluate and validate the design.
The LMP90100 is the first in a family of pin-compatible
Sensor AFEs that provide 16- or 24-bit performance
and allow designers to select a Sensor AFE based on the
number of required channels and whether or not a
current supply is required to drive the sensors.
Voltage Sensor Interface
The LMP90100 is designed to interface with voltage
output sensors. Some of the most popular voltage
output sensors measure temperature, pressure, load,
and force. Common temperature measurement tech-
niques include RTDs (resistive temperature devices),
thermocouples, and thermistors. These sensors are
used in every major industry and are often used
together in the same application. Temperature sensors
in particular are often used in applications with
pressure sensors and load cells.
Temperature, pressure, load and force can usually be
supported with the same type of analog signal path,
provided the sensor signal path can accommodate a
wide range of sensitivities—typically 20 mV to 5V.
Many sensors require voltage supplies and it is often
possible to use the system voltage supply as a supply
source for the sensor. Some sensors, such as RTD’s,
require a current supply which is not commonly
available in most systems. Therefore, a solution designed
to address a wide range of sensors should provide a
constant current source.
A Unique Approach to Developing Sensor
Signal Path Solutions
— Harold Joseph, Senior Marketing Manager
Tips, tricks, and techniques from the analog signal path experts
national.com/spdesigner

SIGNAL PATH designer
3
Temperature and Pressure Sensor Interface
RTDs and pressure sensors are used in process
control applications and a single LMP90100
can accommodate both. The LMP90100 is a
multi-channel IC designed to provide a solution
for multiple sensors like RTDs, thermocouples,
pressure sensors, and load cells, as well as most other
voltage output sensors. The LMP90100 includes a
flexible input MUX, two matched current sources,
sensor diagnostics, an embedded PGA supporting
gains from 1x to 128x, and a 24-bit Sigma-Delta
analog-to-digital converter with 50 to 60 Hz signal
rejection and adjustable sample rates. The flexible
input MUX accepts 4 differential or 7 single-ended
inputs or a combination of the two.
The LMP90100 also includes functions designed to
support the end application. These include true
continuous background calibration (to correct for
offset and gain over time and temperature without
disturbing the signal path), background sensor
diagnostics, and the ability to optimize for low-
power applications. Similarly, each sensor attached
to the LMP90100 will require a different signal
path configuration. Since each input channel can be
independently configured in the LMP90100, the
user can specify an individual gain, sample rate and
sensor diagnostics for each sensor connected.
RTD Signal Path Design
The LMP90100 supports all RTDs which are
available in two-, three-, and four-wire configura-
tions and two standard performance classes—A
and B. Just two wires are needed to make the
temperature measurement. RTDs with three or
four wires allow for resistance compensation and
provide a more accurate signal measurement over
long distances. An RTD's performance changes
over temperatures and the best accuracy is with a
class A platinum RTD which is accurate to 1.5°C
at 0°C. This example uses a three-wire class A RTD.
WEBENCH Sensor Designer software is available
both online and for offline use with the development
platform. For this example, all figures will be from
the downloadable tool. Figure 1 shows the entry
page of the LMP90100 software. Each of the
colored blocks is configurable by clicking on the
block. On the left side is the help bar. The first item
Select a Sensor is highlighted and is the first step in
the design process.
Highlighting Select a Sensor displays the types of
sensors available to interface with the LMP90100,
as shown in Figure 2. In this example, the RTD
tab has been selected to show available RTDs.
Selecting a three-wire, class A Omega RTD (model
PR-20-2-100-1/4-2-E-T) in Figure 3 drops the
RTD to the first open location on the LMP90100
as shown in the diagram in Figure 4. Default
conditions of the RTD are a gain of 1X, a sample
rate of 26.8 sps, and a voltage span of 2V. Designers
can use these settings or modify the parameters to
meet their specific application’s requirements.
Figure 1. WEBENCH Sensor AFE Designer Entry Page

4
In Figure 4, the gain block has been highlighted
which pulls up a configuration window for that
block. The help bar can also be used to highlight
a parameter and pull up a configuration window.
Designers can reassign the RTD to other input
MUX channels if desired and configure parameters
such as VREF inputs, current sources, gain,
background calibration, sensor diagnostics, clock
sources, and sample rate. Sliders are also available
at the bottom of the page to adjust the gain and
sample rate.
Performance and power consumption specifications
are listed for all configurations. In Figure 5, the
performance tab shows noise, ENOB, NFR, power
consumption, and device error (offset error + gain
error) based on the designer’s configuration choices.
In most cases, a designer can select an RTD, specify
a current source, set gain and sample rate, and check
performance in just a few minutes.
The Omega RTD model PR-20-2-100-1/4-2-E-T
selected is a precision PT100 (100Ω) platinum, thin
film, class A RTD. It has a maximum temperature
range of -50 to 260°C and a temperature coefficient
of resistance of 0.00385Ω/Ω/°C.
Let’s assume that the application requires a tem-
perature range of -40°C to 85°C. As mentioned
previously, the LMP90100 includes two current
sources. Specifying one current source to provide
a 1 mA drive for the 100Ω RTD will produce a
100 mV output at 0°C. The output change over
the temperature range of the RTD will be 84.27 mV
to 132.81 mV.
Figure 2. Sensor Selection Page
Figure 4. RTD Attached, Gain Block Highlighted
Figure 3. Omega 3-Wire RTD Selected
Figure 5. LMP90100 RTD Channel Performance

5
Selecting an RTD in the design tool automatically
takes into account the parameters of that RTD.
Designers can specify a reference value and look
at performance and power trade-offs as gain and
sample rate are changed. The LMP90100 features
eight gain settings and a 24-bit Sigma Delta ADC,
providing a wide range of configuration choices.
Tradeoffs can be reviewed quickly using the sliders
to adjust gain and sample rate. For this example,
an 8x gain and 26.8 sps provides good performance
and low power consumption.
A parameter called Device is also listed. Its error
combines offset, gain, and INL (integral non-linearity)
errors. As seen in Table 1, turning on background
calibration removes residual offset and gain error
with very little increase in power consumption.
Device error is determined at a specific temperature
and temperature is specified directly below Device
Error in WEBENCH Sensor Designer.
Pressure Sensor Signal Path Design
Next, we will add a pressure sensor channel to the
LMP90100. Pressure sensors are used to measure
pressure, flow, and level. Outputs can vary from 50 mV
to 5V and the sensor drive can be current or voltage.
In Figure 6, a Honeywell model 19U30PGIK is
selected. It has a nominal output of 40 mV, requires
a voltage drive, and has a typical pressure non-
linearity of ±0.1% at 25°C. The 19U30PGIK is a
30 PSIG (pounds per square inch gauge) pressure
sensor with a stainless steel media diaphragm
protecting a silicon sensing element which allows
it to be used for a wide range of process control
applications.
As with the RTD, there are a wide range of gain and
sample rate choices. Configuring the LMP90100
signal path for a gain of 32X, a sample rate of
107 sps, and enabling calibration and diagnostics
yields an LMP90100 performance and power
consumption of 9.165 mW at 30 PSI:
Noise: 0.48 μVrms, ENOB: 19.0 bits,
NFR: 16.5bits, Power: 9.165 mW
If lower power consumption or noise is desired,
adjusting the sample rate to 6.71 sps yields:
Noise: 0.34 μVrms, ENOB: 19.5 bits,
NFR: 17.0 bits, Power: 3.7 mW
With a maximum gain of 128, the yield is:
Noise: 0.44 μVrms, ENOB: 17 bits,
NFR: 14.5 bits, Power: 9.165 mW
The adjustable sliders in the WEBENCH Sensor
Designer tool make it easy to adjust gain and sample
rate and view the resulting performance which
makes it very easy to look at design trade-offs.
RTD Signal Path Configuration Performance (Calibration Off) Performance (Calibration On)
Current drive: 1 mA Noise: 1.08 µV Noise: 1.08 µV
Signal gain: 8X ENOB: 20.0 bits ENOB: 20.0 bits
Sample rate: 26.8 sps Device Error: .018% Device Error: .0006%
Ref voltage: 2V Power Consumption: 4.84 mW Power Consumption: 4.86 mW
Figure 6. Honeywell Pressure Sensor Configured
Table 1. RTD Performance Comparison with Background Calibration Off and On

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Another consideration when pressure and tempera-
ture are measured in the same system is that the
RTD and pressure sensor may each require a
precision reference. The LMP90100 supports these
applications by providing the capability to connect
two different references to the IC.
Robust Development Platform
The Sensor AFE development platform allows
designers to validate their design solutions on the
bench. The platform consists of a Sensor AFE IC,
an interface to the designer's sensors, and connects
through a PC to WEBENCH Sensor Designer
software. A designer can attach sensors, take data
over time, and display the result as a histogram, as
shown in Figure 7, or monitor a channel con-
tinuously in the oscilloscope mode, as shown in
Figure 8. Data can also be saved to a file and
download for performance evaluation utilizing their
own software.
Conclusion
With products optimized for specific types of
sensors, the Sensor AFE platform delivers an
alternative to long hardware development cycles.
Specifically, solutions for an RTD and pressure
sensor systems can be designed utilizing National
Semiconductor’s flagship 24-bit Sensor AFE
product, the LMP90100. Unique gain and sample
rate can be specified for each sensor signal path
and considered configuration trade-offs based on
performance, power, and background calibration.
The combination of LMP90100 Sensor AFE IC,
WEBENCH Sensor Designer software, and
development platform creates a unique design
environment that enables fast, easy sensor signal
path design. Overall design time is dramatically
reduced which allows customers to get to get to
market faster with a reliable, proven solution.
© 2011, National Semiconductor Corporation. National Semiconductor, , Signal Path Designer, and WEBENCH are registered trademarks of
National Semiconductor. All other brand or product names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders. All rights reserved.
National Semiconductor
2900 Semiconductor Drive
Santa Clara, CA 95051
1 800 272 9959
Mailing address:
PO Box 58090
Santa Clara, CA 95052
Visit our website at:
national.com/sensorafe
For more information,
send email to:
new.feedback@nsc.com
Figure 7. Histogram Mode Figure 8. Oscilloscope Mode

A Unique Approach to Developing Sensor Signal Path Solutions

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