Breaking down the sensor path

EDN has an excellent article about a recently emerging trend in consumer electronics: The insertion of analog electronics in traditionally digital devices. One example is the accelerometer in Apple's wildly popular iPhone--the accelerometer is an analog device whose signal is first digitized and then amplified and filtered.

You must digitize a sensor's analog signal so that the system can use it, and the signal path goes through amplification, filtering, and digitization stages. Each stage usually involves a component with passives around it to perform properly for an application. Once you digitize the signal, you can pass it to a control system on the microcontroller or massage the data and pass it to a host processor through a communication protocol. The protocol can use the sensor data as necessary.

You should check out the rest of the article because it offers an excellent, detailed run-down of the entire process.

Basic Electronics

Say you're working on a hobby project but you're unsure how to power it. This little article from the Ethiopian Review runs down your various options. Here's an except, about linear regulation,

Wall-wart and battery voltages vary with time and load. Yet, electronic circuits generally demand tightly regulated voltage rails, often with tolerances of±5%. A voltage regulator converts a varying input voltage into a relatively static output. There are numerous regulator circuits and components. The easiest and, arguably, the most reliable solution is to use an off-the-shelf integrated linear regulator. Linear regulators convert a higher voltage to a lower voltage by dissipating the difference as heat. This is not the most efficient method, but it works well for situations of low to moderate power consumption. Linear regulators work without hassle because they do not require many external components or careful tweaking and they do not produce noise as do switching regulators.

The whole article is worth checking out!

Welcome to Analog Signal

Hello!

We're interested in the design and manufacture of analog microelectronics and decided to--like everyone these days-start a blog about it. If that sounds kind of boring, we're hoping to show you wrong. Stick around and you'll see. Thanks for stopping by!