Sensors
Lecture (11)
Analog to digital
converters (ADC)
What is Analog to digital converter?
➢ It’s an electronic integrated circuit that transforms a signal from
analog (continuous) to digital (discrete) form.
➢ Analog signals are directly measurable quantities.
➢ Digital signals only have two states 0 and 1.
Why ADC is needed?
➢ ADC is needed because of the following reasons:
• Microprocessors can only perform complex processing on digital
signals.
• Digital signals are less susceptible to noise effects.
• ADC provides a link between the analog world of sensors and
digital world of signal processing.
𝑉𝑟𝑒𝑓
• Step size for one digit (resolution) =
2𝑛
Where: 𝑉𝑟𝑒𝑓 is the max analog I/P voltage
𝑛 is number of bits of the ADC
• Step is the minimum I/P value to change the digital O/P.
• For example: For 8 bit ADC, assume the I/p analog voltage range is
10 10
from 0 V to 10 V. The step size is 8 = 8 = 0.04 𝑉
2 2
. يزيد الخرج رقم0.04 V • بمعني انه كل
I/P O/P
0 00000000
0.04 00000001
0.08 00000010
0.12 00000011
… …
10 11111111
فإن الخرج ال يتغير ألن قيمة0.04 V • وبالتالي لو حصل تغيير في الجهد بمقدار اقل من
.step = 0.04 V
ويكون أدق وبالتالي تزيدresolution كلما زادتO/P of ADC للbits • كلما زاد عدد
.accuracy ًأيضا
• Example:
If a 10 bit ADC having analog I/P range 0 V to 10 V
𝑉𝑟𝑒𝑓 10 10
Step (resolution) = = = = 0.0097 𝑉
2𝑛 210 1024
But if it is 8 bit:
𝑉𝑟𝑒𝑓 10 10
Step (resolution) = = = = 0.039 𝑉
2𝑛 28 256
. أقلstep size أدق ألن10 bit • وبالتالي فإن استخدام
ADC Process
Sampling and Holding
(S/H)
➢ Used to capture the
voltage level at a specific
instant in time.
➢ The switch is used to
convert the analog signal
to digital signal.
➢ The holder is used to
recombine the signal to
continuous form.
Quantizing and Encoding
➢ Quantizing: Partitioning the reference
signal range into a number of discrete
quanta, then matching the input
signal to the correct quantum.
➢ Encoding: Assigning a unique digital
code to each quantum, then
allocating the digital code to the input
signal.
➢ Maximum quantization error =
± 0.5 𝑉
Accuracy of A/D Conversion
There are two ways to best improve the accuracy of A/D conversion:
➢ increasing the resolution which improves the accuracy in measuring
the amplitude of the analog signal (no. of digital bits).
➢ increasing the sampling rate which increases the maximum
frequency that can be measured (speed of conversion) (The
sampling frequency or sampling rate is the average number of
samples obtained in one second (samples per second)).
Techniques for ADC
1. Flash A/D Converter.
2. Sigma-Delta A/D Converter.
3. Dual Slope A/D Converter.
4. Successive Approximation A/D Converter.
1- Flash A/D Converter
➢ Also called the parallel A/D converter.
➢ Consists of a series of comparators, each one comparing the input
signal to a unique reference voltage.
➢ The comparator outputs connect to the inputs of a priority encoder
circuit, which then produces a binary output.
➢ A 3 bit flash ADC is shown.
➢ No. of resistors = 2n = 23 = 8
➢ No. of comparators = 2n = 23 = 8
➢ Vref is a stable reference voltage.
How flash works
➢ As the analog input voltage exceeds the reference voltage at each
comparator, the comparator outputs will sequentially saturate to a
high state.
:comparator لكلVref معVin➢ يتم مقارنة ال
1 = comparator خرجVin > Vref لو ▪
0 = comparator خرجVin < Vref لو ▪
➢ The priority encoder generates a binary number based on the
highest-order active input, ignoring all other active inputs.
00100000 يعتبره00101110 هوpriority encoder للI/P ➢ بمعني ان لو
Advantages and disadvantages
of Flash ADC
Advantages of flash ADC:
➢ Very Fast (Fastest).
➢ Very simple.
➢ Speed is only limited by gate and comparator propagation delay.
Disadvantages of flash ADC:
➢ Expensive.
➢ Lower resolution.
