Uncalibrated automatic bridge-based CMOS integrated interfaces for wide-range resistive sensors portable applications

In this work the authors describe improved solutions on automatic fully-analog uncalibrated Wheatstone bridge-based interfaces suitable for wide-range resistive sensors. The proposed topologies are enhanced and integrated interfaces, based on automatic bridge configurations, completely designed in a standard CMOS technology (AMS 0.35 μm), where Voltage Controlled Resistors (VCRs), formed by MOS transistors, have been properly tuned through the use of a suitable closed feedback loop that continuously ensures the bridge equilibrium condition. The microelectronic design has been performed through the use of symmetrical Operational Transconductance Amplifiers (OTAs) with low-voltage (2 V, single supply) and low-power (63.5 μW) characteristics, so the overall system can be fabricated in a single chip suitable for portable applications. Referring to the first configuration where only one VCR has been employed for both grounded and floating resistive sensors, Orcad PSpice simulations have confirmed the interface capability to estimate the sensor resistance for about 2.7 decades variations (430 Ω; 220 kΩ), with a relative error of about ±4%. Moreover, in the second version for an extended estimation range, the interface is able to evaluate the sensor resistance for about 6.6 decades (0.1 Ω; 400 kΩ) with a reduced relative error within (−1.5%; +4%).