Abstract: Various methods and systems are provided to control a probe moving towards fluid held in a container. The probe is moved towards the fluid to take a sample of the fluid in the container. To take a sample, probe is actuated to hit the fluid surface and to pass the fluid surface by a predetermined distance. Capacitive sensing which incorporates the probe itself is used to support an approach engine for controlling the motion of the probe. The approach engine determines the speed of the probe based on capacitance measurements, and in some cases based on position information of the probe. The approach engine ensures the probe hits the surface of the fluid in the container in order to take a sample while ensuring the probe does not hit the bottom of the container.

Abstract: Various methods and systems are provided to control a probe moving towards fluid held in a container. The probe is moved towards the fluid to take a sample of the fluid in the container. To take a sample, probe is actuated to hit the fluid surface and to pass the fluid surface by a predetermined distance. Capacitive sensing which incorporates the probe itself is used to support an approach engine for controlling the motion of the probe. The approach engine determines the speed of the probe based on capacitance measurements, and in some cases based on position information of the probe. The approach engine ensures the probe hits the surface of the fluid in the container in order to take a sample while ensuring the probe does not hit the bottom of the container.

Abstract: The respiration rate of a patient may be measured by sensing respiration motion using two MEMS devices, and by processing a respiration signal produced by processing the outputs of the two MEMS devices. Some embodiments dispose two accelerometers around a patient's abdomen and determine respiratory motion from the difference between the outputs of the two accelerometers. Other embodiments dispose two non-identical accelerometers at substantially the same location on the patient's body, such that each of the accelerometers is exposed to the same respiratory motion, and determine respiratory motion from the difference between the outputs of the two accelerometers.

Abstract: The present invention provides a method and apparatus for compensating for temperature effects in the operation of semiconductor processes circuitry, such as reference circuits. The method operates on the realization that the second order effects such as “curvature” in the reference voltage variation over a temperature range is removed. The reference voltage variation over a temperature range can be represented as a straight line. This method provides for the trimming of the absolute voltage by scaling the reference voltage at a first temperature to the desired value by a temperature independent voltage. Then, at a second temperature, the output voltage slope is corrected by adding or subtracting a voltage which is always zero at the first temperature.

Abstract: An integrated circuit for automatic calibration control of pin electronics is disclosed. The integrated circuit includes a substrate, and both pin electronics and a calibration circuit integral with the substrate. The calibration circuit is dedicated to a single channel of automatic testing equipment for a single pin of a device under test. Each sub-circuit of the pin electronics may include a replica output. The replica output is electrically coupled to the calibration circuit. The calibration circuit may include a multiplexor for receiving each of the replica outputs from the sub-circuits, such as a comparator, load and a driver, and for selectively switching between the replica outputs to determine calibration parameters for one or more levels of the sub-circuit. The calibration circuit includes a state machine capable of determining calibration parameters including offset and gain.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a system and method for digitally compensating signal converters and in particular a digital to analog converter which receives digital input data for a digital to analog converter and supplies anti-function digital coefficients derived from the error function of the digital to analog converter and corresponding to the digital input data and applies the anti-function digital coefficients to the digital input data to pre-condition the digital input data to compensate for the error function of the digital to analog converter. The invention also extends to analog to digital converters.

Abstract: The present invention provides an improved Digital to Analog Converter (DAC) of the switched dual string DAC type, which saves on chip surface area, reduces the number of resistors and implementation cost, reduces the self capacitance and the device leakage currents of the circuit elements. The invention provides a guaranteed monotonic DAC architecture, which comprises a switching network for creating three states at a DAC transition node. In one embodiment the invention provides an unloaded state wherein a LSB DAC is de-coupled from a MSB DAC wherein the node between neighboring MSB DAC resistors is coupled to the DAC output. One of the advantages of creating the unloaded state is that the number of LSB DAC resistors is reduced as is normally the case in the prior art for a similar application.

Abstract: An integrated digital calibration circuit and digital to analog converter includes a digital to analog converter (DAC) and a digital calibration circuit including a memory for storing predetermined end point coefficients of the digital to analog converter transfer function; and an arithmetic logic unit for applying the end point coefficients to the DAC input signal to adjust the end points of the DAC and/or analog signal chain.

Abstract: A method for communicating between a controller and a device with double-buffered inputs comprises the steps of providing one or more communication paths for exchanging data between the controller and the device, providing a data transfer control signal from the controller to the device for transferring input data from one or more input registers into one or more latchable data registers, and providing a data transfer delay signal from the device to the controller, wherein, in a first logic state, the data transfer delay signal prevents transfer of input data from the input registers into the latchable data registers until after a transition to a second logic state occurs on the data transfer delay signal. An apparatus for communicating between a controller and a device is also described.

Abstract: An integrated digital calibration circuit and digital to analog converter includes a digital to analog converter (DAC) and a digital calibration circuit including a memory for storing predetermined end point coefficients of the digital to analog converter transfer function; and an arithmetic logic unit for applying the end point coefficients to the DAC input signal to adjust the end points of the DAC and/or analog signal chain.

Abstract: A direct digital waveform synthesiser with DAC error correction includes a digital to analog converter system for producing a desired output waveform and having between its digital and analog output a characteristic having a linear component and a non-linear component; and a phase to amplitude converter including a storage device responsive to phase inputs to provide to the digital to analog converter system amplitudes modified to compensate for the non-linear component of a characteristic of the digital to analog converter system.