Patent attributes
A protection circuit for protecting a device from destructive electrical conditions, such as ESD, over-voltage, and over-current, while keeping the output impedance of the device's I/O lines to a minimum, and self-regulating power dissipation. The device may comprise a first protection circuit and a second protection circuit coupled to each of one or more I/O lines for providing a primary and a secondary level of protection, respectively, for the I/O lines. The first protection circuit of the device may combine the use of Schottky diodes for voltage clamping, with a current limiting device for self-regulating the power dissipation. The current limiting device may be operable to function as a small, low impedance resistor in a normal operating range and as a controlled power dissipater outside the normal operating range. The device may be a data acquisition device comprised in a data acquisition system.
