THE first fully-integrated high-resolution data acquisition system on a microchip has been designed at Analog Devices in Limerick, where it goes into fully qualified production at the end of next month.

"Fully qualified" means the chip will have formally completed a series of stringent industry tests, all of which take quite some time. The chip has been in production since last year in order to supply test versions.

For the first time, three different types of technology are carried on a single chip: high-resolution analog to digital and digital to analog signal convertors, a microprocessor and a non-volatile flash memory.

Since the entire system is about the size of an adult's fingernail, when built into a range of devices it will allow them to be smaller, or more efficient or cheaper, or perhaps all three. It occupies only onefifth of the circuit board area of equivalent non-integrated circuity.

Called ADuC812, the chip - or to give it its technical name, the microConvertor - was made available for testing last October. A large number of Analog Devices customers have been trying it out and it has already been designed into about 200 different products. These include an improved blood glucose monitor for people with diabetes, industrial motor controllers, telecommunications and several data-logging applications.

The chip's EEPROM flash memory is designed to keep its program and data contents, even when turned off for up to 10 years. The memory can be re-programmed while it is in a circuit. A few locations can be erased and reprogrammed at a time, unlike most other systems where the entire memory has to be erased.

"Six invention disclosures on circuit and silicon technology innovations in the chip have been filed in the US patents office," said Mr Tim Cummins, who is both the microConvertor product development manager and the lead designer for the chip.

Analog Devices, with the help of Accutron Ltd, an Irish-owned company based in Limerick's National Technological Park, has developed a personal computer-based suite of hardware and software tools to help Analog's customers to design the new chip into their products.

People with diabetes already use small hand-held devices to monitor the level of glucose in their blood, and medical companies are trying to improve the method. Some companies are developing handheld glucose monitors that require very accurate analog to digital conversion functions (i.e. the translation of body signals into zeros and ones), an on-chip computer to process the digital blood results and a non-volatile memory to run both the blood monitor computer program and to store the patient's blood glucose results.

"Integrating these functions on a single chip makes the ADuC812 ideal for such hand-held instrumentation applications," said Mr Brian O'Mara, team leader and project applications engineer.

For the factory floor, some sensor manufacturers are now developing smart sensors using the ADuC812, as up to eight different sensors can be monitored using the on-chip computer, running software stored in the non-volatile memory. Because it is small, the chip can be mounted right on the sensor, eliminating the need to run wiring across the floor.

The current version of ADuC812 includes a 12 bit convertor. Other versions, including some containing 16 bit convertors, are planned. Although Analog Devices is US-owned, the team that developed the new chip consists entirely of Irish graduates. Overall, there are about 400 people engaged in R&D at the Limerick facility on the Raheen Industrial Estate, and the total workforce there is around 1,300.

Earlier this month, the design team that produced the new chip was presented with a Product of the Year award by a US magazine, Electronic Products.