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In part 5 of this blog series, I discussed the construction of an input-isolated 2-wire sensor transmitter. Input-isolated 2-wire transmitters require isolating the sensor power and data signals from the 2-wire loop supply and 2-wire loop return (RTN…

Part 4 of this series discussed the issues and requirements involved in the design of a 2-wire sensor transmitter that accepts inputs from an externally powered sensor/source. In this installment, I’ll expand on the concepts presented in that post and…

The previous three parts of this blog series focused on 2-wire 4-20mA sensor transmitter designs composed completely of analog components. While analog signal conditioning is practical for linear sensors, many sensors have nonlinear outputs that can only…

Part 2 of this blog series derived the basic transfer function for a typical 2-wire transmitter, commonly used in industrial control and automation, and explained the currents flowing inside it. It also explained that connecting the transmitter return…

Part 1 of this blog series provided an overview of the operation and uses of 2-wire 4-20 mA field sensor transmitters and provided a basic example system. The post also introduced the current transmitter compliance voltage, which when violated prevents…

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2-wire 4-20 mA sensor transmitters are very common in industrial control and automation. They are popular because they allow a remote process to be monitored with only two analog signal wires. The two wires carry both the power for the sensor…