Industry's first low voltage digital thermometers/thermostats

The MAX31722/MAX31723 devices are designed to provide local temperature readings over a user selectable SPI or three wire interface. According to Maxim, while a number of other solutions require at least a 2.7V supply, these temperature sensors can operate from a voltage supply as low as 1.7V. This low supply voltage, along with a 2.4µA low power standby mode, makes these products suitable for low power or battery operated systems. The MAX31722/MAX31723 incorporate an SPI or three wire interface for reading and writing data, while users can adjust the readout resolution between 9 and 12 bits for applications that require greater temperature resolution. Both high and low accuracy applications are satisfied with the MAX31723 (±0.5°C) or MAX31722 (±2.0°C). The devices also feature nonvolatile memory for thermostat thresholds and configuration register can be set at, or prior to, component placement with no need for reprogramming at each power up. According to Maxim, this nonvolatile memory also increases system reliability by preventing loss of data when there is an unplanned loss of power. Both devices offer a user selectable one shot or continuous temperature conversion modes. The one shot mode allows the device to limit its power usage by waking up and performing a single temperature conversion only upon user request. The continuous mode enables stand alone temperature monitoring which relieves some of the burden on the system processor. The MAX31722/MAX31723 have a 1.7 to 3.7V power supply range, operate and measure over the -55 to 125°C temperature range and are available in an 8pin µMAX package.