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Sensing hardware prototype developed and tested - Version 1

The voltage reference circuit provides stable +12V and -12V using a buck-boost converter to power the current sense amplifier. The shunt value ensures minimal power dissipation and a low voltage drop at 5A. The differential low-pass filter has a 150 kHz cutoff, and the high-side current amplifier scales the current linearly for ADC input. The sensing circuit is implemented as an Arduino-compatible shield.

The voltage reference circuit (Figure 1) provides a stable voltage of 12 V, and -12 V using an external buck-boost converter. The current sense amplifier needs these voltages to provide a linear output voltage in the 0 to 3.3 V range. Note that -12 V is not needed, but some negative voltage is needed for the current sense amplifier to operate in a linear area when there is no current through the shunt.                  

Voltage Reference
Figure 1 - Voltage reference

The shunt value is chosen so that it does not dissipate too much power with a maximum current of 5 A passing through it. Shunt voltage drop must not be too high for the load to work (High side current sense). The selected shunt is presented in Figure 2.                    

Shunt Circuit
Figure 2 - Current sensing shunt

Differential low pas first order (Figure 3) filter is set to 150 kHz cutoff frequency. This value is chosen according to the specification of the current sense amplifier.          

Input Filtare Stage
Figure 3 - Input filter stage

The high-side current amplifier amplifies voltage drop on the shunt, representing the linear scaling of current passing through the shunt. Gain is set that for current of 5 A through a shunt of 75 mΩ generates 3.3 V on the input pin of ADC.

Current Sense Circuit
Figure 4 - Current sensing amplifier

The sensing circuit is implemented as Arduino compatible shield as presented in Figure 5

Sensing Circuit implementation
Figure 5 - Sensing circuit prototype

The complete sensing circuit spice schematic is available on the official GitHub repo.

Author
Pavle Lakić
Embedded Hardware Engineer
Master's-level electrical engineer with four years of experience in embedded systems and hardware design. Passionate about low-level programming and continuously exploring new advancements in technology.
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