
Reading Negative Voltages
Sometimes you need to read and convert a negative voltage with an ADC that
operates only from ground and a positive supply. Sometimes the only way to
accomplish this is to use an opamp, powered from both positive and negative
supplies, to shift the signal to a range the ADC can use.
Figure 11.8 shows a simple resistor voltage divider that will accomplish the
same thing, with some limitations. In the figure, the input is a sine signal that
swings between 2 V and þ2 V, being read by a microcontroller that operates
from þ5 V and ground. Using a voltage divider (R1 and R2) brings the signal
within the 0–5 V range of the microcontroller ...