NASA puts Anderson loop into the public domain.(Research & Developments)(National Aeronautics & Space Administration)(Brief Article)

Sensors Magazine, September, 2004 by Henkel, Stephanie vL

The Anderson loop measurement circuit topology, an alternative to the Wheatstone bridge, has been placed in the public domain by NASA. This makes the worldwide circuit topology choice between Wheatstone's bridge and Anderson's loop now a technical decision uninfluenced by patent licensing concerns.

Compared to bridge-based signal conditioning designs, the Anderson loop yields inherently linear static and dynamic outputs uninfluenced by even random lead wire resistance variations. And the loop topology develops twice the output level (6 dB) for the same power dissipation in sensing elements, significantly improving measurement system SNRs in noisy environments.

The original Anderson loop patent was granted to NASA in December 1994 and has been...

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