Patent ID: 7652606

Claim:
A digital-analog converter comprising: a first selection circuit including a plurality of first switch elements, with each first switch element having a first terminal and a second terminal, wherein the first terminals of the plurality of first switch elements are coupled to each other and to a high potential power supply; a second selection circuit including a plurality of second switch elements, with each second switch element having a first terminal and a second terminal, wherein the first terminals of the plurality of second switch elements are coupled to each other and to a low potential power supply; a first voltage dividing circuit including a plurality of resistor elements connected in series, with each resistor element being coupled between the second terminals of two adjacent ones of the plurality of first switch elements; a second voltage dividing circuit including a plurality of resistor elements connected in series, with the second voltage dividing circuit being coupled to the first voltage dividing circuit at a coupling node, and each resistor element of the second voltage dividing circuit being coupled between the second terminals of two adjacent ones of the plurality second switch elements; and a control circuit which provides control signal to the first selection circuit and the second selection circuit; wherein the first selection circuit selectively activates one of the plurality of first switch elements in response to the control signal and couples a first selected node coupled to the second terminal of the activated first switch element to the high potential power supply; wherein the second selection circuit selectively activates one of the plurality of second switch elements in response to the control signal and couples a second selected node coupled to the second terminal of the activated second switch element to the low potential power supply; wherein the first voltage dividing circuit and the second voltage dividing circuit divide voltages of the high potential power supply and the low potential power supply with the resistor elements of the first voltage dividing circuit and the second voltage dividing circuit between the first selected node and the second selected node; wherein the digital-analog converter outputs an analog signal having the divided voltage from the coupling node; and wherein the digital-analog converter comprises a third selection circuit including a plurality of third switch elements, with any one of the plurality of third switch elements operating based on the control signal to couple the first selected node coupled to the high potential power supply to the second selected node coupled to the low potential power supply.