Patent ID: 7098831

Claim:
A digital-to-analog converter to convert into an analog quantity a digital code including a first part of more significant bits and a second part of less significant bits, comprising: a first section to convert the first part of the digital code into a first voltage, said first voltage being of discrete voltages that are integral multiples of a predetermined first voltage step; a second section to convert the second part of the digital code into a current; means for transforming the current of the second section into a second voltage, said second voltage being of discrete voltages that are integral multiples of a second voltage step equal to ½L of the product of the first voltage step multiplied by a predetermined coefficient, where L is the number of the less significant bits of the digital code to be converted; control means of the first and the second section; and summation means for generating the analog quantity as the sum of the second voltage and the product of the first voltage multiplied by the predetermined coefficient, comprising a summation circuit with resistive feedback means including a voltage divider; and wherein the means for transforming the current into a second voltage comprises a conversion resistor that forms part of the voltage divider.