Patent ID: 7630855

Claim:
A method of diagnosing a temperature sensing system, the system including a temperature sensor, a field processing module coupled to the temperature sensor, a first bus, a second bus, and an auxiliary processing module communicating with the first bus and the second bus, the method comprising: generating a temperature characteristic at the temperature sensor; processing the temperature characteristic at the field processing module; generating field operating data including a temperature diagnostic parameter as a function of the temperature characteristic; communicating the field operating data including the temperature diagnostic parameter over the first bus from the field processing module to the auxiliary processing module; generating at the auxiliary processing module auxiliary field data as a function of the received field operating data; communicating the auxiliary field data over the second bus; and wherein the temperature sensing system further includes a heater coupled to a heater power circuit and receiving heating power from a power supply, the heater power circuit having a first interface, a second interface, and an intermediate portion between the first interface and the second interface and a power controller coupled about the intermediate portion of the heater power circuit, the power controller having at least two states, a first state providing at least a portion of the power to the heater and a second state terminating power to the heater, said power controller including the temperature sensor and the field processing module.