• Become a member
  • Log In
The Institution of Electronics
  • Home
  • About us
    • Our Objectives
    • Our History
    • Governance of the Institution
  • The Electron Magazine
    • 2024
      • 2024 – Winter
      • 2024 – Spring
      • 2024 – Summer
      • 2024 – Autumn
    • 2025
      • 2025 – Winter
      • 2025 – Spring
      • 2025 – Summer
      • 2025 – Autumn
    • 2026
      • 2026 – Winter
      • 2026 – Spring
  • Members
    • Membership Grades and Fees
    • Members’ Resources
      • The Electron Newsletter
      • The Archives
  • Education and Projects
    • National Electronics Competition
    • Student Members’ Projects
    • Arkwright Engineering Scholarships
  • News
  • Contact Us
  • Menu Menu
Uncategorised

Adaptable pullup

It’s common for I2C systems to have both standard and fast devices on the same bus.

For I2C systems, the speed and power consumption both depend on the values of pullup resistors: the values of them should be low enough to secure the fast charge of the bus capacitance.

Wow the engineering world with your unique design: Design Ideas Submission Guide

But the low values increase power consumption, the low values can also present too heavy a load for the transmitter.

The variable topology of the bus can make the situation somewhat more complicated.

Hence when your system is power-restricted and you need to use several I2C chips at different I2C modes, you have to compromise between these chips. Or you can use the adaptable pullup, which is shown in Figure 1.

Figure 1: The adaptable pullup where a closed transistor connects additional resistors R5 and R6 in parallel to the main pullup resistors R1 and R2

The circuit is rather simple: a closed transistor connects additional resistors R5 and R6 in parallel to the main pullup resistors R1 and R2. 

The connection can be controlled by GPIO for example, as shown in Figure1, and should be done before the fast data exchange takes place.

Another solution is shown in Figure 2, which represents one-half of the whole circuit (the second half for SDA is omitted for brevity). The circuit uses an analog switch (for instance, TS5A3159 of TI) to disconnect the “fast” part of the bus. While it’s disconnected, the resistor R5 provides a high (idle) voltage level on the bus. Note that the capacitance of the switch, which can be large enough (20 to 100pF), should be taken into account.

Figure 2: Alternative adaptable pullup solution that uses an analog switch to disconnect the “fast” part of the bus.

—Peter Demchenko studied math at the University of Vilnius and has worked in software development.

Related Content

Active pullup/pulldown network saves watts
Pull-up Resistors
A self-testing GPIO
Logic Probe has a wide voltage range

<!–
googletag.cmd.push(function() { googletag.display(‘div-gpt-ad-native’); });
–>

The post Adaptable pullup appeared first on EDN.

11 April 2024
http://institutionofelectronics.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/IOE_LOGO.png 0 0 http://institutionofelectronics.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/IOE_LOGO.png 2024-04-11 14:30:492024-04-11 14:30:49Adaptable pullup

Latest news

  • Secrets of Oscilloscope Time Measurements14 August 2026 - 13:44
  • Radon: Level detection, risk determination, and as-needed mitigation13 August 2026 - 13:16
  • TI a first mover in CAN XL transceivers13 August 2026 - 10:13
  • Four-channel USB-UART IC boosts server management13 August 2026 - 05:08
  • eFuse speeds overcurrent detection13 August 2026 - 05:08
  • Memory platform tackles AI bottlenecks13 August 2026 - 05:08
  • 6.5-kV SiC MOSFET reaches 8-kV blocking13 August 2026 - 05:08
  • Made by Google 2026: This limited silicon-supply situation really sucks13 August 2026 - 05:08
  • Cheap and cheerful LMC555 RC PWM pulse generator12 August 2026 - 13:56
  • Record high wafer shipments. Can fabs keep pace?12 August 2026 - 07:51
IOE LOGO 2

Become a member

click here

Become a member

click here

Become a subscriber

click here

Become a sponsor

click here

© Copyright - The Institution of Electronics | Website by WHD Solutions
  • Link to LinkedIn
  • Link to Facebook
  • Link to X
Link to: GaN vs SiC: A look at two popular WBG semiconductors in power Link to: GaN vs SiC: A look at two popular WBG semiconductors in power GaN vs SiC: A look at two popular WBG semiconductors in power Link to: 8-bit MCUs tout 15-W USB power delivery Link to: 8-bit MCUs tout 15-W USB power delivery 8-bit MCUs tout 15-W USB power delivery
Scroll to top Scroll to top Scroll to top