The invention relates to an electronic device having at least one connector for at least one wired sensor, said device having further a sensor break detection unit. Furthermore, the invention relates to a method for detecting a break of at least one wired sensor. Devices and methods according to the invention may be used in the field of automation technology, e.g. for control of manufacturing machinery or data logging.
It is known from the art to detect a sensor break by means of under-voltage detection. The input impedance of the electronic device will act as a pull-down resistor bringing an open circuit to 0 V in the case of loss of connection. Sensor break is assumed if the reading collapses to a value of less than 10% of the full range.
These known devices have the disadvantage that low measurement values may be erroneous detected as a sensor break. Furthermore, detecting a sensor break takes several measurement cycles, depending on the input impedance and the capacities involved.