Whether it be a microcontroller with a bigger package or more channels to isolate, digital I/O’s cost money. With the daisy chain capabilities of the signal chain components, this cost is minimized. The host interface only requires a SPI port to operate any number of analog channels allowed by the bandwidth of the SPI port. In most applications, the following optional I/O’s would also be used: a 2nd chip select dedicated to the output drivers, a shared interrupt connected to the ERROR pin of all the drivers, and a hardware Load DAC (LDAC) control line to all the DAC output buffers. By keeping the DAC and output driver separated, a designer can better leverage the same design for multiple product versions as shown above. The benefits of integration can still be realized with the DAC to a varying degree, but the signal conditioners are only populated when needed.