The DS16F95/DS36F95 Differential Bus Transceiver is a monolithic integrated circuit designed for bidirectional data communication on balanced multipoint bus transmission lines. The transceiver meets both EIA-485 and EIA-422A standards. The DS16F95/DS36F95 offers improved performance due to the use of L-FAST bipolar technology. The L-FAST technology allows for higher speeds and lower currents by minimizing gate delay times. Thus, the DS16F95 and DS36F95 consume less power, and feature an extended temperature range as well as improved specifications. The DS16F95/DS36F95 combines a Tri-state differential line driver and a differential input line receiver, both of which operate from a single 5.0V power supply. The driver and receiver have an active Enable that can be externally connected to function as a direction control. The driver differential outputs and the receiver differential inputs are internally connected to form differential input/output (I/O) bus ports that are designed to offer minimum loading to the bus whenever the driver is disabled or when VCC = 0V. These ports feature wide positive and negative common mode voltage ranges, making the device suitable for multipoint applications in noisy environments. The driver is designed to accommodate loads of up to 60 mA of sink or source current and features positive and negative current limiting in addition to thermal shutdown for protection from line fault conditions. The DS16F95/DS36F95 can be used in transmission line applications employing the DS96F172 and the DS96F174 quad differential line drivers and the DS96F173 and DS96F175 quad differential line receivers.