LED dimming
Granted: February 5, 2019
Patent Number:
10201052
Techniques are provided for low, or deep, dimming of a light-emitting diode (LED) load. In an example, a low dimming circuit can include a target current detector configured to provide an output indicative of a target current of a power stage of a pulse width modulated driver, and a control circuit configured to receive a PWM signal of the PWM LED driver, to control a first transition to a first state of a power switch of the power stage during an on-interval of a first PWM cycle of the…
Soft-start circuit for switched resonant power converters
Granted: January 15, 2019
Patent Number:
10181804
A switched resonant power converter includes multiple switching transistors, a resonant circuit comprising a capacitor and an inductor, and an auxiliary soft-start bypass circuit that bypasses a default switching path that includes a first switching transistor of the switching transistors, and provides an alternative path through an impedance element. A corresponding control circuit is configured to switch between an operational mode in which the default switching path is periodically…
Energy storage device stack balancing using switched inductor background
Granted: January 8, 2019
Patent Number:
10177580
An energy storage stack balancing circuit may balance a set of serially connected energy storage devices. An electronic switching system may control the delivery of energy into and out of the inductor. A controller may control the electronic switching system so as to cause energy to be transferred: from one of the energy storage devices into the inductor and then out of the inductor and into a different one, a subset, or all of the energy storage devices; or from a subset of the energy…
Detecting value of output capacitor in switching regulator
Granted: January 8, 2019
Patent Number:
10175278
An output capacitor of a switching converter filters the triangular current waveform output by an inductor. An auxiliary capacitor, having a capacitance that is much smaller than a capacitance of the output capacitor, is coupled in parallel with the output capacitor so as to conduct a portion of the inductor current. A slope detector circuit determines a slope of the auxiliary capacitor current, and outputs a slope signal corresponding to the slope. A process circuit receives the slope…
Low power timing, configuring, and scheduling
Granted: December 11, 2018
Patent Number:
10152111
A network device includes a network interface circuit, a microprocessor, a timing circuit, and a microsequencer. The timing circuit is configured to, based on a primary timing signal, generate a time signature and switch the network device from an inactive state to an active state when the time signature satisfies a predetermined threshold length of time for packet transmission. The microsequencer circuit is configured to, in response to the network device being switched to the active…
LED dimming
Granted: November 20, 2018
Patent Number:
10136488
Techniques are provided for low, or deep, dimming of a light-emitting diode (LED) load. In an example, a method of adjusting an initial voltage of a driver circuit for an LED load can include providing current to an LED load from a power stage of the driver during an on-time of a pulse-width modulation (PWM) cycle, receiving error current information of the driver circuit at a low-dimming control circuit of the driver, and adjusting a voltage of an output capacitor coupled to the driver…
Pass through regulation of buck-boost regulator
Granted: November 20, 2018
Patent Number:
10135340
A controller may control a buck-boost regulator having an input voltage and an output voltage. The controller may include: circuitry that causes the output voltage of the buck-boost regulator to be at the bottom of a pre-determined voltage window when the input voltage goes below the bottom of the pre-determined voltage window: circuitry that causes the output voltage of the buck-boost regulator to be at the top of the pre-determined voltage window when the input voltage goes above the…
Control architecture with improved transient response
Granted: November 20, 2018
Patent Number:
10135336
A power supply system includes a power source; a load device configured to receive power from the power source; and a power interface device coupled to the power source and the load device and configured to change a first voltage provided by the power source to a second voltage for operating the load device. The power interface device include a main switching converter configured to operate at a first switching frequency and source low frequency current to the load device and an…
Power over data lines system using voltage clamp in PD for detection or classification
Granted: November 6, 2018
Patent Number:
10122413
A PoDL system includes a PSE connected via a wire pair to a PD, where differential data and DC power are transmitted over the same wire pair. Typically, low voltage/current detection and classification routines are required upon every powering up of the system to allow the PD to convey its PoDL requirements to the PSE. Various techniques are described that simplify or obviate such start-up routines or enable increased flexibility for the PoDL system. Such techniques include: ways to…
LED dimming
Granted: November 6, 2018
Patent Number:
10123384
Techniques are provided for low, or deep, dimming of a light-emitting diode (LED) load. In an example, a method for deep dimming a light-emitting diode (LED) load can include, when a current of an inductor does not reach a target current by the end of an on-time of a pulse-width modulation (PWM) switch cycle, and, during an initial on-time of the PWM switch cycle, allowing the current of the inductor to reach the target current during a next “off” time interval of the PWM switch…
Circuit architectures for protecting against PoDL wire faults
Granted: October 2, 2018
Patent Number:
10090666
In one embodiment, a PoDL system includes a PSE that uses high side and low side circuit breakers that uncouple the PSE voltage source from the wire pair in the event that a fault is detected. Faults may include a temporary short to ground, or to a battery voltage, or between the wires. The breakers perform an automatic retry operation in the event the fault has been removed. The voltages on the wires in the wire pair may be monitored to determine whether the voltages are within a normal…
DCR inductor current-sensing in four-switch buck-boost converters
Granted: September 25, 2018
Patent Number:
10084381
An inductor current-sensing circuit for measuring a current in an inductor includes (a) a first RC network coupled between a first terminal of the inductor and a reference voltage source; and (b) a second RC network coupled between a second terminal of the inductor and the reference voltage source. The first RC network and the second RC network each have a time constant substantially equal to the ratio between the inductance and the DC resistance of the inductor. The inductor which…
Control architecture with improved transient response
Granted: August 14, 2018
Patent Number:
10050559
A power interface device includes a main switching converter, an auxiliary switching converter, a feedback sense circuit, an error amplifier, a high pass filter, a transient detection circuit, and an auxiliary control circuit. The transient detection circuit is configured to receive the higher frequency component of the transient signal and output an enable signal when the higher frequency component of the transient signal falls outside of an operating window range defined by a first…
Hardware-based licensing for wireless networks
Granted: July 24, 2018
Patent Number:
10033596
A wireless mesh network is provided with equipment and methods for monitoring and enforcement of license terms. The network includes a plurality of wireless network nodes, a wireless access point, and a network manager in communication with the access point and with the network nodes via the access point. At least one of the network nodes and the access point includes license information embedded in the device hardware, and the network manager provides services to the wireless network…
Fast transient supply with a separated high frequency and low frequency path signals
Granted: July 24, 2018
Patent Number:
10033301
A power interface device includes a main switching converter and an auxiliary switching converter. The main switching converter is coupled to an input terminal and an output terminal and configured to operate at a first switching frequency to source a low frequency current from the input terminal to the output terminal. The auxiliary switching converter is coupled to the input terminal and the output terminal in parallel with the main switching converter and configured to operate at a…
Soft-charging of switched capacitors in power converter circuits
Granted: July 17, 2018
Patent Number:
10027223
A switched capacitor power converter includes multiple switching transistors in a default switching path, and an auxiliary soft-charge bypass circuit which includes one or more auxiliary transistors and an impedance element, and provides an auxiliary circuit path through the auxiliary transistor(s) to charge a plurality of capacitors within the converter circuit when the auxiliary soft-charge bypass circuit is activated and at least one of the switching transistors is deactivated. A…
Circuit and arrangement for 3-wire measurements with input protection
Granted: July 17, 2018
Patent Number:
10024728
A method and a circuit take a measurement of a sensor having first, second and third lead wires by: (a) providing first, second and third terminals for voltage measurements; (b) connecting a current sensing device (e.g., a reference resistor) to provide a signal at the third terminal that is indicative of the current in the third lead wire of the sensor; (c) connecting a first protective device between the first lead wire of the sensor and the first terminal; (d) connecting a second…
Feed forward current mode switching regulator with improved transient response
Granted: July 3, 2018
Patent Number:
10013003
A switching regulator circuit incorporates an offset circuit, connected in a control loop of the regulator circuit, that, in response to a signal indicating an imminent load current step, adjusts a duty cycle of a power switch for the current step prior to the regulator circuit responding to a change in output voltage due to the current step. In one embodiment, a load controller issues a digital signal shortly before a load current step. The digital signal is decoded and converted to an…
Inrush control with multiple switches
Granted: June 19, 2018
Patent Number:
10003190
A novel system is offered for supplying power from an input node to a load coupled to an output node. The system may have multiple switches coupled between the input node and the output node. One or more limiting circuits may be configured for controlling the switches so as to limit outputs of the switches. For example, the limiting circuits may limit current through the respective switches. One or more timers may set a delay period for indicating a fault condition after the limiting is…
Balancing charge pump circuits
Granted: June 12, 2018
Patent Number:
9998000
Methods and systems of controlling a switched capacitor converter are provided. Upon determining that a voltage across a flying capacitor is above a first threshold, a first current is drawn from a first terminal of the flying capacitor by a first current source, and a second current is provided to a second terminal of the flying capacitor by a second current source. Upon determining that the voltage across the flying capacitor is below a second threshold, the first current is provided…
