Communicating fault indications between primary and secondary controllers in a secondary-controlled flyback converter
Granted: March 16, 2021
Patent Number:
10951107
Communicating fault indications between primary and secondary controller in a secondary-controlled flyback converter is described. In one embodiment, an apparatus includes a primary-side field effect transistor (FET) coupled to a flyback transformer coupled to the primary-side FET, and a primary-side controller coupled to the flyback transformer. The primary-side controller is configured to receive a signal from a secondary-side controller across a galvanic isolation barrier, apply a…
Voltage protection for universal serial bus Type-C (USB-C) connector systems
Granted: March 16, 2021
Patent Number:
10950987
An electronic device includes a first switch configured to connect a first sideband use (SBU) terminal of a Universal Serial Bus Type-C (USB-C) controller to a first SBU terminal of a USB-C receptacle. The electronic device also includes a second switch configured to connect a second sideband use (SBU) terminal of the USB-C controller to a second SBU terminal of the USB-C receptacle. The electronic device further includes a voltage protection circuit configured to deactivate one or more…
Block mapping systems and methods for storage device
Granted: March 16, 2021
Patent Number:
10949340
An overlaid erase block (EB) mapping scheme for a flash memory provides efficient wear-leveling and reduces mount operation latency. The overlaid EB mapping scheme maps a first type of EB onto one of a plurality of physical erase blocks, in a corresponding portion of the flash memory. The first type of EB includes a plurality of pointers. The overlaid EB mapping scheme also maps each of second and third types of EBs onto one of the physical EBs that is not mapped to the first type of EB.…
Radar detection in a wireless LAN
Granted: March 16, 2021
Patent Number:
10948568
Disclosed are methods and systems for a WLAN device operating on DFS channels to calibrate the PRI as well as delays between partial pulses of received radar pulses that are impaired due to channel and filtering effects. The calibrated PRI may approximate the PRI of the transmitted pulses. The calibrated delay between the partial pulses estimates the interval between two partial pulses that originally belong to the same transmitted pulse. Using the calibrated PRI and the calibrated delay…
Self-biased gate driver architecture
Granted: March 9, 2021
Patent Number:
10944330
A system includes a primary field effect transistor (FET) coupled to a primary winding on a primary side of an alternating current-to-direct current (AC-DC) converter. The system also includes a gate driver, coupled to the primary FET, that is to, in response to a signal received from a startup controller of the AC-DC converter, turn on the primary FET. The gate driver includes a voltage bias p-type metal-oxide-semiconductor (VBP) buffer coupled between an external supply voltage and a…
Contacts for semiconductor devices
Granted: March 9, 2021
Patent Number:
10944000
In an example embodiment, a method comprises: forming first spacers adjacent to a memory cell formed on a substrate, each of the first spacers being formed in direct contact with the substrate, where forming the memory cell includes forming a control gate electrode and a tunnel oxide layer over the substrate and subsequently etching completely at least the control gate electrode and the tunnel oxide layer that are disposed beyond the memory cell; forming an interlayer dielectric layer…
Beamformer and acoustic echo canceller (AEC) system
Granted: March 2, 2021
Patent Number:
10938994
Techniques for acoustic echo cancellation are described herein. In an example embodiment, a system comprises a speaker, a microphone array with multiple microphones, a beamformer (BF) logic and an acoustic echo canceller (AEC) logic. The speaker is configured to receive a reference signal. The BF logic is configured to receive audio signals from the multiple microphones and to generate a beamformed signal. The AEC logic is configured to receive the beamformed signal and the reference…
Devices, systems and methods for wireless communication system employing overlapping frequency bands
Granted: March 2, 2021
Patent Number:
10938690
According to embodiments, methods, devices and systems can include monitoring all of a first channel for a first monitoring period. After the first monitoring period, monitoring at least one narrow band for at least a first narrow band signal. In response to detecting the first narrow band signal, establishing a network connection over the narrow band, wherein the at least one narrow band has a frequency range less than one half that of the first channel.
Local interconnect network (LIN) driver circuit
Granted: March 2, 2021
Patent Number:
10938387
A driver circuit and corresponding methods and systems are disclosed, the driver circuit comprises a signal generation circuit to generate a linearly varying signal at a first node based on a clock signal and an output transistor to receive the linearly varying signal and output a drive signal to a bus. A buffer amplifier is coupled between the first node and a gate of the output transistor to disable the gate capacitance of the output transistor. The driver circuit further comprises a…
Capacitance to code converter with sigma-delta modulator
Granted: February 23, 2021
Patent Number:
10928953
Apparatuses and methods of converting a capacitance measured on a sense element to a digital value are described. One apparatus includes a modulator having a modulator capacitor, a sense element selectively coupled in a feedback loop of the modulator to operate as a switching capacitor. The apparatus also includes a first switch coupled between a voltage source and a first node of the switching capacitor and a second switch coupled between the first node of the switching capacitor and a…
Charge trapping split gate device and method of fabricating same
Granted: February 16, 2021
Patent Number:
10923601
A split gate device that includes a memory gate and a select gate disposed side by side, a dielectric structure having a first portion disposed between the memory gate and a substrate and a second portion disposed along an inner sidewall of the select gate to separate the select gate from the memory gate, and a spacer formed over the select gate along an inner sidewall of the memory gate. Other embodiments of embedded split gate devices including high voltage and low voltage transistors…
Power saving technique in detach condition for USB-power delivery with integrated synchronous recitifier controller
Granted: February 2, 2021
Patent Number:
10910954
A secondary-side controller for an AC-DC converter that has a single synchronous rectifier sensing (SR_SNS) terminal, coupled to a synchronous rectifier (SR) of the AC-DC converter, and a voltage divider circuit coupled to the single SR_SNS terminal configured to provide signals to a sensing circuit. The voltage divider includes an active diode, an internal resistive element, and a switch, in which the active diode is configured to control the switch to enable or disable the internal…
Devices, systems and methods for increasing data throughput in wireless device with shared medium
Granted: January 26, 2021
Patent Number:
10904894
An example system and method monitor a wireless transmission medium for packets of a first protocol type with first communication circuits of a device while yielding the medium for communications of a second protocol type by second communication circuits of the device. Responsive to the first communication circuits detecting a packet of the first protocol type while the medium is yielded to the second communication circuits, the system and method requests access to the medium for the…
Angle of propagation estimation in a multipath communication system
Granted: January 26, 2021
Patent Number:
10903870
A system includes a transceiver configured to receive frequency dependent channel estimates or beamforming feedback in a multi-carrier, multi-antenna communication system, and a multi-layer perceptron feed forward neural network component, coupled with the transceiver, configured to estimate parameters of multipath reflections using representations of the channel estimates or beamforming feedback, and to generate transmission correction factors for the transceiver.
AC-DC converter with secondary side-control and synchronous rectifier sense architecture
Granted: January 26, 2021
Patent Number:
10903752
An AC-DC converter with secondary side control and synchronous rectifier (SR) architecture and method for operating the same are provided for reducing the cost, complexity and size of the converter while improving efficiency. In an example embodiment, an integrated circuit (IC) controller for the secondary side of the AC-DC converter comprises a zero-crossing detector (ZCD) block and a negative-sensing (NSN) block coupled to a terminal. The terminal is configured to receive an input…
Power supply architecture for USB-C controllers
Granted: January 26, 2021
Patent Number:
10901487
In an example embodiment, a Universal Serial Bus Type-C (USB-C) cable comprises a respective integrated circuit (IC) controller, disposed at each end of cable, that is coupled to a respective VCONN line at that end of the cable. Each IC controller comprises a power rail, a VDDD terminal, a VBUS terminal, and a VCONN terminal that is coupled to the VCONN line at the respective end of the cable. The VDDD terminal, the VCONN terminal, and the VBUS terminal are coupled to the power rail. The…
Devices, systems and methods for selecting communication protocol transmission frequencies
Granted: January 19, 2021
Patent Number:
10897730
A method can include, by operation of first communication circuits, determining a quality of a plurality of communication frequencies according to wireless communications of a first protocol type; recording a quality of the communication frequencies; selecting communication frequencies for use by second communication circuits based on the quality of the communication frequencies; and wirelessly transmitting and receiving data with the second communication circuits according to a second…
Low-power type-C receiver with high idle noise and DC-level rejection
Granted: January 12, 2021
Patent Number:
10890957
Techniques for low-power USB Type-C receivers with high noise rejection are described herein. In an example embodiment, a USB-enabled device comprises a receiver circuit coupled to a Configuration Channel (CC) line of a USB Type-C subsystem. The receiver circuit is configured to reject the incoming signal even when the incoming signal includes noise with a magnitude of more than 300 mVpp, and to operate in the presence of a VBUS charging current that is compliant with a USB-PD…
System and method extending range of a wireless network
Granted: January 12, 2021
Patent Number:
10893483
A system and method are provided for extending range of devices in a legacy wireless network. Generally, the method involves providing in a transmitter of the system a frame having a first field including a number of preamble segments and a second field including a number of data segments. The transmitter in the system is then operated to transmit at least one of the preamble segments with at least a first transmit power, and to transmit the segments of the second field at a second…
Method and apparatus for data transmission via capacitance sensing device
Granted: January 12, 2021
Patent Number:
10891007
Example systems and methods transfer data between a first device and a second device. Embodiments generate, using an output circuit, an analog signal based on a data signal for an application associated with the first device and the second device. Embodiments transmit the data signal over an interface between a processor of the first device and a processor of the second device by capacitively coupling the analog signal through a capacitor formed by at least one sensor electrode, of a…
