System and method to measure capacitance of capacitive sensor array
Granted: August 20, 2019
Patent Number:
10386969
A system and method for determining position information. The method includes selecting a column, a first row, and a second row of a capacitive sensor array. The first row and second row intersect with the column of the capacitive sensor array. The method further includes measuring a differential capacitance between the first row and the second row and utilizing the differential capacitance in determining a location of an object proximate to the capacitive sensor array.
Voltage protection for universal serial bus type-C (USB-C) connector systems
Granted: August 13, 2019
Patent Number:
10381787
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…
Half-bridge fingeprint sensing method
Granted: August 13, 2019
Patent Number:
10380397
Fingerprint detection circuits with common mode noise rejection are described. The Fingerprint detection circuit includes a half-bridge circuit coupled to a receive (RX) electrode of an array of fingerprint detection electrodes and to a buried capacitance that is unalterable by the presence of a conductive object on the array. The fingerprint detection circuit may also include a listener electrode configured to enable common mode noise rejection through a differential input stage of a…
Adjustable over-current detector circuit for universal serial bus (USB) devices
Granted: August 6, 2019
Patent Number:
10374411
In an example embodiment, a device comprises a gate driver and a current detector circuit. The gate driver is configured to be coupled to a power switch on the VBUS line of a USB connector. The current detector circuit is configured to be coupled to the VBUS line and comprises a current sense amplifier, a reference voltage generator circuit, and a comparator. The current sense amplifier is configured to receive a pair of input voltages and to output an indicator signal responsive to the…
System and methods for arbitrating communications by collocated communication circuitry
Granted: August 6, 2019
Patent Number:
10372190
An example system and method, during operation of first communication circuitry in a first operating mode comprising first power consumption, uses the first communication circuitry to perform packet arbitration for wireless communications by the first communication circuitry, second communication circuitry, and third communication circuitry. During operation of the first communication circuitry in a second operating mode comprising second power consumption, the example system and method…
System and methods for low power consumption by a wireless sensor device
Granted: July 30, 2019
Patent Number:
10367540
An example system and method operate a wireless device in a first mode with power to operate a communication resource of the wireless device turned off. While operating the wireless device in the first mode, the system and method detects a voice attribute in a first portion of audio data, the audio data based on microphone input. Responsive to the detection of the voice attribute, the system and method transitions to the wireless device to operate in a second mode with power to operate…
Transceiver for communication and method for controlling communication
Granted: July 23, 2019
Patent Number:
10361793
An example embodiment provides a transceiver for communication includes a timing determiner that detects a fall from high level to low level of a bus signal generated by pulse width modulation of a clock signal and input from a communication bus; a transmission data signal delay adjuster that determines a second timing having a predetermined time difference from a first timing, the bus signal rising from the low level to the high level at the first timing; an encoder that extends a low…
NAND memory cell string having a stacked select gate structure and process for for forming same
Granted: July 23, 2019
Patent Number:
10361215
A memory string is disclosed including a plurality of core cells serially connected between a source select gate and a drain select gate along a channel. Each core cell includes a wordline separated from the channel by a stack of layers including a charge trapping layer. At least one of the source and drain select gates is a stacked select gate with a plurality of components, including a first component adjacent to the plurality of core cells and a second component separated from the…
Method and apparatus for staggered start-up of a predefined, random, or dynamic number of flash memory devices
Granted: July 23, 2019
Patent Number:
10360985
A method, apparatus, and manufacture for memory device startup is provided. Flash memory devices are configured such that, upon the power supply voltage reaching a pre-determined level, each flash memory is arranged to load the random access memory with instructions for the flash memory, and then execute a first portion of the instructions for the flash memory. After executing the first portion of the instructions for the flash memory, each separate subset of the flash memories waits for…
Phase controller apparatus and methods
Granted: July 16, 2019
Patent Number:
10356859
A phase controller includes a plurality of pulse width modulation (PWM) circuits, a plurality of switching devices, a computing unit, and a latency generator. The plurality of PWM circuits output pulse signals. The plurality of switching devices are coupled to the respective plurality of PWM circuits, and switch on and off based on the pulse signals. The computing unit calculates the pulse signals to be output from the plurality of PWM circuits, based on outputs of the plurality of…
USB type-C sideband signal interface circuit
Granted: July 16, 2019
Patent Number:
10353853
A device includes a USB-C controller instantiated as a first integrated circuit, the USB-C controller comprising a first pair of terminals to communicate with a first communication protocol that is other than USB, a second pair of terminals to communicate with a second communication protocol that is other than USB, and a third pair of terminals, each of which is to be coupled to a corresponding SBU1 terminal or SBU2 terminal of a type-C receptacle. The controller further includes a…
Detect and differentiate touches from different size conductive objects on a capacitive button
Granted: July 16, 2019
Patent Number:
10352977
Apparatuses and methods of distinguishing between a finger and stylus proximate to a touch surface are described. One apparatus includes a first circuit to obtain capacitance measurements of sense elements when a conductive object is proximate to a touch surface. The apparatus also includes a second circuit coupled to the first circuit. The second circuit is operable to detect whether the conductive object activates the first sense element, second sense element, or both, in view of the…
Method for fabricating a damascene self-aligned ferroelectric random access memory (F-RAM) device structure employing reduced processing steps
Granted: July 9, 2019
Patent Number:
10347829
A method for fabricating a non-volatile, ferroelectric random access memory (F-RAM) device with a reduced number of masking and etching steps is described. In one embodiment, the method includes forming an opening in an insulating layer over a surface of a substrate to expose a portion of the surface, and forming first spacers on sidewalls of the opening. A conductive layer is formed on the portion of the surface exposed in the opening and separated from the first spacers on the…
Combined analog architecture and functionality in a mixed-signal array
Granted: July 9, 2019
Patent Number:
10345377
A programmable device comprises a plurality of programmable blocks, a debug interface coupled with the plurality of programmable blocks, a debug interface coupled with the plurality of programmable blocks, and a power manger coupled with the plurality of programmable blocks. The power manager is configured to supply power to a subset of the plurality of programmable blocks during debugging of the subset while maintaining a different subset of the plurality of programmable blocks in a…
Distance estimation and authentication for Bluetooth systems, and devices
Granted: July 2, 2019
Patent Number:
10341865
Distance estimation and authentication are provided for Bluetooth systems and devices. Proximity detection requests are transmitted using a transceiver of a tracking device. Reply messages are received from a tracked device. Designated delay values are generated, and round trip times associated with the reply messages are determined based, at least in part, on the designated delay values and time stamps associated with the reply messages. An authenticity metric associated with the…
Managed-NAND with embedded random-access non-volatile memory
Granted: July 2, 2019
Patent Number:
10338826
Systems and methods embed a random-access non-volatile memory array in a managed-NAND system to execute the boot code or other time-sensitive applications. By embedding this random-access non-volatile memory in the managed-NAND system, either on the memory controller chip or as a separate chip within the managed-NAND system package, an application may be read with fast initial access time, alleviating the slow access time limitations of NAND Flash technology. Depending on the size of the…
Methods and apparatus to detect a presence of a conductive object
Granted: July 2, 2019
Patent Number:
10338739
A method and apparatus to determine a plurality of regions, each of the plurality of regions having a detected change in sensor value that meets or exceeds a threshold value, fit a three dimensional shape to the plurality of regions, and determine a position of an object.
USB type-C signal interface circuit
Granted: July 2, 2019
Patent Number:
10338656
A device includes a USB-C controller instantiated as a first integrated circuit that includes a first set of host terminals coupled to host controllers and a second set of terminals coupled to sets of D+/D? terminals of a type-C receptacle. A D+/D? multiplexer is to selectively couple the first set of host terminals to the second set of terminals. An electrostatic discharge (ESD) protection circuit is coupled between the D+/D? multiplexer and the second set of terminals. A charger…
Memory subsystem with wrapped-to-continuous read
Granted: June 25, 2019
Patent Number:
10331359
Disclosed herein are system, method, and computer program product embodiments for accessing data of a memory. A method embodiment operates by receiving one or more requests for data stored across at least a first memory area and a second memory area of a memory. The method continues with performing, by at least one processor, a wrapped read of data within a first memory area of the memory. The method then performs, by the at least one processor, a continuous read of data within a second…
2T1C ferro-electric random access memory cell
Granted: June 25, 2019
Patent Number:
10332596
A memory device and method of operating the same are disclosed. Generally, the device includes an array of Ferro-electric Random Access Memory cells. Each cell includes a first transistor coupled between a bit-line and a storage node (SN) and controlled by a first wordline (WL1), a second transistor coupled between a reference line and the SN and controlled by a second wordline (WL2), and a ferro-capacitor coupled between the SN and a plateline. The device further includes a…
