International Business Machines Corporation

Galaxy Power, Inc.

Bose Corporation

Third Pole, Inc.

Acbel Polytech Inc.

Xilectric, Inc.

Vision Robotics Corporation

Andrew Ferencz

Todd Edward Takken

Xin Zhang

Paul William Coteus

Yuan Yao

Gregory Walter Hall

Shawn Anthony Hall

Wolfgang Scholz

Benjamin Apollonio

David G Zapol

Frank J Heirtzler

Gregory A Zvonar

Shurong Tian

Michael B Nussbaum

Ko-Tao Lee

Santiago Carvajal

John Michael Sakalowsky

Kenneth B Delpapa

Bojan Rip

William W Ng

Bernhard Schroter

Steven E Weiss

Charles R Lemay

Leland Chang

Qun Lu

Harvey Koselka

Bret Wallach

Chia-An Yeh

Jui-Yang Chiu

Shih-Yuan Wang

Gerald Miller

Liam McAuliffe

Richard Wight

Hsuan-An Chen

An approach for reducing unwanted magnetic coupling with conductive elements by keeping the localized magnetic field in a transformer's or inductors magnetic gap far away from any conductive elements is provided. The approach includes the use of spacers to keep the localized magnetic field in a transformer's or inductor's magnetic gap far away from any conductive elements to reduce unwanted magnetic coupling with those conductive elements. The spacers can be made from materials including ferrite, conductors and non-conducting elements.

Spacer to reduce magnetic coupling

A semiconductor package provides a low profile connection to a bottom side of the semi-conductor package. The semi-conductor package includes a computer processor die and a substrate. The computer processor die is mounted on to a top surface of the substrate. The substrate is mounted on to a printed circuit board. A voltage regulator is coupled to the printed circuit board. A top surface of the voltage regulator is coupled to a bottom surface of the substrate. The package also includes a connector device. The connector device includes a cable configured to conduct power from an upstream source, and a low-profile connector module attached to an end of the cable. The connector module is configured to interface to a bottom surface of the voltage regulator.

Separable interface cable structure for high voltage under-module power input

Systems and methods are provided for portable and compact nitric oxide (NO) generation that can be embedded into other therapeutic devices or used alone. In some embodiments, an ambulatory NO generation system can be comprised of a controller and disposable cartridge. The cartridge can contain filters and scavengers for preparing the gas used for NO generation and for scrubbing output gases prior to patient inhalation. The system can utilize an oxygen concentrator to increase nitric oxide production and compliment oxygen generator activity as an independent device. The system can also include a high voltage electrode assembly that is easily assembled and installed. Various nitric oxide delivery methods are provided, including the use of a nasal cannula.

Systems and methods for ambulatory generation of nitric oxide

A power converter with co-packaged secondary field effect transistors (FETs) are described. The power converter can include a first circuit, a transformer connected to an output of the first circuit, and a second circuit connected to an output of the transformer. The second circuit can include an inductor, a first FET coupled between the transformer and the inductor, and a second FET coupled between the first FET and ground. The first FET and the second FET can be co-packaged as a single package.

Power converter with co-packaged secondary field effect transistors (FETs)

Embodiment of the present invention includes a magnetic structure and a magnetic structure used in a direct current (DC) to DC energy converter. The magnetic structure has an E-core and a plate, with the plate positioned in contact or in near contact with the post surfaces of the E-core. The E-core has a base, a no-winding leg, a transformer leg, and an inductor leg. The no-winding leg, the transformer leg, and the inductor leg are perpendicular and magnetically in contact with the base. The plate is a flat slab with lateral dimensions generally larger than its thickness. The plate has a plate nose that overlaps a top no-winding leg surface of the no-winding leg with a no-winding gap area to form a no-winding gap with a no-winding gap reluctance. The plate also has a plate end that overlaps a top inductor leg surface of the inductor leg with an inductor gap area to form an inductor gap with an inductor gap reluctance. In some embodiments, e.g., where the duty cycle is less than 50 percent, the inductor gap reluctance will be designed to be less than the no-winding gap reluctance. In these cases, the majority of the magnetic flux that passes through the transformer leg will return through the inductor leg, instead of through the no-winding leg. The inductor and no-winding gap reluctances can he adjusted, so that the electromotive force applied to a charge passing through the inductor will partially cancel the electromotive force applied by the transformer secondary. The gap reluctance ratio can be defined, so that the difference in secondary and inductor electromotive forces is equal to the output voltage defined by an optimal no-ripple duty cycle. In this way no changing current is required through the inductor to create a dI/dt inductive voltage drop across the output inductor. Zero output current ripple is achieved. Various embodiments of the plate, plate shape, and no-winding leg are disclosed. These embodiments allow achieving a high ratio of no-winding gap reluctance to inductor gap reluctance, for practical, affordable magnetic material structures and aspect ratios. A high gap reluctance ratio enables zero output current ripple for the high transformer turns ratios that are needed to achieve high input to output voltage ratios. The embodiments therefore allow achieving low output current ripple for 48 V or higher input voltages, 1 V or lower output voltages, and high output currents.

Magnetic cores with high reluctance differences in flux paths

Systems, devices, and methods of diagnosing an electrochemical cell using cyclic coulometry are discussed. An exemplary battery diagnostic system comprises a current generator to generate symmetric charge current and discharge current to excite an electrochemical cell, and a cyclic coulometer to evaluate performance of the electrochemical cell. The cyclic coulometer can adjust at least one of a charge time for applying the charge current, or a discharge time for applying the discharge current, to keep a monitored cell voltage toward a specific setpoint. The adjustment of charge or discharge time can be achieved by changing a current switch timing for reversing current from a first to a second current direction. The cyclic coulometer measures one or more electrical parameters during the charge or discharge cycle, and generates a performance metric using the measured electrical parameters.

Methods and algorithms of cyclic coulometry

Voltage on the output terminal of an inductor is obtained as a first input signal to a control block (CB); the inductor has an input terminal connected to a power switch and driver block at a switching node. A sense input voltage is obtained on an output terminal of a sensing circuit that is not directly connected to the switching node, as a second input signal to the CB. A voltage is generated on a first output terminal of the CB and is selected such that the CB can use its first and second input signals to infer the current through the inductor. A pulse width modulation (PWM) signal is generated on a second output terminal of the CB, based on the inferred current through the inductor; the second output signal from the CB is provided to a PWM input terminal of the power switch and driver block.

Smart controller with phantom inductor current sensing for switched mode power supplies

A printed circuit board (PCB) structure and mounting assembly for joining two PCBs. A first PCB has a top and bottom surface faces and a peripheral end face separating the top and bottom surface. The first PCB has one or more conductive wire ends exposed at a surface of the peripheral end face; the exposed conductive wire ends forming multiple separate electrical contacts across the thickness and length of the PEF surface. A second PCB has a top surface face and one or more conductive pads exposed at the top surface at locations corresponding to locations of the multiple electrical contacts. A surface mount solder material is disposed on one or more exposed conductive pads for electrically connecting with corresponding the multiple electrical contacts. The disposed solder material stably joins the PEF surface of the first PCB to the top surface of the second PCB in a relative perpendicular orientation.

Peripheral end face attachment of exposed copper layers of a first printed circuit board to the surface of a second printed circuit board by surface mount assembly

A method for fabricating a semiconductor device includes, for a substrate having a first region protected by a cap layer, forming a first device on a second region of the substrate. The substrate includes an insulator layer disposed between a first semiconductor layer and a second semiconductor layer each including a first semiconductor material. The method further includes forming a second device on the first region, including forming one or more transistors each having a channel formed from a second semiconductor material different from the first semiconductor material.

High switching frequency, low loss and small form factor fully integrated power stage

An apparatus is provided including a transformer including a first printed circuit board having one or more conducting layers, the one or more conducting layers forming, at least in part, a transformer coil; at least one inductor; and at least one continuous piece of conducting material external to the printed circuit board, where the at least one continuous piece of conducting material forms a connection between the transformer and the at least one inductor. A method is also provided for assembling a switched-mode power supply.

Unified conductor to lower the resistance between a planar transformer and one or more inductors

An electrical connector carries large amounts of electrical current between two circuit boards with low resistance and low self-inductance by means of an interdigitated anode and cathode, thereby providing low dynamic voltage loss. The connector also may include, near where power will be consumed, an interposer board with on-board capacitance to provide even lower dynamic voltage loss. The connector has application to delivering low-voltage, high-current power from a power supply on a first board to electronics on a second board: the low resistance provides low voltage drop for a load current that is constant, while the low inductance and the capacitors provide low voltage fluctuation for a load current that changes. These issues are of great importance, for example, in designing high-performance computers.

Interdigitated power connector

Systems and apparatus of cyclic coulometry

Printed circuit board (PCB), electrical structures including PCBs, and methods for making the same. One PCB structures includes: a substrate having a plurality of surfaces, including a first aerial main face (AMF), a second AMF, and a first peripheral end face (PEF), wherein the first PEF separates the first AMF from the second AMF, and a first plurality of contacts embedded in the first PEF, where each of the first plurality of contacts forms a contiguous contact with the first PEF and at least one of i) the second AMF, ii) the first AMF, and iii) another one of the plurality of surfaces.

Electrical contacts on the sidewall of a circuit board

Growing community of inventors

Southborough, MA, United States of America

Andrew Ferencz