Dell Products Inc.

Intersil Americas Inc.

Zilker Labs, Inc.

Astec International Limited

Lucent Technologies Inc.

Chris Morrow Young

John J Breen

Brent Alan McDonald

Erin Lane Price

Douglas Edward Heineman

Jay L Taylor

Gregory T Chandler

Bruce A Miller

John A Billingsley

Hong Huang

Sunder S Kidambi

James R Toker

David L Beck

Cahit Gezgin

Configuring the operational behavior of an integrated circuit. The integrated circuit (IC) comprises a plurality of configuration inputs for configuring the IC. The IC also has a memory which stores a plurality of sets of parameter values. Each parameter value of the respective set corresponds to a different operational parameter of a plurality of operational parameters. The IC includes logic which determines a first plurality of configuration values corresponding to the first plurality of configuration inputs. The logic then selects a set of parameter values from the stored plurality of sets of parameter values. The selection of parameter values is based on the first plurality of configuration values. The IC is then configured for operation according to one or more operational parameter values in the selected set of parameter values.

Application specific power controller configuration technique

Voltage regulators in a current share arrangement may provide a total current to a common load, and may be simultaneously turned on to ramp up member currents. Each voltage regulator may provide a respective member current in the current share configuration. A target current value may be determined from a cycle-averaged current value of the member currents and a voltage error value of the voltage regulator, and each member current may be ramped to the target current value instead of the cycle-averaged current value when the voltage regulators are turned on, resulting in more stable and balanced current ramping. A predictive multi-phase digital controller may therefore operate according to a target current determined based on a measured or inferred inductor current and an error voltage. Pulse-width, pulse position and pulse frequency (adding or skipping pulses) may be calculated according to the operation of the predictive multi-phase digital controller.

Current ramping during multiphase current regulation

A feedback control system, e.g. a voltage regulator, may include a control stage controlling an output stage that generates an output. The control stage may generate a control signal, e.g. a pulse-width modulated signal, having a duty-cycle and a switching frequency, and adjust the switching frequency when a present value of the duty-cycle differs from a most recent previous value of the duty-cycle, until the duty-cycle starts increasing, while also adjusting the duty-cycle according to the output. By adjusting the switching frequency, the (power) efficiency of the system may be optimized also regulating the output. The feedback system may also adjust the switching frequency according to an alternate algorithm to improve but not necessarily optimize the power efficiency by scaling a programmed frequency value using a scaling factor that is a function of a maximum duty-cycle value, a present frequency value, the programmed frequency value, and a minimum frequency value.

Control system optimization via adaptive frequency adjustment

Hysteretic performance with fixed frequency may be achieved in controlling a power/voltage regulator, by adapting fixed frequency PWM (Pulse Width Modulation) to current-mode hysteretic control. In steady state, the current waveform may be inferred without having to measure the current. In current-mode control, the current may be adjusted proportional to the error voltage. The change in load current may be related to the change in duty-cycle, and the change in duty-cycle may be related to the error voltage, with the change in duty-cycle expressed as a function of the error voltage, to establish current-mode control. This current-mode control may be adapted to perform current-mode hysteretic, if instead of duty-cycle, the same duty-cycle or current shift was effected by a change in phase. A fraction of ripple current (Forc) may be defined as a specified fraction of the peak-to-peak ripple current, establishing a linear relationship between the Forc and the ripple current.

Transient processing mechanism for power converters

A single-cycle charge regulator (SCCR) may be used in operating a power converter at a constant frequency without requiring compensation. The SCCR may include a first control loop to generate an error value based on the output voltage of the power converter and a reference voltage, and to generate a first control value based on the error value to control steady-state behavior of the output of the power converter. A second control loop may generate a second control value based on the error value, to regulate response of the power converter to a transient deviation on the output voltage. A third control loop may operate to adjust a current (affected by the output voltage of the the power converter) subsequent to the transient deviation, according to a third control value derived from previous values of the first control value, the second control value, and the third control value, to keep the adjusted current commensurate with the current that was present prior to the transient deviation, while keeping the output voltage of the power converter at its desired steady-state value.

Single-cycle charge regulator for digital control

The operation of a voltage regulator (or point-of-load regulator) may be optimized, by performing diode emulation using the low-side output transistor (LS FET). The voltage regulator may be monitored for a specified trigger event, which may include an averaged value of the load current dropping below a threshold value, and upon recognizing the trigger event, one or more of a number of possible diode emulation algorithms may be enabled. In one algorithm, the duty-cycle of the LS FET control signal may be set to a specified value, then adjusted until the duty-cycle of the high-side output transistor (HS FET) control signal settles and steady state is reached. The duty-cycle of the LS FET control signal may then be adjusted, and the duty-cycle of the HS FET control signal monitored, until the monitoring indicates that the duty-cycle of the HS FET control signal has reached a minimum value, thereby optimizing operation of the voltage regulator with respect to power loss. The averaged current may be based on actual load current measurements, or it may be calculated. In the latter case, discontinuous operation of the regulator may be determined based on the duty-cycle of the HS FET control signal deviating from its highest value.

Control system optimization via digital diode emulation

Complex filters may be used to achieve compensation of a plant, corresponding for example to a power regulator or point-of-load (POL) regulator. Digital filter coefficients may be mapped to analogous poles and zeros, or they may be mapped to values of the quality factor (Q) of the output, frequency, and gain. The plant may be observed and characterized using a network analyzer to generate the Bode plot (or Nyquist plot) for the plant. The digital filter coefficients may be mapped to features that may be identified on the Bode plot (or Nyquist plot) to easily correlate characteristics of the digital filter or digital compensator to the plant characteristics. The mapped features may be adjusted, for example by a user, either manually or by executing one or more optimization algorithms, to achieve the desired results relative to the Bode plot (or Nyquist plot). The mapped features may then be reverse mapped to the digital filter or digital compensator coefficients to fine tune and implement the digital filter or digital compensator.

Adaptive compensation in digital power controllers

A method for shipping a battery assembly includes providing a plurality of battery subassemblies. The plurality of battery subassemblies are operable to be mechanically and electrically connected together to form a battery assembly. The battery subassemblies are provided to be shipped such that an additional shipping fee that would be incurred due to a battery characteristic that is not based on the weight of the battery assembly is not incurred. The method includes shipping a first battery subassembly and a second battery subassembly such that the additional shipping fee that would be incurred due to the battery characteristic that is not based on the total weight of the battery assembly is not incurred.

Information handling system including battery assembly having multiple separable subassemblies

A battery assembly includes a plurality of battery subassemblies. The battery subassemblies are operable to be mechanically and electrically connected together to form a battery assembly and are provided to be shipped such that an additional shipping fee that would be incurred due to a battery characteristic that is not the total weight of the battery assembly is avoided. The plurality of battery subassemblies includes a first battery subassembly and a second battery subassembly. The first battery subassembly includes a first subassembly to subassembly electrical connector, a first subassembly to subassembly mechanical connector, and a device power connector operable to supply power to a battery powered device. The second battery subassembly is operable to be electrically and mechanically connected to the first battery subassembly and includes a second subassembly to subassembly electrical connector for electrically connecting to the first subassembly to subassembly electrical connector of the first battery subassembly and a second subassembly to subassembly mechanical connector for mechanically connecting to the first subassembly to subassembly mechanical connector of the first battery subassembly.

A method for optimizing operation of a feedback system may include generating a control signal according to a control parameter, regulating an output of the feedback system via the control signal, and monitoring the control parameter. In response to the monitoring indicating that the present value of the control parameter is outside a specific range of values, a first parameter that impacts an operating characteristic of the feedback system may be adjusted until the present value of the control parameter is within the specific range of values. The specific range of values of the control parameter may correspond to a target level of the operating characteristic of the feedback system with respect to the first parameter. One or more additional independent parameters also impacting the operating characteristic of the system may be similarly adjusted to obtain a minimum present value of the control parameter at which the output of the feedback system would be regulated, with the minimum value of the control parameter corresponding to the target level of the operating characteristic of the feedback system with respect to, collectively, the first parameter and the one or more additional independent parameters.

Control system optimization via independent parameter adjustment

An inverter providing power to a load, the inverter receiving a direct current (DC) input. A plurality of switches included in the inverter are controlled by a plurality of control signals to generate an alternating current (AC) output in response to the DC input. A zero crossing of the AC output current provided by the plurality of switches is detected, and the controlling of the plurality of switches is delayed in response to the zero crossing. The amount of delay is adjusted responsive to a change in the DC input to effectively maintain a constant switching frequency of the inverter. The delayed AC output current of the plurality of switches may be filtered to provide power to the load.

Frequency feedforward for constant light output in backlight inverters

In a method and system for managing power provided to a load, a power supply system includes a first power peripheral operable to receive and convert a first type of power to a second type of power. Also included in the power supply system is a second power peripheral operable to receive the second type of power and provide power to the load. A power event trigger device, which is included in the second power peripheral, is operable to introduce a trigger signal in the power to the load. The trigger signal, which is introduced in response to receiving a change in the second type of power, is detected as a power event.

Power management scheme for external batteries

In a method and system for an improved inverter providing power to a load, the inverter receives a direct current (DC) input. A plurality of switches included in the inverter are controlled by a plurality of control signals to generate an alternating current (AC) output in response to the DC input. A zero crossing of the AC output current provided by the plurality of switches is detected, and the controlling of the plurality of switches is delayed in response to the zero crossing. The amount of delay is adjusted responsive to a change in the DC input to effectively maintain a constant switching frequency of the inverter. The delayed AC output current of the plurality of switches is filtered to provide power to the load.

An active current sharing circuit that provides a plurality of paralleled DC-DC converters each having a lossless inductor-based current sensing circuit for sensing the average current of the associated DC-DC converter through its output inductor, and a means for adjusting the voltage reference coupled to each of the DC-DC converter's PWM controllers through a one pin interconnection between the converters. The circuit provides a high percentage current sharing level at lower cost, with reduced circuit wiring complexity, and fewer components. In an alternate embodiment, the inductor-based current sensing is replaced with a resistor-based current sensing, such that comparable current sharing levels are achieved albeit with higher loss.

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Austin, TX, United States of America

Chris Morrow Young