Intersil Americas Inc.

Allegro Microsystems, LLC

Mir Mahin

Chun Cheung

Paul Dackow

Weihong Qiu

Robert H Isham

Shashank Wekhande

John Humenick

The present embodiments relate to methods and apparatuses for providing fault protection in a power controller such as a voltage regulator, and particularly protection against reverse over current fault conditions. Some embodiments are capable of distinguishing between different types of reverse over current conditions, such as a high-side short or a normal over voltage condition. In these and other embodiments, fault protection is performed in favor of a load connected to the voltage regulator, rather than components of the voltage regulator itself.

Method and apparatus for reverse over current protection

An integrated circuit has a single input pin for determining a value associated with a resistor divider. First circuitry determines a resistor ratio of the resistor divider through the single input pin. A first register stores a first group of bits representing the resistor ratio. The first group of bits represents the least significant bits of the value. Second circuitry determines an equivalent resistance of the resistor divider through the single input pin. A second register stores a second group of bits representing the equivalent resistance.

N-bit ADC reader

A DC-DC converter includes independent first and second outputs to drive respective first and second loads from a common boost module. In one embodiment, a first linear regulator controls a first controlling device for the first output and a second linear regulator controls a second controlling device for the second output. The load requiring the higher voltage controls the boost module.

Methods and apparatus for DC-DC converter having independent outputs

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Holland, PA, United States of America

Mir Mahin