Intersil Americas Inc.

Texas Instruments Corporation

Intersil Corporation

Diodes Inc.

Sisan Shen

Congzhong Huang

Ariel S Bentolila

Xiping Yang

Jinrong Qian

Xuelin Wu

Jiansong Chen

Jian-Song Chen

Jason Chen

An apparatus includes a plurality of high-side switching elements connected in parallel between a first voltage bus and a switching node, wherein each high-side switching element of the plurality of high-side switching elements is controlled by a corresponding high-side driver, and a plurality of low-side switching elements connected in parallel between the switching node and a second voltage bus, wherein each low-side switching element of the plurality of low-side switching elements is controlled by a corresponding low-side driver, and wherein based on at least one operating parameter, the plurality of high-side switching elements and the plurality of low-side switching elements are controlled such that the plurality of high-side switching elements and the plurality of low-side switching elements form a reconfigurable power stage of a power converter.

Reconfigurable power conversion apparatus and control method

A DC to DC converter circuit includes circuitry for generating a PWM waveform signal at a phase node of a DC to DC converter responsive to an input voltage and amonitormonitoredoutput voltage. The circuitry further includes a high side switching transistor connected between the input voltage and a phase node and a low side switching transistor connected between the phase node and ground. An output filter is connected to the circuitry for generating the PWM waveform signal. The output filter includes an inductor having a first side connected to the phase node and a second side connected to an output voltage node. Detection circuitry detects zero current crossings in the inductor responsive to a voltage across the high side switching transistor and a voltage across the low side switching transistor.

High-side sensing of zero inductor current for step-down DC-DC converter

A method of regulating voltage with a switching regulator is disclosed. The method includes sensing an output voltage provided by the regulator. If the output voltage drops below a low voltage threshold, a burst of one or more current pulses is provided. If the output voltage raises above a high voltage threshold during the burst, discontinuing the burst of current pulses. The method includes counting a number of the one or more current pulses in the burst, and comparing the number of the one or more current pulses with at least one pulse threshold. The upper current threshold is adjusted based on the number of the one or more current pulses.

Current pulse count control in a voltage regulator

A synthetic ripple regulator including frequency control based on a reference clock. The regulator includes an error network, a ripple detector, a combiner, a ripple generator, a comparator network and a phase comparator. The error network provides an error signal indicative of relative error of the output voltage. The ripple detector provides a ramp control signal based on the input and output voltages and a pulse control signal. The combiner adjusts the ramp control signal based on a frequency compensation signal to provide an adjusted ramp control signal. The ripple generator develops a ripple control signal based on the adjusted ramp control signal. The comparator network develops the pulse control signal to control switching based on the error signal and the ripple control signal. The phase comparator compares the pulse control signal with the reference clock and provides the frequency compensation signal.

Synthetic ripple regulator with frequency control

A DC to DC converter circuit includes circuitry for generating a PWM waveform signal at a phase node of a DC to DC converter responsive to an input voltage and a monitor output voltage. The circuitry further includes a high side switching transistor connected between the input voltage and a phase node and a low side switching transistor connected between the phase node and ground. An output filter is connected to the circuitry for generating the PWM waveform signal. The output filter includes an inductor having a first side connected to the phase node and a second side connected to an output voltage node. Detection circuitry detects zero current crossings in the inductor responsive to a voltage across the high side switching transistor and a voltage across the low side switching transistor.

High-side sensing of zero inductor current for step down DC-DC converter

A voltage regulator includes a voltage source for providing an input voltage and circuitry for regulating the input voltage to provide an output voltage. The circuitry for regulating the input voltage includes at least a high side switch and a low side switch. A skip mode controller controls the high side switch and the low side switch in order to minimize conduction losses and switching losses within the voltage regulator.

High light load efficiency synchronous buck regulator with pulse skipping control

A synchronous switching DC-DC regulator uses the output switching node as the control reference for the main FET gate drive voltage limiting and the appropriate on-time gate drive FET as the controlled switch. The control reference provided by the output switching node times the main FET gate drive voltage setting process and supplies most of the energy necessary to turn on the main FETs. The energy is provided in part from an external inductor coupled to the output switching node.

High efficiency switching DC-DC regulator

An efficient and practical system and method to determine when a switching DC-DC regulator is under a light load condition. The light load condition is determined by monitoring the switch node voltage to detect a zero-crossing voltage that is load dependent and occurs when the average output current minus half the switching current at the switch node is less than or equal to zero.

System and method to detect synchronous switching regulator light load

An energy efficient gate drive technique for binary push-pull MOSFET switching systems having a common switch node with inductive and capacitive elements connected to this common switch node. These energy storage elements on the common switch node can be parasitic in nature or discrete components. This technique recycles otherwise lost PMOS gate drive energy through the switch node, as a storage element, to the NMOS output FET.

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Plano, TX, United States of America

Sisan Shen