The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Dec. 30, 2003
Filed:
Feb. 08, 2002
National Semiconductor Corporation, Santa Clara, CA (US);
Abstract
The present invention provides a redundant break before make digital circuit. Redundant circuits are used to provide a path to ground for a charging signal when a fault condition exists. The fault condition may be based on characteristics relating to the signal or the chip itself. For example, a fault condition may occur when a temperature measured on the chip exceeds a predetermined threshold. A fault condition may also occur when the signal is above or below a predetermined threshold. For example, a fault condition may occur when the current of the signal is above a predetermined level. The fault conditions are monitored and the state of a switch that couples the cell to the charging path is monitored. When the switch is open and a fault condition has occurred, there are redundant paths to ensure that a switch closes to provide the path to ground during the fault condition.