Noise suppression in voltage regulator circuits
AssigneeApple Inc.
InventorsNikola Jovanovic, Michael Couleur
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A power converter circuit included in a computer system may charge and discharge a switch node coupled to a regulated power supply node via an inductor. During a discharge cycle, the power converter circuit may sense a current being discharge from the regulated power supply node through the inductor into a ground supply node. The power converter circuit may also sense a noise current flowing in the ground supply node, and generate a control current using both the current being discharge and the noise current. Using the control current, the power converter circuit may halt the discharge cycle.
Claims20
An apparatus, comprising:
- a voltage regulator circuit including a switch node coupled to a regulated power supply node via an inductor, wherein the voltage regulator circuit is configured, in response to an initiation of a discharge cycle, to discharge the switch node into a ground supply node;
- a sense circuit configured to:
- sense a discharge current flowing from the switch node to the ground supply node;
- sense a noise current flowing in the ground supply node;
- modify the discharge current using the noise current to generate a control current;
- and
- a control circuit configured to halt, based on a value of the control current, the discharge cycle.
A method, comprising:
- discharging, in response to initiating a discharge cycle, a switch node into a ground supply node, wherein the switch node is coupled to a regulated power supply node via an inductor;
- sensing a discharge current flowing from the switch node to the ground supply node;
- sensing a noise current flowing in the ground supply node;
- modifying the discharge current using the noise current to generate a control current;
- stopping, based on a value of the control current, the discharge cycle;
- and
- charging the switch node in response to determining the discharge cycle has ended and a charging cycle has started.
An apparatus, comprising:
- a first power converter circuit coupled to an input power supply node and a ground supply node, wherein the first power converter circuit is configured to generate a first regulated voltage level on a first power supply node;
- and
- a second power converter circuit coupled to the input power supply node and the ground supply node, wherein the second power converter circuit includes a switch node coupled to a second power supply node via an inductor, wherein the second power converter circuit is configured to:
- charge the switch node for a particular time period;
- in response to an end of the particular time period, discharge the switch node by sinking a discharge current from the switch node into the ground supply node;
- sense a noise current flowing in the ground supply node;
- generate a control current using the discharge current and the noise current;
- and
- halt the discharge of the switch node based on a value of the control current.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.