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US 10,833,501 B2Granted
Reverse voltage recovery circuit
AssigneeTexas Instruments Incorporated
InventorsJustin Patrick Vogt, Michael James Mills
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A power circuit having a reverse voltage recovery boost circuit that speeds up a recovery time of the power circuit after a reverse voltage condition has cleared is provided. The power circuit includes a reverse voltage detector that detects the reverse voltage condition. After the reverse voltage condition clears, the reverse voltage recovery boost circuit transfers a portion of power to one transistor that is stored in another transistor thereby transitioning the one transistor from a non-conductive state to a conductive state, which allows a transfer of power from the input voltage to the output voltage.
Claims20
A power circuit, comprising:
- a voltage input;
- a voltage output;
- a first conductive energy storage device and a second conductive energy storage device coupled in series between the voltage input and the voltage output;
- a reverse voltage detector having a detector output and first and second inputs, the first input coupled to the voltage input, the second input coupled to the voltage output, and the reverse voltage detector configured to:
- provide a fault signal at the detector output responsive to an output voltage at the voltage output exceeding an input voltage at the voltage input;
- and clear the fault signal at the detector output responsive to the output voltage not exceeding the input voltage;
- and
- a reverse voltage recovery boost circuit having a circuit input and a switch, the circuit input coupled to the detector output, the switch coupled between the first conductive energy storage device and the second conductive energy storage device, and the reverse voltage recovery boost circuit configured to:
- responsive to the reverse voltage detector clearing the fault signal, transition the first conductive energy storage device from a non-conductive state to a conductive state by transferring at least a portion of power from the second conductive energy storage device to the first conductive energy storage device, so the voltage input supplies power to the voltage output.
6 more elements
A system, comprising:
- a first electronic device including a power circuit having a voltage input and a voltage output;
- a second electronic device coupled to the voltage output and configured to receive power from the power circuit;
- the power circuit including:
- a first conductive energy storage device and a second conductive energy storage device coupled in series between the voltage input and the voltage output;
- a reverse voltage detector having a detector output and first and second inputs, the first input coupled to the voltage input, the second input coupled to the voltage output, and the reverse voltage detector configured to:
- provide a fault signal at the detector output responsive to an output voltage at the voltage output exceeding an input voltage at the voltage input;
- and clear the fault signal at the detector output responsive to the output voltage not exceeding the input voltage;
- and
- a reverse voltage recovery boost circuit having a circuit input and a switch, the circuit input coupled to the detector output, the switch coupled between the first conductive energy storage device and the second conductive energy storage device, and the reverse voltage recovery boost circuit configured to:
- responsive to the reverse voltage detector clearing the fault signal, transition the first conductive energy storage device from a non-conductive state to a conductive state by transferring at least a portion of power from the second conductive energy storage device to the first conductive energy storage device, so the voltage input supplies power to the voltage output.
7 more elements
A method of receiving an input and providing an output, the method comprising:
- supplying an output voltage to an output from an input voltage at an input;
- detecting whether the output voltage is greater than the input voltage;
- disconnecting a circuit path between the input voltage and the output voltage responsive to the output voltage being greater than the input voltage;
- providing a connection between a first energy storage device and a second energy storage device in the circuit path responsive to the output voltage not being greater than the input voltage;
- transferring a portion of power from the second energy storage device to the first energy storage device;
- and
- reconnecting the circuit path to allow power transfer from the input voltage to the output voltage.
4 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.