Timer circuit and battery protection circuit using same

Abstract

This invention includes an improvement to a power regulation and thermal management circuit. The power regulation and thermal management circuit includes a pass element coupled serially between a power source and a load. A voltage sensing circuit senses the voltage across the serial element and selects a corresponding current path based upon the sense voltage from a plurality of current paths. The invention includes a timing circuit that periodically, temporarily overrides the selection of current paths. The timing circuit generates a test pulse that temporarily turns all of the current paths on, thereby preventing a discharge lockout condition. The power regulation and thermal management circuit also includes a linear regulator to terminate charging at the appropriate voltage.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.