Driver circuit with real-time thermal management

Abstract

An electronic circuit for driving an electronic switch is described herein. In one embodiment, the electronic circuit includes a driver circuit configured to provide a drive signal for the electronic switch in accordance with a control signal, and a multiplier configured to receive, as input signals, a current sense signal representing a current flowing through a load current path of the electronic switch and a voltage sense signal representing a voltage drop across the load current path of the electronic switch. The electronic circuit further includes an estimator circuit configured to receive a multiplier output signal from the multiplier and to generate, based on the multiplier output signal, a temperature signal representing an estimated temperature of the electronic switch. Furthermore, the electronic circuit includes a control circuit configured to receive the temperature signal and to generate, based on the temperature signal, the control signal for the driver circuit.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.