US 5,349,231 AGranted

Apparatus and method for bidirectional current conduction

AssigneeTexas Instruments Incorporated

InventorFernando D. Carvajal

Life of this patent

Estimating the term…

Loading patent…

Abstract

A method and apparatus are provided for bidirectional current conduction between first and second nodes of an electronic circuit. A first substantially constant current is conducted through a first current mirror pair of transistors coupled between the first and second nodes, in a first direction away from the first node toward the second node, in response to the first node having a voltage higher than the second node. A second substantially constant current is conducted through a second current mirror pair of transistors coupled between the first and second nodes, in a second direction away from the second node toward the first node, in response to the first node having a voltage lower than the second node.

Claims16

Dependent claims

A bilateral bipolar transistor device for bidirectional current conduction between first and second nodes of an electronic circuit, comprising:

a semiconductor layer having a first conductivity type;
a first region formed in said semiconductor layer, having a second conductivity type;
a second region formed in said semiconductor layer, spaced from said first region, and having said second conductivity type;
a third region formed in said semiconductor layer, spaced from and interposed between said first and second regions, having said second conductivity type and coupled to the first node;
and
a fourth region formed in said semiconductor layer, spaced from and interposed between said third and second regions, having said second conductivity type and coupled to the second node, said first and second regions being coupled to a bias current source.

3 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 08/079,187Filed 18 Jun 1993 · division
Priority: 22 Nov 1991
Granted: 20 Sep 1994
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification6 codes

H03K 17/166
By feedback from the output circuit to the control circuit: soft switching
G05F 3/265
Current mirrors: using bipolar transistors only
H10D 84/645
Characterised by the integration of at least one component covered by groups H10D10/00 or H10D18/00, e.g. integration of BJTs: combinations of…
H03K
Pulse technique

Family

Serial796,299Parent of this division · filed 22 Nov 1991
US 5,221,889 AParent of this division
US 5,349,231 AThis patent

From the US filing history. Foreign family members aren’t listed.

Timeline

Citations

Open elsewhere

Building an agent or pulling many patents? Use the API or MCP server instead of scraping pages. Get an API key