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US 6,304,467 B1Granted
Progressive start-up circuit for activating a charge pump
AssigneeThe Procter & Gamble Company
InventorDragan Danilo Nebrigic
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AssigneeThe Procter & Gamble Company
InventorDragan Danilo Nebrigic
Estimating the term…
A charge pump power converter efficiently provides electrical power by dynamically controlling a switch matrix of the charge pump. Instead of open-loop oscillator-based control, a dynamic controller provides power upon demand by sensing the output voltage and changing the operating frequency of the charge pump in response. Moreover, this closed-loop dynamic control intrinsically voltage regulates the output voltage of the charge pump power converter without the inefficient addition of a step-down voltage regulator, downstream of the power converter. In addition, this closed-loop dynamic control allows for maintaining a desired output voltage even with variations in the input voltage. Also, the dynamic control accommodates the advantages of using ultra-capacitors in the charge pump. The power converter is capable of operating with a sub-one volt input voltage incorporating low-threshold, low on-resistance power MOSFET switches in the switch matrix of the charge pump. A progressive start-up circuit further allows the power converter to start from a discharged state even with a sub-one volt input voltage.
A progressive start-up circuit configured to activate a charge pump powered by a low input voltage and coupled to a load, the progressive start-up circuit adapted to activate the charge pump by transferring charge from an energy source to a storage capacitor, the progressive start-up circuit comprising:
A method of progressively starting a discharged charge pump with an input voltage from an energy source when the charge pump is initially discharged, the method comprising:
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.