# US 7,609,098 B2 · Driver circuit for electronic components > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 7,609,098 B2 - Document ID: US7609098B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 11/418,205 - Filed: 2006-05-05 - Published: 2006-11-16 - Granted: 2009-10-27 - Earliest claimed: 2005-05-10 - Assignees: Atmel Automotive GmbH - Inventors: Guenther Bergmann - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US7609098B2 ## CPC - H05B 45/397: Current mirror circuits - Y02B 20/30: Semiconductor lamps, e.g. solid state lamps [SSL] light emitting diodes [LED] or organic LED [OLED] - H05B: ELECTRIC HEATING; ELECTRIC LIGHT SOURCES NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; CIRCUIT ARRANGEMENTS FOR ELECTRIC LIGHT SOURCES, IN GENERAL - Y02B: CLIMATE CHANGE MITIGATION TECHNOLOGIES RELATED TO BUILDINGS, e.g. HOUSING, HOUSE APPLIANCES OR RELATED END-USER APPLICATIONS ## Abstract A driver circuit including an amplifier, which generates a control signal from a reference signal; a driver current mirror; and a control current switch located between the amplifier and the driver current mirror which selectably isolates the driver current mirror from the amplifier or connects the driver current mirror to the amplifier, wherein the driver current mirror, when in a state connected to the amplifier, amplifies the control signal into a driver signal. A compensating circuit is provided that generates a correction signal, as a function of an error current of the driver current mirror and provides the correction signal to an input of the amplifier, wherein a feedback signal input of the amplifier is fed through a feedback path from a feedback signal coupled out of a control branch of the driver current mirror, and the compensating circuit additively provides the correction signal at an input of the amplifier. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A driver circuit for electronic components comprising: an amplifier; a control current transistor which generates a control signal from a reference signal; a driver current mirror; a control current switch, which is provided between the control current transistor and the driver current mirror, and which selectably isolates the driver current mirror from the control current transistor or connects the driver current mirror to the driver current transistor, the driver current mirror, when in a state connected to the control current transistor, amplifying the control signal into a driver signal; and a compensating circuit provided between an input of the control current transistor and an input of the amplifier, the compensating circuit permitting compensation of an error current and thereby of a current conversion error of the driver current mirror by generating a correction signal as a function of the error current of the driver current mirror and additively feeding the correction signal into the input of the amplifier. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The driver circuit according to claim 1, wherein a feedback signal input of the amplifier is fed through a feedback path from a feedback signal coupled out of a control branch of the driver current mirror. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The driver circuit according to claim 1, wherein a resistor is provided between an output of the control current transistor and a feed-in of the correction signal. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The driver circuit according to claim 1, wherein the driver current mirror has a control branch with a first transistor and a first emitter resistor, and also has a driver branch with a second transistor and a second emitter resistor, wherein GD is a conversion ratio, and wherein a value of the second emitter resistor corresponds to 1/(the conversion ratio GD) times of a value of the first emitter resistor, and an emitter area of the second transistor corresponds to the conversion ratio GD times of an emitter area of the first transistor. ### Claim 5 (depends on 4) The driver circuit according to claim 4, wherein the compensating circuit has a proportional branch comprising a third transistor, a fourth transistor, a third emitter resistor of the third transistor, and a fourth emitter resistor of the fourth transistor, and wherein an input of the third transistor is connected to an input of the control current transistor. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) The driver circuit according to claim 1, wherein a feed-in of the correction signal is provided by an additive combination of the correction signal with the reference signal. ### Claim 7 (depends on 1) The driver circuit according to claim 1, wherein a feed-in of the correction signal is provided by an additive combination of the correction signal with a feedback signal. ### Claim 8 (depends on 1) The driver circuit according to claim 1, wherein the driver circuit drives at least one laser diode. ### Claim 9 (depends on 8) The driver circuit according to claim 8, wherein the laser diode is driven from a cathode side, the cathode side being a low side control. ### Claim 10 (depends on 8) The driver circuit according to claim 8, wherein the laser diode is driven from an anode side, the anode side being a high side control. ### Claim 11 A driver circuit for electronic components comprising: an amplifier; a control current transistor which generates a control signal from a reference signal; a driver current mirror; a control current switch, which is provided between the control current transistor and the driver current mirror, and which selectably isolates the driver current mirror from the control current transistor or connects the driver current mirror to the driver current transistor, the driver current mirror, when in a state connected to the control current transistor, amplifying the control signal into a driver signal; and a compensating circuit provided between an input of the control current transistor and an input of the amplifier, the compensating circuit generating a correction signal and additively feeding the correction signal into the input of the amplifier wherein the driver current mirror has a control branch with a first transistor and a first emitter resistor, and also has a driver branch with a second transistor and a second emitter resistor, wherein GD is a conversion ratio, wherein a value of the second emitter resistor corresponds to 1/(the conversion ratio GD) times of a value of the first emitter resistor, and an emitter area of the second transistor corresponds to the conversion ratio GD times of an emitter area of the first transistor, wherein the compensating circuit has a proportional branch comprising a third transistor, a fourth transistor, a third emitter resistor of the third transistor, and a fourth emitter resistor of the fourth transistor, and wherein an input of the third transistor is connected to an input of the control current transistor, and wherein an emitter area of the third transistor is substantially equal to a quotient of an emitter area of the control current transistor in a numerator and a proportionality factor GC in a denominator, and wherein a value of the third emitter resistor is substantially equal to the proportionality factor GC times an emitter resistor which is connected in series between the control current transistor and a reference voltage connection. ### Claim 12 (depends on 11) The driver circuit according to claim 11, wherein the fourth transistor has substantially the same conductivity type as the first transistor in the control branch of the driver current mirror, and is dimensioned such that its emitter current density corresponds to an emitter current density of the first transistor. ### Claim 13 (depends on 12) The driver circuit according to claim 12, wherein the correction signal is provided by a controllable current source that is controlled by a base current of the fourth transistor. ### Claim 14 (depends on 13) The driver circuit according to claim 13, further comprising a correction current mirror of a transistor diode and at least one additional transistor as controllable current source. ### Claim 15 (depends on 14) The driver circuit according to claim 14, wherein the correction current mirror scales a current IQM coupled out of a base of the fourth transistor by a factor L and superimposes the current multiplied by the factor L on a feedback signal at a node in the feedback path as a correction signal.