Apparatus, system, and method for an adaptive high efficiency switching power supply

A system comprising:

• an electronic device comprising a load;
• a multi-stage switching power supply that provides power to the load of the electronic device, the switching power supply comprising:
• a regulation stage with a stage controller that operates to regulate an intermediate voltage of the regulation stage relative to a set point reference voltage;
• an output stage that receives as an input voltage the intermediate regulated voltage of the regulation stage, the output stage regulating an output voltage of the power supply to a regulated output voltage level;
• a power detection module that detects an amount of power used by the switching power supply;
• a low power module that determines if the amount of power used by the switching power supply is below a minimum power capacity threshold;
• and
• a stage voltage adjustment module that adjusts the set point reference voltage from a high power reference voltage to a low power reference voltage in response to the low power module determining that the amount of power used by the switching power supply is below the minimum power capacity threshold, the low power reference voltage causing a regulated intermediate voltage adjustment such that the switching power supply operates more efficiently below the minimum power threshold than if the reference voltage remained at the high power reference voltage during operation below the minimum power threshold, wherein the output voltage of the output stage is maintained at the regulated output voltage level.

A computer program product comprising a computer readable medium having computer usable program code stored on a tangible medium and executable on a processor for efficiently regulating a power supply, the operations of the computer program product comprising:

• detecting an amount of power used by a multi-stage switching power supply, the switching power supply comprising a regulation stage with a stage controller that operates to regulate an intermediate voltage of the regulation stage relative to a set point reference voltage, the multi-stage switching power supply further comprising an output stage that receives as an input voltage the intermediate regulated voltage of the regulation stage, the output stage regulating an output voltage of the power supply to a regulated output voltage level;
• determining if the amount of power used by the switching power supply is below a minimum power capacity threshold;
• and
• adjusting the set point reference voltage from a high power reference voltage to a low power reference voltage in response to the low power module determining that the amount of power used by the switching power supply is operating below the minimum power capacity threshold, the low power reference voltage causing a regulated intermediate voltage adjustment such that the switching power supply operates more efficiently below the minimum power threshold than if the reference voltage remained at the high power reference voltage during operation below the minimum power threshold, wherein the output voltage of the output stage is maintained at the regulated output voltage level.

An apparatus for efficiently regulating a power supply, the apparatus comprising:

• a power detection module that detects an amount of power used by a switching power supply, the switching power supply comprising a regulation stage with a stage controller that operates to regulate an intermediate voltage of the regulation stage relative to a set point reference voltage, wherein the regulation stage is a boost converter stage configured to provide a regulated intermediate voltage that is greater than an input voltage, and wherein the regulated intermediate voltage is maintained above a minimum regulation intermediate voltage threshold relative to the input voltage, the regulation stage operating to perform active power correction;
• a low power module that determines if the amount of power used by the switching power supply is below a minimum power capacity threshold;
• a stage voltage adjustment module that adjusts the set point reference voltage from a high power reference voltage to a low power reference voltage in response to the low power module determining that the amount of power used by the switching power supply is below the minimum power capacity threshold, the low power reference voltage causing a regulated intermediate voltage adjustment such that the switching power supply operates more efficiently below the minimum power threshold than if the set point reference voltage remained at the high power reference voltage during operation below the minimum power threshold;
• an input voltage detection module that detects a loss of an input voltage by determining that the input voltage has fallen below a minimum input voltage threshold;
• and
• a holdup module that operates to provide sufficient stored energy to the regulation stage to maintain the regulated voltage relative to the low power reference voltage for a predetermined period of time in response to the input voltage detection module detecting a loss of the input voltage.