US 8,570,015 B2Granted

DC-DC converter

AssigneeSynopsys, Inc.

InventorsFloriberto Amorim Azevedo Lima, Pedro Faria de Oliveira, Daniel Lourenco dos Santos

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Abstract

A dual-mode switching voltage regulator has a duty cycle that varies with the input and output voltages so as to dynamically compensate for changes in the operating conditions. The switching voltage regulator uses input and output voltages/currents to optimize the duty cycle of the signals applied to a pair of switches disposed in the regulator. In the PFM mode, a control block senses the time that a first switch used to discharge an inductor is turned off. If the control block senses that the first switch is opened too early, the control block increases the on-time of a second switch used to charge the inductor. If the control block senses that the first switch is opened too late, the control block decreases the on-time of the second switch.

Claims21

Dependent claims

A switching voltage regulator comprising:

an inductor;
a first switch, responsive to a first signal, for charging the inductor during a first period;
a second switch, responsive to a second signal, for discharging the inductor during a second period;
a control block for varying a duty cycle of the first signal in accordance with a feedback signal representative of an output voltage of the switching voltage regulator;
a first comparator for comparing a voltage across the second switch to a first voltage, determining a state of the second switch based on the comparing, and generating a first comparison signal;
and
a frequency-modulated pulse generator,
wherein the control block further comprises a counter for incrementing its count when a transition between levels of the first comparison signal is detected as leading a corresponding transition of a target signal, and decrementing the count when the transition between levels of the first comparison signal is detected as lagging the corresponding transition of the target signal, and wherein the frequency-modulated pulse generator is adapted to vary the duty cycle of the first signal in accordance with the count.

5 more elements

A method of regulating an input voltage to generate an output voltage, the method comprising:

applying a first signal to close a first switch during a first period to charge an inductor;
applying a second signal to close a second switch during a second period to discharge the inductor;
varying a duty cycle of the first signal in accordance with a feedback signal representative of the output voltage;
comparing a voltage across the second switch to a first voltage to determine a state of the second switch;
incrementing a count when a transition between levels of a first comparison signal is detected as leading a corresponding transition of a target signal;
decrementing the count when the transition between levels of the first comparison signal is detected as lagging the corresponding transition of the target signal;
and
varying the duty cycle of the first signal in accordance with the count.

5 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 13/252,057Filed 3 Oct 2011 · continuation
Priority: 4 Jan 2008
Published: US 2012/0019224 A126 Jan 2012
Granted: 29 Oct 2013
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification4 codes

H02M 3/1588
Including plural semiconductor devices as final control devices for a single load: comprising at least one synchronous rectifier element
Y02B 70/10
Technologies for an efficient end-user side electric power management and consumption: technologies improving the efficiency by using…
H02M
Apparatus for conversion between ac and ac, between ac and dc, or
Y02B
Energy-efficient buildings

Family

Application61/019,143Us provisional application · filed 4 Jan 2008
Application12/057,171Parent of this continuation · filed 27 Mar 2008
US 2012/0019224 A1Pre-grant publication · published 26 Jan 2012
US 8,030,910 B2Parent of this continuation
US 2009/0174379 A1Published application
US 8,570,015 B2This patent

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

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