Supply voltage node coupling using a switch
AssigneeQUALCOMM Incorporated
InventorsSanjay Bhagawan Patil, Daniel Stasiak, Martin Pierre Saint-Laurent
Life of this patent
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Abstract
An apparatus includes a first node configured to provide a first supply voltage to a first device and a second node configured to provide a second supply voltage to a second device. The apparatus further includes a bus configured to communicatively couple the first device and the second device. The apparatus also includes a switch configured to couple the first node and the second node.
Claims30
An apparatus comprising:
- a first node configured to provide a first supply voltage to a first device;
- a second node configured to provide a second supply voltage to a second device;
- a bus configured to communicatively couple the first device and the second device;
- a switch configured to selectively couple the first node and the second node in response to a difference between a first value of the first supply voltage at the first node and a second value of the second supply voltage at the second node;
- and
- a comparator coupled to the first node and to the second node, wherein the comparator is configured to determine the difference.
A method comprising:
- while a switch is deactivated:
- providing a first supply voltage to a first device, wherein the first supply voltage is provided to the first device via a first node;
- and
- providing a second supply voltage to a second device, wherein the second supply voltage is provided to the second device via a second node;
- and
- activating the switch to couple the first node and the second node in response to a difference between a first value of the first supply voltage at the first node and a second value of the second supply voltage at the second node;
- and
- determining the difference at a comparator coupled to the first node and to the second node.
An apparatus comprising:
- means for providing a first supply voltage to a first device;
- means for providing a second supply voltage to a second device;
- means for communicatively coupling the first device and the second device;
- means for selectively coupling a first node of the means for providing the first supply voltage to a second node of the means for providing the second supply voltage, wherein the means for selectively coupling is activated in response to a difference between a first value of the first supply voltage at the first node and a second value of the second supply voltage at the second node;
- and
- means for determining the difference, the means for determining the difference coupled to the first node and to the second node.
A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing instructions that are executable by a processor to initiate operations, the operations comprising:
- activating a switch to selectively couple a first node and a second node, the first node providing a first value of a first supply voltage to a first device and the second node providing a second value of a second supply voltage to a second device, the first device and the second device communicatively coupled via a bus, wherein the switch is activated in response to a difference between the first value and the second value;
- and
- determining the difference at a comparator coupled to the first node and to the second node.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.