Patents Represented by Attorney Law Offices of Maximilian R. Peterson
  • Patent number: 8223584
    Abstract: An apparatus includes a memory circuit and an interface circuit. The interface circuit is coupled to the memory circuit. The interface circuit selects a phase value of clock signal adapted to clock the memory circuit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 29, 2009
    Date of Patent: July 17, 2012
    Assignee: Altera Corporation
    Inventor: Philip Clarke
  • Patent number: 8225259
    Abstract: A multiple-clock time-multiplexed field programmable gate array (TM-FPGA) includes programmable logic circuitry. A plurality of clock signals within the TM-FPGA couple to the programmable logic circuitry. A user's circuit can be mapped to the programmable logic circuitry without the user's intervention in mapping the circuit to the programmable logic circuitry.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 16, 2005
    Date of Patent: July 17, 2012
    Assignee: Altera Corporation
    Inventors: David W. Mendel, Sinan Kaptanoglu
  • Patent number: 8224259
    Abstract: A radio-frequency (RF) receiver includes a receiver analog circuitry and a receiver digital circuitry. The receiver analog circuitry resides within a first integrated circuit and the receiver digital circuitry resides within a second integrated circuit. The second integrated circuit couples to the first integrated circuit via a one-bit digital interface. The receiver analog circuitry receives an RF signal and processes the received RF signal to generate a digital signal. The receiver analog circuitry provides the digital signal to the receiver digital circuitry. The receiver digital circuitry includes a digital down-converter circuitry that mixes the digital signal with an intermediate frequency (IF) local oscillator (LO) signal to generate a digital down-converted signal. The receiver digital circuitry also includes a digital filter circuitry that filters the digital down-converted signal to generate a filtered digital signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 1, 2010
    Date of Patent: July 17, 2012
    Assignee: Silicon Laboratories Inc.
    Inventors: Richard T. Behrens, Tod Paulus, Mark S. Spurbeck, Vishnu S. Srinivasan, Donald A. Kerth, Jeffrey W. Scott, G. Tyson Tuttle, G. Diwakar Vishakhadatta
  • Patent number: 8198914
    Abstract: A programmable logic device (PLD) includes at least two regions. Each region includes electrical circuitry that has a set of transistors. Each of the two regions has a corresponding fixed transistor threshold voltage, a corresponding fixed transistor body bias, and a corresponding fixed supply voltage.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 30, 2011
    Date of Patent: June 12, 2012
    Assignee: Altera Corporation
    Inventors: Andy L. Lee, Christopher F. Lane, Ketan H. Zaveri, Richard G. Cliff, Cameron R. McClintock, Srinivas T. Reddy, David Lewis
  • Patent number: 8200471
    Abstract: Apparatus and methods for calculating power consumption of circuitry within integrated circuits (ICs), such as programmable logic devices (PLDs) are disclosed and described. A method of estimating power consumption of a circuit in an IC includes decomposing the IC into a plurality of overlapping blocks. Each block in the plurality of blocks includes a portion of the circuitry in the IC. The method further includes estimating power consumption of each block in the plurality of blocks, and estimating power consumption of the IC based on the power consumption of the plurality of blocks.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 31, 2009
    Date of Patent: June 12, 2012
    Assignee: Altera Corporation
    Inventors: David Lewis, Thomas Yau-Tsun Wong
  • Patent number: 8179380
    Abstract: A capacitive touch slider array comprises a first conductive trace associated with a first sensing node. The first conductive trace includes a first conductive line and a plurality of first conductive fingers extending from the first conductive line. The plurality of first conductive fingers have lengths that increase from a first end of the capacitive touch slider array to a second end of the capacitive touch slider array. A second conductive trace associated with a second sensing node includes a second conductive line and a plurality of second conductive fingers extending from the second conductive line. The plurality of second conductive fingers have lengths that increase from the second end of the capacitive touch slider array to the first end of the capacitive touch slider array.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 19, 2008
    Date of Patent: May 15, 2012
    Assignee: Silicon Laboratories Inc.
    Inventor: John Ellis
  • Patent number: 8154336
    Abstract: A method and apparatus is provided for reducing interference in circuits. A management strategy is provided to reduce reference spurs and interference in circuits. The management strategy uses a combination of one or more techniques which reduce the digital current, minimize mutual inductance, utilize field cancellation, prevent leakage current, and/or manage impedance. These techniques may be used alone, or preferably, used on combination with one another.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 31, 2007
    Date of Patent: April 10, 2012
    Assignee: Silicon Laboratories Inc.
    Inventors: David R. Welland, Donald A. Kerth, Caiyi Wang
  • Patent number: 8138786
    Abstract: A programmable logic device (PLD) includes a delay circuit and a body-bias generator. The delay circuit has a delay configured to represent a delay of user circuit implement in the PLD. The body-bias generator is configured to adjust the body bias of a transistor within the user circuit. The body-bias generator adjusts the body bias of the transistor in response to a level derived from the signal propagation delay of the delay circuit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 31, 2009
    Date of Patent: March 20, 2012
    Assignee: Altera Corporation
    Inventors: David Lewis, Vaughn Betz, Irfan Rahim, Peter McElheny, Yow-Juang W. Liu, Bruce Pedersen
  • Patent number: 8125362
    Abstract: An integrated circuit (IC) includes a reference circuit. The reference circuit includes at least one controlled current source. The reference circuit further includes a sigma-delta modulator coupled to the at least one controlled current source.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 12, 2008
    Date of Patent: February 28, 2012
    Assignee: Altera Corporation
    Inventor: William W. Bereza
  • Patent number: 8103975
    Abstract: A programmable logic device (PLD) includes first and second circuits. The first and second circuits are part of a user's design to be implemented using the PLD's resources. The first circuit is powered by a first supply voltage. The second circuit is powered by a second supply voltage. At least one of the first and second supply voltages is determined by a PLD computer-aided design (CAD) flow used to implement the user's design in the PLD.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 1, 2008
    Date of Patent: January 24, 2012
    Assignee: Altera Corporation
    Inventors: David Lewis, Vaughn Betz, Paul Leventis, Christopher Lane, Andy Lee, Jeffrey Watt, Timothy Vanderhoek
  • Patent number: 8089744
    Abstract: An integrated circuit (IC) includes a multiple-finger transistor structure. The multiple-finger transistor structure includes one transistor configured as a ballasted device. The multiple-finger transistor structure further includes a second transistor configured as a trigger device for the ballasted device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 24, 2005
    Date of Patent: January 3, 2012
    Assignee: Altera Corporation
    Inventors: Irfan Rahim, Cheng Hsiung Huang, Yow-Juang Bill Liu, Jeffrey T. Watt, Hugh Sung-Ki O
  • Patent number: 7986160
    Abstract: A PLD includes at least one IP block or circuit, and at least one I/O block or circuit. The performance of the at least one IP block is adjusted in order to meet at least one performance characteristic by changing a supply level of the at least one IP block, by adjusting at least one body bias level of the IP block, or both. The performance of the at least one I/O block is adjusted by changing a supply level of the at least one I/O block, by adjusting at least one body bias level of the I/O block, or both.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 27, 2006
    Date of Patent: July 26, 2011
    Assignee: Altera Corporation
    Inventors: Tim Tri Hoang, Sergey Shumarayev
  • Patent number: 7977975
    Abstract: An integrated circuit (IC) includes a set of metastability-hardened storage circuits. Each metastability-hardened storage circuit may include: (a) a pulse width distortion circuit; (b) a first circuit powered by a nominal power supply voltage, and a second circuit powered by a higher-than-nominal supply voltage; (c) an inverter and a bias circuit, where the bias circuit provides a bias current based on an intermediate state of the inverter to resolve a metastable state of the inverter; or (d) a latch, and a dynamic bias circuit that causes current to be injected into the latch to resolve a metastable state of the latch.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 18, 2009
    Date of Patent: July 12, 2011
    Assignee: Altera Corporation
    Inventors: David Lewis, Jeffrey Christopher Chromczak, Ryan Fung
  • Patent number: 7936184
    Abstract: A programmable logic device (PLD) includes at least two regions. Each region includes electrical circuitry that has a set of transistors. Each of the two regions has a corresponding fixed transistor threshold voltage, a corresponding fixed transistor body bias, and a corresponding fixed supply voltage.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 24, 2006
    Date of Patent: May 3, 2011
    Assignee: Altera Corporation
    Inventors: Andy L. Lee, Christopher F. Lane, Ketan H. Zaveri, Richard G. Cliff, Cameron R. McClintock, Srinivas T. Reddy, David Lewis
  • Patent number: 7928768
    Abstract: A metastability-hardened storage circuit includes at least one inverting circuit. The inverting circuit has a logical input. The logical input of the inverting circuit is split into a pair of physical inputs.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 28, 2009
    Date of Patent: April 19, 2011
    Assignee: Altera Corporation
    Inventors: Bruce B. Pedersen, Sivaraman Chokkalingam
  • Patent number: 7884666
    Abstract: A method and apparatus is provided for reducing interference in circuits. A management strategy is provided to reduce reference spurs and interference in circuits. The management strategy uses a combination of one or more techniques which reduce the digital current, minimize mutual inductance, utilize field cancellation, prevent leakage current, and/or manage impedance. These techniques may be used alone, or preferably, used on combination with one another.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 29, 2005
    Date of Patent: February 8, 2011
    Assignee: Silicon Laboratories Inc.
    Inventors: David R. Welland, Donald A. Kerth, Caiyi Wang
  • Patent number: 7859056
    Abstract: An integrated circuit (IC) includes one or more silicon-on-insulator (SOI) transistors. Each SOI transistor includes a first source region, a second source region, a drain region, a body contact region, a gate, and first and second isolation regions. The body contact region couples electrically to a body of the SOI transistor. The gate controls current flow between the first and second source regions and a drain region of the transistor. The first isolation region is disposed between the first source region and the body contact region. The second isolation region is disposed between the second source region and the body contact region.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 30, 2008
    Date of Patent: December 28, 2010
    Assignee: Altera Corporation
    Inventors: Yowjuang W. Liu, Minchang Liang
  • Patent number: 7839165
    Abstract: A programmable logic device (PLD) includes a configuration circuit, and first and second freeze-logic circuits. The configuration circuit provides configuration data for configuring programmable resources of the PLD during a configuration mode of the PLD. One of the two freeze-logic circuits provides a freeze logic signal during the configuration mode of the PLD. The other freeze-logic circuit provides a freeze logic signal during a user mode of the PLD.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 9, 2009
    Date of Patent: November 23, 2010
    Assignee: Altera Corporation
    Inventors: Michael D. Hutton, Andy L. Lee
  • Patent number: 7720339
    Abstract: An all-optical logic gates comprises a nonlinear element such as an optical resonator configured to receive optical input signals, at least one of which is amplitude-modulated to include data. The nonlinear element is configured in relation to the carrier frequency of the optical input signals to perform a logic operation based on the resonant frequency of the nonlinear element in relation to the carrier frequency. Based on the optical input signals, the nonlinear element generates an optical output signal having a binary logic level. A combining medium can be used to combine the optical input signals for discrimination by the nonlinear element to generate the optical output signal. Various embodiments include all-optical AND, NOT, NAND, NOR, OR, XOR, and XNOR gates and memory latch.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 19, 2009
    Date of Patent: May 18, 2010
    Assignee: CoveyTech LLC
    Inventor: John Luther Covey
  • Patent number: 7702362
    Abstract: A radio-frequency (RF) receiver includes a receiver analog circuitry and a receiver digital circuitry. The receiver analog circuitry resides within a first integrated circuit and the receiver digital circuitry resides within a second integrated circuit. The second integrated circuit couples to the first integrated circuit via a one-bit digital interface. The receiver analog circuitry receives an RF signal and processes the received RF signal to generate a digital signal. The receiver analog circuitry provides the digital signal to the receiver digital circuitry. The receiver digital circuitry includes a digital down-converter circuitry that mixes the digital signal with an intermediate frequency (IF) local oscillator (LO) signal to generate a digital down-converted signal. The receiver digital circuitry also includes a digital filter circuitry that filters the digital down-converted signal to generate a filtered digital signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 28, 2005
    Date of Patent: April 20, 2010
    Assignee: Silicon Laboratories Inc.
    Inventors: Richard T. Behrens, Tod Paulus, Mark S. Spurbeck, Vishnu S. Srinivasan, Donald A. Kerth, Jeffrey W. Scott, G. Tyson Tuttle, G. Diwakar Vishakhadatta