Patents Assigned to STMicroelectronics Ltd.
  • Publication number: 20220059486
    Abstract: The present disclosure is directed to a die including a first contact with a first shape (e.g., a ring-shape contact) and second contact with a second shape different from the first shape (e.g., a cylindrical-shape contact). The first contact has an opening that extends through a central region of a surface of the first contact. A first solder portion is coupled to the surface of the first contact and the first solder portion has the first shape. A second solder portion is coupled to a surface of the second contact and the second solder portion has the second shape. The first solder portion and the second solder portion both have respective points furthest away from a substrate of the die. These respective points of the first solder portion and the second solder portion are co-planar with each other such that a standoff height of the die remains consistent when coupled to a PCB or an electronic component.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 16, 2021
    Publication date: February 24, 2022
    Applicant: STMICROELECTRONICS LTD
    Inventor: Cheng-Yang SU
  • Publication number: 20220051998
    Abstract: A fan-out wafer level package includes a semiconductor die with a redistribution layer on a sidewall of the semiconductor die. A redistribution layer positioned over the die includes an extended portion that extends along the sidewall. The semiconductor die is encapsulated in a molding compound layer. The molding compound layer is positioned between the extended portion of the redistribution layer and the sidewall of the semiconductor die. Solder contacts, for electrically connecting the semiconductor device to an electronic circuit board, are positioned on the redistribution layer. The solder contacts and the sidewall of the redistribution layer can provide electrical contact on two different locations. Accordingly, the package can be used to improve interconnectivity by providing vertical and horizontal connections.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 28, 2021
    Publication date: February 17, 2022
    Applicant: STMICROELECTRONICS LTD
    Inventors: Endruw JAHJA, Cheng-Yang SU
  • Patent number: 11251696
    Abstract: A circuit includes two thyristors coupled in anti-series. An AC capacitor has first and second electrodes respectively coupled to two different electrodes of the two thyristors. The first and second electrodes are coupled to receive an AC voltage. A control circuit detects discontinuance of application of the AC voltage to the AC capacitor and in response thereto simultaneously applies same gate currents to the two thyristors. A current path through the two thyristors (one passing current in forward mode and the other in reverse mode) discharges a residual voltage stored on the AC capacitor.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 28, 2020
    Date of Patent: February 15, 2022
    Assignee: STMicroelectronics LTD
    Inventor: Laurent Gonthier
  • Patent number: 11251211
    Abstract: Disclosed herein is an ambient light sensor formed by a substrate, and an inner central area defined on the substrate, and a concentric polygonal shape defined on the substrate about the inner central area. The concentric polygonal shape is defined by concentric polygonal isolation regions and spoke shaped isolation regions extending through respective corners of the concentric polygonal isolation regions to the inner central area to thereby divide the concentric polygonal shape into a plurality of concentric polygonal regions, with each of the plurality of concentric polygonal regions divided into a plurality of trapezoidal sections. A plurality of photodiodes ae formed on the substrate such that each of the plurality of trapezoidal sections contains at least one photodiode. A color filter is applied to the plurality of trapezoidal sections and their respective photodiodes to thereby form a plurality of color channels.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 19, 2019
    Date of Patent: February 15, 2022
    Assignee: STMicroelectronics Ltd
    Inventor: Yu-Tsung Lin
  • Patent number: 11228239
    Abstract: An AC capacitor is coupled to a totem-pole type PFC circuit. In response to detection of a power input disconnection, the PFC circuit is controlled to discharge the AC capacitor. The PFC circuit includes a resistor and a first MOSFET and a second MOSFET coupled in series between DC output nodes with a common node coupled to the AC capacitor. When the disconnection event is detected, one of the first and second MOSFETs is turned on to discharge the AC capacitor with a current flowing through the resistor and the turned on MOSFET. Furthermore, a thyristor may be simultaneously turned on, with the discharge current flowing through a series coupling of the MOSFET, resistor and thyristor. Disconnection is detected by detecting a zero-crossing failure of an AC power input voltage or lack of input voltage decrease or input current increase in response to MOSFET turn on for a DC input.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 27, 2020
    Date of Patent: January 18, 2022
    Assignees: STMicroelectronics (Tours) SAS, STMicroelectronics LTD
    Inventors: Ghafour Benabdelaziz, Laurent Gonthier
  • Patent number: 11226480
    Abstract: An electronic device includes an analog to digital converter receiving an analog mirror sense signal from an oscillating mirror and generating a digital mirror sense signal therefrom, and a digital signal processing block. The digital signal processing block cooperates with the analog to digital converter to take a first sample of the digital mirror sense signal at a first time where a derivative of capacitance of the digital mirror sense signal crosses zero, take a second sample of the digital mirror sense signal at a second time between a peak of the digital mirror sense signal and the first time, and take a third sample of the digital mirror sense signal at a third time after the digital mirror sense signal has reached a minimum. Control circuitry determines an opening angle of the oscillating mirror as a function of the first, second, and third samples.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 10, 2020
    Date of Patent: January 18, 2022
    Assignee: STMicroelectronics LTD
    Inventors: Elik Haran, Offir Duvdevany, Naomi Petrushevsky
  • Publication number: 20220006988
    Abstract: A light projection system includes a MEMS mirror operating on a mirror drive signal to generate a mirror sense signal resulting from operation of the MEMS mirror based on the mirror drive signal. A mirror driver generates the mirror drive signal from a drive control signal. A controller receives the mirror sense signal from the MEMS mirror, obtains a first sample of the mirror sense signal at a first phase thereof, obtains a second sample of the mirror sense signal at a second phase thereof, wherein the first and second phases are separated by a half period of the mirror drive signal, with the second phase occurring after the first phase, and generates the drive control signal based on a difference between the first and second samples to keep the mirror drive signal separated in phase from the mirror sense signal by a desired amount of phase separation.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 20, 2021
    Publication date: January 6, 2022
    Applicants: STMicroelectronics LTD, STMicroelectronics S.r.l.
    Inventors: Massimo RATTI, Eli YASER, Naomi PETRUSHEVSKY, Yotam NACHMIAS
  • Patent number: 11195809
    Abstract: A fan-out wafer level package includes a semiconductor die with a redistribution layer on a sidewall of the semiconductor die. A redistribution layer positioned over the die includes an extended portion that extends along the sidewall. The semiconductor die is encapsulated in a molding compound layer. The molding compound layer is positioned between the extended portion of the redistribution layer and the sidewall of the semiconductor die. Solder contacts, for electrically connecting the semiconductor device to an electronic circuit board, are positioned on the redistribution layer. The solder contacts and the sidewall of the redistribution layer can provide electrical contact on two different locations. Accordingly, the package can be used to improve interconnectivity by providing vertical and horizontal connections.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 6, 2019
    Date of Patent: December 7, 2021
    Assignee: STMICROELECTRONICS LTD
    Inventors: Endruw Jahja, Cheng-Yang Su
  • Publication number: 20210336533
    Abstract: An AC capacitor is coupled to a totem-pole type PFC circuit. In response to detection of a power input disconnection, the PFC circuit is controlled to discharge the AC capacitor. The PFC circuit includes a resistor and a first MOSFET and a second MOSFET coupled in series between DC output nodes with a common node coupled to the AC capacitor. When the disconnection event is detected, one of the first and second MOSFETs is turned on to discharge the AC capacitor with a current flowing through the resistor and the turned on MOSFET. Furthermore, a thyristor may be simultaneously turned on, with the discharge current flowing through a series coupling of the MOSFET, resistor and thyristor. Disconnection is detected by detecting a zero-crossing failure of an AC power input voltage or lack of input voltage decrease or input current increase in response to MOSFET turn on for a DC input.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 27, 2020
    Publication date: October 28, 2021
    Applicants: STMicroelectronics (Tours) SAS, STMicroelectronics LTD
    Inventors: Ghafour BENABDELAZIZ, Laurent GONTHIER
  • Publication number: 20210305438
    Abstract: The present disclosure is directed to a package, such as a wafer level chip scale package (WLCSP), with a die coupled to a central portion of a transparent substrate. The transparent substrate includes a central portion having and a peripheral portion surrounding the central portion. The package includes a conductive layer coupled to a contact of the die within the package that extends from the transparent substrate to an active surface of the package. The active surface is utilized to mount the package within an electronic device or to a printed circuit board (PCB) accordingly. The package includes a first insulating layer separating the die from the conductive layer, and a second insulating layer on the conductive layer.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 26, 2021
    Publication date: September 30, 2021
    Applicants: STMICROELECTRONICS LTD, STMICROELECTRONICS PTE LTD
    Inventors: David GANI, Yiying KUO
  • Publication number: 20210226553
    Abstract: A capacitive element has its terminals coupled together by two thyristors electrically in antiparallel. The discharge of the capacitive element is controlled by the application of a gate current to one thyristor of the two thyristors which is in a reverse-biased state in response to a voltage stored across the terminals of the capacitive element. The reverse-biased thyristor responds to the applied gate current by passing a leakage current to discharge the stored voltage.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 13, 2021
    Publication date: July 22, 2021
    Applicant: STMicroelectronics LTD
    Inventor: Laurent GONTHIER
  • Patent number: 11054635
    Abstract: A system includes a mirror controller driving fast and slow axis mirrors of a projector with fast and slow axis drive signals to reflect a collimated light beam in a scan pattern across the target. The scan pattern includes trace lines which cause display of an input video stream on the target, and retrace lines which operate to return the slow axis mirror to a proper location to begin a next frame of the scan pattern. The slow axis drive signal is generated to maintain a number of trace lines in each frame of the scan pattern constant across frames, but the slow axis drive signal is modified to lock a phase and frequency of the displayed video to a phase and frequency of the input video stream by changing a number of retrace lines in each frame of the scan pattern on a frame-by-frame basis by a non-integer number.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 13, 2020
    Date of Patent: July 6, 2021
    Assignee: STMicroelectronics LTD
    Inventors: Eli Yaser, Dadi Sharon
  • Publication number: 20210193709
    Abstract: Disclosed herein is an ambient light sensor formed by a substrate, and an inner central area defined on the substrate, and a concentric polygonal shape defined on the substrate about the inner central area. The concentric polygonal shape is defined by concentric polygonal isolation regions and spoke shaped isolation regions extending through respective corners of the concentric polygonal isolation regions to the inner central area to thereby divide the concentric polygonal shape into a plurality of concentric polygonal regions, with each of the plurality of concentric polygonal regions divided into a plurality of trapezoidal sections. A plurality of photodiodes ae formed on the substrate such that each of the plurality of trapezoidal sections contains at least one photodiode. A color filter is applied to the plurality of trapezoidal sections and their respective photodiodes to thereby form a plurality of color channels.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 19, 2019
    Publication date: June 24, 2021
    Applicant: STMicroelectronics Ltd
    Inventor: Yu-Tsung LIN
  • Publication number: 20210048737
    Abstract: A control circuit includes a first control circuit generating a first drive control signal from a pre-drive signal (that is a frequency at which an opening angle of the first and second mirrors is equal) for the first mirror. A second control circuit generates a second drive control signal from the pre-drive signal for the second mirror. First and second drivers generate first and second drive signals for the first and second mirrors from the first and second drive control signals. The first and second drive control signals are generated so that the first and second drive signals each have a same frequency as the pre-drive signal but are different in amplitude from one another to cause the first and second mirrors to move at a same frequency, with a same and substantially constant given opening angle as one another, and in phase with one another.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 14, 2019
    Publication date: February 18, 2021
    Applicant: STMicroelectronics LTD
    Inventors: Eli YASER, Guy AMOR, Yotam NACHMIAS, Dadi SHARON, Sivan NAGOLA
  • Publication number: 20200404233
    Abstract: A light projection system includes a microelectromechanical (MEMS) mirror configured to operate in response to a mirror drive signal and to generate a mirror sense signal as a result of the operation. A mirror driver is configured to generate the mirror drive signal in response to a drive control signal. A zero cross detector is configured to detect zero crosses of the mirror sense signal. A controller is configured to generate the drive control signal as a function of the detected zero crosses of the mirror sense signal.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 4, 2020
    Publication date: December 24, 2020
    Applicants: STMicroelectronics Ltd, STMicroelectronics S.r.l.
    Inventors: Massimo RATTI, Eli YASER, Naomi PETRUSHEVSKY, Yotam NACHMIAS
  • Patent number: 10859817
    Abstract: A controller chip includes processing circuitry configured to process received samples by estimating trend functions from the samples, subtracting the trend functions from the samples to produce de-trended samples, performing a mathematical transform on the de-trended samples to produce frequency bins. The frequency bins may correspond to unwanted resonance movement of a movable mirror associated with the received samples. The processing circuit further generates an error function from the frequency bins. The error function can be used to generate correction signals for the movable mirror that serve to minimize the error function.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 3, 2019
    Date of Patent: December 8, 2020
    Assignee: STMicroelectronics Ltd
    Inventor: Avi Resler
  • Publication number: 20200381992
    Abstract: A circuit includes two thyristors coupled in anti-series. An AC capacitor has first and second electrodes respectively coupled to two different electrodes of the two thyristors. The first and second electrodes are coupled to receive an AC voltage. A control circuit detects discontinuance of application of the AC voltage to the AC capacitor and in response thereto simultaneously applies same gate currents to the two thyristors. A current path through the two thyristors (one passing current in forward mode and the other in reverse mode) discharges a residual voltage stored on the AC capacitor.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 28, 2020
    Publication date: December 3, 2020
    Applicant: STMicroelectronics LTD
    Inventor: Laurent GONTHIER
  • Patent number: 10838196
    Abstract: A method for controlling operation of a MEMS mirror includes steps for: generating activation pulses for operating the MEMS mirror and generating a window activation signal for current detection, with the window activation signal overlapping with an end of an activation pulse. The method also includes detecting current through a stator or a rotor of the MEMS mirror during the window activation signal and terminating a current activation pulse and the window activation signal in response to detecting a change in the direction of the current through the stator or the rotor of the MEMS mirror during the window activation signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 25, 2019
    Date of Patent: November 17, 2020
    Assignee: STMicroelectronics Ltd
    Inventor: Sason Sourani
  • Patent number: 10805583
    Abstract: A light projection system includes a GPU that receives video data containing video images, defines a two-dimensional grid (each element of which represents a position of a light beam at a different time), designates which elements of the two-dimensional grid correspond to positions of the light beam in a designated area, designates which elements correspond to positions of the light beam outside of the designated area with some positions outside being designated as calibration positions, maps each element corresponding to positions in the designated area to a corresponding pixel of a frame of a video image, and maps elements corresponding to calibration positions to calibration pixels. An ASIC receives the mapped pixels and mapped calibration pixels from the GPU, and generates a beam position control signal therefrom. A controller controls a movable mirror based on the beam position control signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 27, 2019
    Date of Patent: October 13, 2020
    Assignees: STMicroelectronics S.r.l., STMicroelectronics Ltd
    Inventors: Massimo Ratti, Eli Yaser, Naomi Petrushevsky, Yotam Nachmias
  • Publication number: 20200301127
    Abstract: An electronic device includes an analog to digital converter receiving an analog mirror sense signal from an oscillating mirror and generating a digital mirror sense signal therefrom, and a digital signal processing block. The digital signal processing block cooperates with the analog to digital converter to take a first sample of the digital mirror sense signal at a first time where a derivative of capacitance of the digital mirror sense signal crosses zero, take a second sample of the digital mirror sense signal at a second time between a peak of the digital mirror sense signal and the first time, and take a third sample of the digital mirror sense signal at a third time after the digital mirror sense signal has reached a minimum. Control circuitry determines an opening angle of the oscillating mirror as a function of the first, second, and third samples.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 10, 2020
    Publication date: September 24, 2020
    Applicant: STMicroelectronics LTD
    Inventors: Elik HARAN, Offir DUVDEVANY, Naomi PETRUSHEVSKY