Patents Examined by Timothy J. Dole
  • Patent number: 10168363
    Abstract: In an embodiment, a current sense circuit includes a copy transistor having a gate configured to be coupled to a gate of an output transistor, and a drain coupled to an input terminal. The drain of the copy transistor is configured to be coupled to a drain of the output transistor. A first transistor has a current path coupled to a current path of the copy transistor. An error amplifier has a non-inverting input coupled to a source of the copy transistor, an inverting input configured to be coupled to a source of the output transistor, an output coupled to a gate of the first transistor, a positive power supply terminal coupled to the input terminal and a negative power supply terminal coupled to a reference supply terminal. A current-to-voltage converter has an input coupled to the current path of the copy transistor.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 14, 2018
    Date of Patent: January 1, 2019
    Assignee: STMicroelectronics Design & Application S.R.O.
    Inventor: Sandor Petenyi
  • Patent number: 10168719
    Abstract: The present invention provides a digital low dropout regulator and a control method thereof. The regulator comprises a voltage comparator, a counter, a decoder, a PMOSFET array and a divider. The voltage comparator receives an actual voltage output from the PMOSFET array through the positive input terminal, receives a reference voltage through the negative input terminal, and compares the actual voltage and the reference voltage to obtain a level signal. The divider calculates based on an output voltage pre-configured for a PMOSFET array and an actual voltage output by the PMOSFET array in at least two clock cycles to obtain a first value. The counter generates a control signal based on the level signal and the first value. The decoder receives the control signal transmitted by the counter and controlling the number of switched-on transistors, in the PMOSFET on a basis of the control signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 22, 2017
    Date of Patent: January 1, 2019
    Assignees: BOE TECHNOLOGY GROUP CO., LTD., HEFEI XINSHENG OPTOELECTRONICS TECHNOLOGY CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Xuehuan Feng, Pan Xu, Yongqian Li, Zhongyuan Wu
  • Patent number: 10164537
    Abstract: A switching regulator includes a first switch; a second switch coupled between the first switch and ground; an inductor coupled to a common node between the first and second switches; a capacitor coupled between the inductor and ground; a controller receiving a disable signal, and generating first and second control signals respectively for the first and second switches; and a crossing detector comparing an auxiliary voltage at the common node with a negative reference voltage to generate a comparison signal, and generating the disable signal based on the first control signal and the comparison signal. The second control signal switches into an inactive state upon the disable signal indicating a reference-crossing of the auxiliary voltage.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 3, 2017
    Date of Patent: December 25, 2018
    Assignee: National Taipei University of Technology
    Inventors: Ting-Wen Su, Yuh-Shyan Hwang
  • Patent number: 10164546
    Abstract: An electric power conversion device which performs conversion to desired voltage using charge and discharge of a DC capacitor includes: a reactor connected to a rectification circuit; a leg part in which diodes and first and second switching elements are connected in series between positive and negative terminals of a smoothing capacitor, and to which the reactor is connected; and the DC capacitor. A control circuit performs high-frequency PWM control for the first and second switching elements using the same drive cycle, with their reference phases shifted from each other by a half cycle, and controls a sum and a ratio of ON periods of the first and second switching elements in one cycle, thereby allowing both high-power-factor control for input AC current and voltage control for the DC capacitor.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 3, 2014
    Date of Patent: December 25, 2018
    Assignee: Mitsubishi Electric Corporation
    Inventors: Ryota Kondo, Takaaki Takahara, Satoshi Murakami, Masaki Yamada, Naohisa Uehara, Yuuya Tanaka, Hidehiko Kinoshita
  • Patent number: 10164593
    Abstract: Embodiments of power detector circuits and related methods to compensate for undesired DC offsets generated within power detector circuits are disclosed. Input signals having input frequencies are received and converted to a magnitude signal, and reference signals are also generated. The magnitude signal may include a DC component proportional to a power of the input signal along with undesired DC offsets. The reference signal may include a DC component proportional to a power of at least one input reference signal along with undesired DC offsets. To compensate for errors introduced by the DC offsets, a programmable digital input signal is determined in a calibration mode and then applied to reference circuitry in a normal mode to compensate for the DC offsets. For the calibration mode, a difference between the magnitude signal and the reference signal is compared to a threshold value to generate a power detection output signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 7, 2017
    Date of Patent: December 25, 2018
    Assignee: Silicon Laboratories Inc.
    Inventors: Navin Harwalkar, John M. Khoury
  • Patent number: 10164528
    Abstract: A buck converter includes a power switch having one end to which an input voltage is transferred, a synchronous switch connected between the other end of the power switch and the ground, an inductor having an end connected to the other end of the power switch, and a switch control circuit configured to calculate a zero voltage delay time based on at least an ON time of the power switch and a delay time. The delay time is determined based on the inductor and parasitic capacitors of the power switch and the synchronous switch.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 29, 2016
    Date of Patent: December 25, 2018
    Assignee: SEMICONDUCTOR COMPONENTS INDUSTRIES, LLC
    Inventors: SangCheol Moon, Gwanbon Koo, Chenghao Jin, Bonggeun Chung
  • Patent number: 10164536
    Abstract: A voltage conversion circuit and method, and a multiphase parallel power system, where in the voltage conversion circuit, a feedback circuit provides a frequency-controllable feedback ripple signal. Therefore, the voltage conversion circuit has a controllable operating frequency, and a frequency requirement of a load may be met. Compensation does not need to be performed in a hysteresis mode, and therefore the hysteresis mode has a fast-speed response. The operating frequency is fixed. Therefore, the voltage conversion circuit in the embodiments may be applied to the multiphase parallel power system such that the multiphase parallel power system is applicable to an application scenario with a large load current.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 22, 2018
    Date of Patent: December 25, 2018
    Assignee: HUAWEI TECHNOLOGIES CO., LTD.
    Inventor: Chen Huang
  • Patent number: 10153711
    Abstract: In an electric power conversion device which performs power conversion between multiphase AC and DC, a first converter cell of a first arm for each phase of a power converter includes: a capacitor; a Leg A having upper and lower arms having switching elements; and a Leg B having upper and lower arms one of which has a switching element and the other of which has only a diode, and a second converter cell of a second arm includes: a capacitor; and a Leg Aa having upper and lower arms having switching elements. A control device has a steady mode and a protection mode. When short-circuit between DC terminals of the power converter is detected, the control device switches from the steady mode to the protection mode, turns off all the switching elements of the first converter cell of the first arm, and controls the second converter cell of the second arm so as to perform reactive power compensation operation.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 29, 2016
    Date of Patent: December 11, 2018
    Assignee: Mitsubishi Electric Corporation
    Inventors: Takushi Jimichi, Kimiyuki Koyanagi, Takeshi Kikuchi
  • Patent number: 10153708
    Abstract: A three-level power converter includes a first module housing a vertical arm forming a three-level power conversion circuit; a second module disposed adjacent to the first module and housing an intermediate arm forming the three-level power conversion circuit; high-potential and low-potential connecting terminal boards each extending vertically, and having a lower end connected to connecting terminals on an upper surface of the first module, and an upper end provided with an external connecting end; and a flat intermediate-potential connecting terminal board extending vertically, and having a lower end connected to connecting terminals on an upper surface of the second module, and an upper end provided with an external connecting end. The high-potential, low-potential, and intermediate-potential connecting terminal boards are stacked close to and parallel to one another. Each of the external connecting ends is connected to a corresponding terminal of a DC capacitor.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 8, 2016
    Date of Patent: December 11, 2018
    Assignee: FUJI ELECTRIC CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Koji Maruyama, Takaaki Tanaka
  • Patent number: 10153701
    Abstract: A control circuit for a switched mode power supply (SMPS) has an input voltage reference voltage generator arranged to receive a signal indicative of an input voltage of the SMPS and is arranged to generate a reference signal directly proportional to the input voltage. An error signal generator of the control circuit is arranged to receive a signal indicative of an output voltage of the SMPS and arranged to generate an error signal based on the reference signal generated by the input reference voltage generator and based on the output voltage of the SMPS. A duty cycle control signal generator of the control circuit is arranged to generate a control signal, to control the duty cycle of the SMPS, in dependence upon the error signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 3, 2011
    Date of Patent: December 11, 2018
    Assignee: Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (publ)
    Inventors: Magnus Karlsson, Anders Kullman, Fredrik Wahledow, Henrik Borgengren, Jonas Malmberg, Oscar Persson
  • Patent number: 10148083
    Abstract: Disclosed are a fault current-suppressing damper topology circuit and a control method thereof and a converter. An anode of a separate diode is connected to a positive electrode of a second switch module, a cathode of the separate diode is connected to one end of an energy storage capacitor, and the other end of the energy storage capacitor is connected to a negative electrode of a first switch module; a damping resistor is connected in parallel with an arrester and then with the first switch module; a bypass switch is connected in parallel between a terminal x1 and a terminal x2 of the damper topology circuit; a power supply system acquires energy from the energy storage capacitor and supplies power to a control system; and the control system controls an operating state of the damper topology circuit by controlling the bypass switch, the first switch module and the second switch module. The fault current-suppressing damper topology circuit is applied to voltage source converters.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 13, 2016
    Date of Patent: December 4, 2018
    Assignees: NR ELECTRIC CO., LTD, NR ENGINEERING CO., LTD
    Inventors: Yeyuan Xie, Minglian Zhu, Tiangui Jiang, Chuanjun Bo, Min Li
  • Patent number: 10148196
    Abstract: An inverter includes a first bridge leg, first to fourth MOSFET switches; a second bridge leg, connected in parallel with the first bridge leg, and fifth to eighth MOSFET switches; a third bridge leg, electrically coupled between a first node and a second node, and ninth to twelfth MOSFET switches; a first diode, connected in parallel with the anti-series connected first and second MOSFET switches; a second diode, connected in parallel with the anti-series connected third and fourth MOSFET switches; a third diode, connected in parallel with the anti-series connected fifth and sixth MOSFET switches; a fourth diode, connected in parallel with the anti-series connected seventh and eighth MOSFET switches; a fifth diode, connected in parallel with the anti-series connected ninth and tenth MOSFET switches; a sixth diode, connected in parallel with the anti-series connected eleventh and twelfth MOSFET switches.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 13, 2017
    Date of Patent: December 4, 2018
    Assignee: Delta Electronics (Shanghai) CO., LTD
    Inventors: Bingwen Weng, Jianming Chen, Xuancai Zhu, Jinfa Zhang
  • Patent number: 10148191
    Abstract: A power conversion device is disclosed herein. The power conversion device includes an AC/DC converter, a DC/DC converter, and a DC/DC isolation converter. The AC/DC converter is configured to convert AC power into a first DC power, or convert the first DC power into the AC power. The DC/DC converter is configured to convert the first DC power into a second DC power, or convert the second DC power into the first power. The DC/DC isolation converter is coupled between the AC/DC converter and the DC/DC converter, and configured to isolate the AC/DC converter and the DC/DC converter bi-directionally.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 28, 2017
    Date of Patent: December 4, 2018
    Assignee: DELTA ELECTRONICS, INC.
    Inventors: Chao Yan, Li-Ping Sun
  • Patent number: 10148190
    Abstract: A power conversion device that constitutes a converter-inverter unit where a converter to convert AC power to DC power and an inverter to convert DC power obtained by conversion of the converter to AC power are connected in series. A capacitor unit including a capacitor cell to accumulate therein the DC power obtained by conversion of the converter is provided between the converter and the inverter. A first conductor electrically connected to one of electrodes of the capacitor cell and a second conductor electrically connected to the other electrode of the capacitor cell are drawn out from the capacitor unit, and the first conductor is connected directly to positive-side capacitor connection terminals and of the converter and positive-side capacitor connection terminals and of the inverter, and the second conductor is connected directly to negative-side capacitor connection terminals and of the converter and negative-side capacitor connection terminals of the inverter.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 20, 2015
    Date of Patent: December 4, 2018
    Assignee: MITSUBISHI ELECTRIC CORPORATION
    Inventor: Hirokazu Takabayashi
  • Patent number: 10147562
    Abstract: Disclosed is an on-load voltage regulation tap switch for a transformer, comprising a main switch group, a switch contact protection branch and a switch control circuit, wherein the main switch group comprises a plurality of switch contacts, one end of the switch group is connected to a corresponding transformer winding tap, and the other end of the switch group is connected in parallel and is then connected to a power source; the switch contact protection branch is a series circuit formed by a plurality of groups of diodes and auxiliary switch contacts, and is respectively connected to both ends of a corresponding main switch in parallel; and the switch control circuit is composed of a power source, a single chip microcomputer and a peripheral circuit, and controls all of the main switches and auxiliary switches to act in a certain time sequence to complete the switching of the transformer windings.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 18, 2015
    Date of Patent: December 4, 2018
    Inventor: Hai Wang
  • Patent number: 10148188
    Abstract: An active clamp flyback controller includes first and second input terminals, a clamp voltage detection circuit, and an overvoltage protection circuit. The first input terminal is adapted to be coupled to a terminal of a clamp capacitor. The second input terminal receives a feedback signal proportional to a voltage across an auxiliary winding of a flyback transformer. The clamp voltage detection circuit is coupled to the first and second input terminals, and detects a clamp voltage as a difference between a voltage at the first input terminal and an input voltage, the clamp voltage detection circuit calculating the input voltage using a signal from the second input terminal. The overvoltage protection circuit is coupled to the clamp voltage detection circuit for comparing the clamp voltage to a threshold and triggering a protection operation if the clamp voltage is greater than the threshold.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 14, 2017
    Date of Patent: December 4, 2018
    Assignee: FAIRCHILD SEMICONDUCTOR CORPORATION
    Inventors: Gwanbon Koo, Dibyendu Rana
  • Patent number: 10148189
    Abstract: System controller and method for regulating a power converter. For example, the system controller includes a first controller terminal and a second controller terminal. The system controller is configured to: receive, at the first controller terminal, an input signal; generate a drive signal based at least in part on the input signal, the drive signal being associated with an on-time period and an off-time period, the on-time period including a first beginning and a first end; and output, at the second controller terminal, the drive signal to a switch to close the switch during the on-time period and open the switch during the off-time period to affect a current associated with a secondary winding of the power converter. The system controller is further configured to detect a demagnetization period associated with the secondary winding based at least in part on the input signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 16, 2017
    Date of Patent: December 4, 2018
    Assignee: On-Bright Electronics (Shanghai) Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Yaming Cao, Qiang Luo, Lieyi Fang
  • Patent number: 10148177
    Abstract: A multi-phase power converter includes a plurality of power channels arranged in parallel to drive an output of the power converter, and a channel selection circuit. Each of the power channels includes a driver, a feedback control circuit coupled to an output of the driver, and a comparator coupled to the feedback control circuit. The channel selection circuit is coupled to the feedback control circuit of each of the power channels. The channel control circuit is configured to: select a different specific one of the power channels to activate in each of a plurality of phases, and introduce an offset voltage into each of the feedback control circuits, except the feedback control circuit of the specific one of the power channels. The feedback control circuit is configured to apply the offset to bias driver output feedback voltage away from a threshold voltage at which the power channel is activated.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 28, 2016
    Date of Patent: December 4, 2018
    Assignee: TEXAS INSTRUMENTS INCORPORATED
    Inventors: Stefan Herzer, Michael Couleur, Antonio Priego
  • Patent number: 10148192
    Abstract: A power supply system is disclosed. The power supply module comprises a three-phase voltage source, for generating a power source with three phases; a plurality of power supply modules, coupled to the three-phase voltage source, each comprising a plurality of major transforming modules corresponding to the three-phase voltage source for generating a plurality of direct-current voltages according to the three-phase voltage source; and at least a backup supply module, coupled to the plurality of power supply modules, each comprising a plurality of backup transforming modules corresponding to the three-phase voltage source, for generating the plurality of direct-current voltages corresponding to the three-phase voltage source by a backup transforming module corresponding to at least one of the plurality of major transforming modules of the plurality of power supply modules when the at least one of the plurality of major transforming modules is in an abnormal operation.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 25, 2018
    Date of Patent: December 4, 2018
    Assignee: Wiwynn Corporation
    Inventor: Kuan-Wei Hsu
  • Patent number: 10148179
    Abstract: In event-based switching for power conversion, binary electrical event signals are selected from a number of available binary electrical event signals. Fewer than all of the available binary electrical event signals are selected. The selected binary electrical event signals are optionally processed in generating respective processed binary electrical event signals. One of the respective processed binary event signals is selected as a switch turn-on signal and another of the respective processed binary electrical event signals is selected as a switch turn-off signal, to control at least one switch in a switching mode power converter.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 21, 2017
    Date of Patent: December 4, 2018
    Assignee: SOLANTRO SEMICONDUCTOR CORP.
    Inventors: Tudor Lipan, Christian Dino Gerolami