Patents by Inventor Brian B. Horng

Brian B. Horng has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 8279144
    Abstract: Disclosed are example techniques for frame-based power management in a light emitting diode (LED) system having a plurality of LED strings. A voltage source provides an output voltage to drive the LED strings. An LED driver generates a frame timing reference representative of the frame rate or display timing of a series of image frames to be displayed via the LED system. An update reference is generated from the frame timing reference. The LED driver monitors one or more operating parameters of the LED system. In response to update triggers marked by the update reference, the LED driver adjusts the output voltage of the voltage source based on the status of each of the one or more monitored operating parameters (either from the previous update period or determined in response to the update trigger), thereby synchronizing the updating of the output voltage to the frame rate (or a virtual approximation of the frame rate) of the video being displayed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 31, 2008
    Date of Patent: October 2, 2012
    Assignee: Freescale Semiconductor, Inc.
    Inventors: Bin Zhao, Jack W. Cornish, Brian B. Horng, Andrew M Kameya, Jan Krellner, Kenneth C. Kwok, Victor K. Lee, Weizhuang W. Xin
  • Patent number: 8115414
    Abstract: Techniques for dynamic headroom control in a light emitting diode (LED) system are disclosed. An output voltage is provided to drive a plurality of LED strings. A feedback controller monitors the tail voltages of the LED strings to identify the minimum tail voltage and adjusts the output voltage based on the lowest tail voltage. The LED strings grouped into subsets and the feedback controller is segmented such that, for a certain duration, a minimum tail voltage is determined for each subset. The minimum tail voltages of the subsets are used to determine the overall minimum tail voltage of the plurality of LED strings for the certain duration so as to control the output voltage in the following duration. The segments of the feedback controller can be implemented in separate integrated circuit (IC) packages, thereby facilitating adaptation to different numbers of LED strings by integrating the corresponding number of IC packages.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 30, 2009
    Date of Patent: February 14, 2012
    Assignee: Freescale Semiconductor, Inc.
    Inventors: Bin Zhao, Jack W. Cornish, Brian B. Horng, Victor K. Lee, Andrew M. Kameya
  • Patent number: 8106604
    Abstract: A light emitting diode (LED) system implements a LED driver to drive a set of one or more LED strings. The LED driver includes a voltage source to provide an adjustable output voltage to a head end of each LED string of the set for a first duration and a second duration following the first duration. The LED driver further includes a feedback controller to control the voltage source to adjust the output voltage for the second duration based on a digital code value generated from a minimum tail voltage of one or more tail voltages of the set at a sample point of the first duration. The LED driver further includes a power controller to temporarily enable one or more components of the feedback controller for a sample period of the first duration, the sample period comprising the sample point.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 16, 2009
    Date of Patent: January 31, 2012
    Assignee: Freescale Semiconductor, Inc.
    Inventors: Bin Zhao, Jack W. Cornish, Brian B. Horng, Andrew M. Kameya, Kenneth C. Kwok, Victor K. Lee
  • Patent number: 8049439
    Abstract: A voltage source provides an output voltage to drive a plurality of light emitting diode (LED) strings. A LED driver adjusts the level of the output voltage so as to maintain the lowest tail voltage of the LED strings at or near a predetermined threshold voltage so as provide sufficient headroom voltages for current regulators for the LED strings. The LED driver operates in an operational mode and a calibration mode, which can be implemented in parallel with, or part of, the operational mode. During the calibration mode, the LED driver determines, for each LED string, a code value representative of the level of the output voltage necessary to maintain the tail voltage of the corresponding LED string at or near the predetermined threshold voltage. In the operational mode, the code values from the calibration mode are used to control the voltage source to provide an appropriate level for the output voltage.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 30, 2009
    Date of Patent: November 1, 2011
    Assignee: Freescale Semiconductor, Inc.
    Inventors: Bin Zhao, Jack W. Cornish, Brian B. Horng, Victor K. Lee, Andrew M. Kameya
  • Patent number: 8035315
    Abstract: Power management in a light emitting diode (LED) system having a plurality of LED strings is disclosed. A voltage source provides an output voltage to drive a plurality of LED strings. An LED driver implements a feedback mechanism to monitor the tail voltages of the active LED strings to identify the minimum tail voltage and adjust the output voltage of the voltage source based on the lowest tail voltage. A loop calibration module of the LED driver calibrates the feedback mechanism of the LED driver based on a relationship between a digital code value used to generate a particular output voltage and another digital code value generated based on the minimum tail voltage resulting from the particular output voltage.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 22, 2008
    Date of Patent: October 11, 2011
    Assignee: Freescale Semiconductor, Inc.
    Inventors: Bin Zhao, Jack W. Cornish, Brian B. Horng, Andrew M. Kameya, Jan Krellner, Kenneth C. Kwok, Victor K. Lee, Weizhuang W. Xin
  • Patent number: 7825610
    Abstract: Power management in a light emitting diode (LED) system having a plurality of LED strings is disclosed. A voltage source provides an output voltage to drive the LED strings. An LED driver monitors the tail voltages of the active LED strings to identify the minimum, or lowest, tail voltage and adjusts the output voltage of the voltage source based on the lowest tail voltage. The LED driver can adjust the output voltage so as to maintain the lowest tail voltage at or near a predetermined threshold voltage so as to ensure that the output voltage is sufficient to properly drive each active LED string with a regulated current in view of pulse width modulation (PWM) performance requirements without excessive power consumption.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 26, 2008
    Date of Patent: November 2, 2010
    Assignee: Freescale Semiconductor, Inc.
    Inventors: Bin Zhao, Jack W. Cornish, Brian B. Horng, Victor K. Lee, Andrew M. Kameya
  • Publication number: 20100194308
    Abstract: A voltage source provides an output voltage to drive a plurality of light emitting diode (LED) strings. A LED driver adjusts the level of the output voltage so as to maintain the lowest tail voltage of the LED strings at or near a predetermined threshold voltage so as provide sufficient headroom voltages for current regulators for the LED strings. The LED driver operates in an operational mode and a calibration mode, which can be implemented in parallel with, or part of, the operational mode. During the calibration mode, the LED driver determines, for each LED string, a code value representative of the level of the output voltage necessary to maintain the tail voltage of the corresponding LED string at or near the predetermined threshold voltage. In the operational mode, the code values from the calibration mode are used to control the voltage source to provide an appropriate level for the output voltage.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 30, 2009
    Publication date: August 5, 2010
    Applicant: FREESCALE SEMICONDUCTOR, INC.
    Inventors: Bin Zhao, Jack W. Cornish, Brian B. Horng, Victor K. Lee, Andrew M. Kameya
  • Publication number: 20100156315
    Abstract: Power management in a light emitting diode (LED) system having a plurality of LED strings is disclosed. A voltage source provides an output voltage to drive a plurality of LED strings. An LED driver implements a feedback mechanism to monitor the tail voltages of the active LED strings to identify the minimum tail voltage and adjust the output voltage of the voltage source based on the lowest tail voltage. A loop calibration module of the LED driver calibrates the feedback mechanism of the LED driver based on a relationship between a digital code value used to generate a particular output voltage and another digital code value generated based on the minimum tail voltage resulting from the particular output voltage.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 22, 2008
    Publication date: June 24, 2010
    Applicant: Freescale Semiconductor, Inc.
    Inventors: Bin Zhao, Jack W. Cornish, Brian B. Horng, Andrew M. Kameya, Jan Krellner, Kenneth C. Kwok, Victor K. Lee, Weizhuang W. Xin
  • Publication number: 20100026203
    Abstract: Disclosed are example techniques for frame-based power management in a light emitting diode (LED) system having a plurality of LED strings. A voltage source provides an output voltage to drive the LED strings. An LED driver generates a frame timing reference representative of the frame rate or display timing of a series of image frames to be displayed via the LED system. An update reference is generated from the frame timing reference. The LED driver monitors one or more operating parameters of the LED system. In response to update triggers marked by the update reference, the LED driver adjusts the output voltage of the voltage source based on the status of each of the one or more monitored operating parameters (either from the previous update period or determined in response to the update trigger), thereby synchronizing the updating of the output voltage to the frame rate (or a virtual approximation of the frame rate) of the video being displayed.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 31, 2008
    Publication date: February 4, 2010
    Applicant: Freescale Semiconductor, Inc.
    Inventors: Bin Zhao, Jack W. Cornish, Brian B. Horng, Andrew M. Kameya, Jan Krellner, Kenneth C. Kwok, Victor K. Lee, Weizhuang W. Xin
  • Publication number: 20090273288
    Abstract: A light emitting diode (LED) system implements a LED driver to drive a set of one or more LED strings. The LED driver includes a voltage source to provide an adjustable output voltage to a head end of each LED string of the set for a first duration and a second duration following the first duration. The LED driver further includes a feedback controller to control the voltage source to adjust the output voltage for the second duration based on a digital code value generated from a minimum tail voltage of one or more tail voltages of the set at a sample point of the first duration. The LED driver further includes a power controller to temporarily enable one or more components of the feedback controller for a sample period of the first duration, the sample period comprising the sample point.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 16, 2009
    Publication date: November 5, 2009
    Applicant: FREESCALE SEMICONDUCTOR, INC.
    Inventors: Bin Zhao, Jack W. Cornish, Brian B. Horng, Andrew M. Kameya, Kenneth C. Kwok, Victor K. Lee
  • Publication number: 20090230891
    Abstract: Power management in a light emitting diode (LED) system having a plurality of LED strings is disclosed. A voltage source provides an output voltage to drive the LED strings. An LED driver monitors the tail voltages of the active LED strings to identify the minimum, or lowest, tail voltage and adjusts the output voltage of the voltage source based on the lowest tail voltage. The LED driver can adjust the output voltage so as to maintain the lowest tail voltage at or near a predetermined threshold voltage so as to ensure that the output voltage is sufficient to properly drive each active LED string with a regulated current in view of pulse width modulation (PWM) performance requirements without excessive power consumption.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 26, 2008
    Publication date: September 17, 2009
    Applicant: Freescale Semiconductor, Inc.
    Inventors: Bin Zhao, Jack W. Cornish, Brian B. Horng, Victor K. Lee, Andrew M. Kameya
  • Publication number: 20090230874
    Abstract: Techniques for dynamic headroom control in a light emitting diode (LED) system are disclosed. An output voltage is provided to drive a plurality of LED strings. A feedback controller monitors the tail voltages of the LED strings to identify the minimum tail voltage and adjusts the output voltage based on the lowest tail voltage. The LED strings grouped into subsets and the feedback controller is segmented such that, for a certain duration, a minimum tail voltage is determined for each subset. The minimum tail voltages of the subsets are used to determine the overall minimum tail voltage of the plurality of LED strings for the certain duration so as to control the output voltage in the following duration. The segments of the feedback controller can be implemented in separate integrated circuit (IC) packages, thereby facilitating adaptation to different numbers of LED strings by integrating the corresponding number of IC packages.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 30, 2009
    Publication date: September 17, 2009
    Applicant: Freescale Semiconductor, Inc.
    Inventors: Bin Zhao, Jack W. Cornish, Brian B. Horng, Victor K. Lee, Andrew M. Kameya
  • Publication number: 20020067220
    Abstract: A system and method for a filter tuner is presented. The system comprises a sequential logic, a register, a comparator, a first and second counter, a synchronizing logic, a first and second oscillator, a control logic, and a first and second combinational logic. The method comprises the steps of executing a calibration cycle of a filter tuner, executing a measurement cycle of the filter tuner, and tuning a filter with the filter tuner dependent on a determined cutoff frequency variation.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 5, 2001
    Publication date: June 6, 2002
    Inventors: Brian B. Horng, Benedict A. Itri, Devin Ng, John Ross, James J. Zhao