Patents by Inventor Brigham Steele

Brigham Steele 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).

  • Load balancing in multi-port power delivery applications
    Patent number: 11132040
    Abstract: A Universal Serial Bus (USB) dock includes ports, a processor, and instructions to cause the processor, below a level of an operating system running applications and accessing the USB dock, identify a first port of the plurality of ports as a priority port. The processor may be further caused to detect a connection to the dock. The processor may be further caused to determine whether a candidate port to which the connection is made is the priority port. The processor may be further caused to, based on a determination that the candidate port is the priority port, recover power from other ports and advertise power capabilities of the priority port to a USB element connecting to the dock.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 28, 2018
    Date of Patent: September 28, 2021
    Assignee: MICROCHIP TECHNOLOGY INCORPORATED
    Inventors: Brigham Steele, Andrew Rogers, Shannon Cash, Matthew Kalibat
  • Felxconnect disconnect detection
    Patent number: 10565145
    Abstract: A USB hub includes a plurality of downstream ports; at least one dual mode port, the dual mode port configured to be switchable from a downstream port to an upstream port; and host detection circuitry for detecting whether, when operating as an upstream port, a host is connected.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 9, 2017
    Date of Patent: February 18, 2020
    Assignee: MICROCHIP TECHNOLOGY INCORPORATED
    Inventors: Brigham Steele, Atish Ghosh
  • Load Balancing in Multi-Port Power Delivery Applications
    Publication number: 20200012326
    Abstract: A Universal Serial Bus (USB) dock includes ports, a processor, and instructions to cause the processor, below a level of an operating system running applications and accessing the USB dock, identify a first port of the plurality of ports as a priority port. The processor may be further caused to detect a connection to the dock. The processor may be further caused to determine whether a candidate port to which the connection is made is the priority port. The processor may be further caused to, based on a determination that the candidate port is the priority port, recover power from other ports and advertise power capabilities of the priority port to a USB element connecting to the dock.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 28, 2018
    Publication date: January 9, 2020
    Applicant: Microchip Technology Incorporated
    Inventors: Brigham Steele, Andrew Rogers, Shannon Cash, Matthew Kalibat
  • Port disconnect charging function for USB hub
    Patent number: 10127181
    Abstract: A Universal Serial Bus (USB) hub includes a first port that is configured to be switched from a downstream port to an upstream port; a plurality of other ports; and a controller configured to switch a function of the first port from the downstream port to the upstream port responsive to a command from an attached device and further configured to switch at least one of the plurality of other ports from a data and charge port into a port dedicated to charging.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 29, 2015
    Date of Patent: November 13, 2018
    Assignee: MICROCHIP TECHNOLOGY INCORPORATED
    Inventors: Atish Ghosh, Donald L. Perkins, Brigham Steele
  • FLEXCONNECT DISCONNECT DETECTION
    Publication number: 20180101497
    Abstract: A USB hub includes a plurality of downstream ports; at least one dual mode port, the dual mode port configured to be switchable from a downstream port to an upstream port; and host detection circuitry for detecting whether, when operating as an upstream port, a host is connected.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 9, 2017
    Publication date: April 12, 2018
    Applicant: Microchip Technology Incorporated
    Inventors: Brigham Steele, Atish Ghosh
  • Flexconnect disconnect detection
    Patent number: 9852097
    Abstract: A USB hub includes a plurality of downstream ports; at least one dual mode port, the dual mode port configured to be switchable from a downstream port to an upstream port; and host detection circuitry for detecting whether, when operating as an upstream port, a host is connected.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 28, 2015
    Date of Patent: December 26, 2017
    Assignee: MICROCHIP TECHNOLOGY INCORPORATED
    Inventors: Brigham Steele, Atish Ghosh
  • Port Disconnect Charging Function for USB HUB
    Publication number: 20150318728
    Abstract: A Universal Serial Bus (USB) hub includes a first port that is configured to be switched from a downstream port to an upstream port; a plurality of other ports; and a controller configured to switch a function of the first port from the downstream port to the upstream port responsive to a command from an attached device and further configured to switch at least one of the plurality of other ports from a data and charge port into a port dedicated to charging
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 29, 2015
    Publication date: November 5, 2015
    Applicant: MICROCHIP TECHNOLOGY INCORPORATED
    Inventors: Atish Ghosh, Donald L. Perkins, Brigham Steele
  • FLEXCONNECT DISCONNECT DETECTION
    Publication number: 20150309953
    Abstract: A USB hub includes a plurality of downstream ports; at least one dual mode port, the dual mode port configured to be switchable from a downstream port to an upstream port; and host detection circuitry for detecting whether, when operating as an upstream port, a host is connected.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 28, 2015
    Publication date: October 29, 2015
    Applicant: MICROCHIP TECHNOLOGY INCORPORATED
    Inventors: Brigham Steele, Atish Ghosh