Patents by Inventor Erik Santiago

Erik Santiago 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: 11962252
    Abstract: An apparatus to insure safe behavior in an inverter system. In one embodiment, the apparatus includes a first high side gate driver, a first low side gate driver, a microcontroller configured to control the first high side and low side gate drivers. A voltage regulator provides a supply voltage to the microcontroller. A first pair of high side voltage regulators provide a first pair of high side supply voltages to the first high side gate driver. A first pair of low side voltage regulators provide a first pair of low side supply voltages to the first low side gate driver.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 8, 2021
    Date of Patent: April 16, 2024
    Assignee: NXP USA, Inc.
    Inventors: Jean-Christophe Patrick Rince, Maxime Clairet, Erik Santiago, Jean-Philippe Meunier, Antoine Fabien Dubois
  • Publication number: 20240022065
    Abstract: One example discloses a power controller configured to modulate a load current sent to a load, including: a first chip including a set of higher-power circuits configured to directly modulate the load current sent to the load; a second chip electrically coupled to the first chip and including a set of lower-power circuits; wherein the set of higher-power circuits are electrically isolated from the set of lower-power circuits; a power control path distributed between the first chip and the second chip, and configured to modulate the load current sent to the load; a diagnostics path distributed between the first chip and the second chip, and configured to monitor the higher-power circuits in the first chip and the lower-power circuits in the second chip for a set of fault conditions; wherein a portion of the diagnostics path in the second chip includes a plausibility circuit configured to compare a load current commanded by a first portion of the power control path in the second chip to the load current sent to
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 11, 2023
    Publication date: January 18, 2024
    Inventors: Erik Santiago, Antoine Fabien Dubois, Pierre Philippe Calmes
  • Patent number: 11577617
    Abstract: A dynamic safe state control circuit is disclosed that controls an electrical motor based on vehicle speed. A microcontroller or other processing device is configured to control an inverter system of an electrical motor. The dynamic safe state control circuit is configured to receive a first signal that corresponds to a speed of the electric motor. The circuit is configured to activate any one of a plurality of safe states in the inverter system based on the first signal and in response to a malfunction in the microcontroller.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 18, 2021
    Date of Patent: February 14, 2023
    Assignee: NXP USA, Inc.
    Inventors: Erik Santiago, Jean-Christophe Patrick Rince, Antoine Fabien Dubois, Maxime Clairet, Jean-Philippe Meunier
  • Patent number: 11502506
    Abstract: An apparatus is disclosed that in one embodiment includes a circuit configured to selectively activate a transistor. The circuit is further configured to assert a signal when the circuit detects an electrical short between terminals of the transistor or when the circuit detects the transistor does not conduct current while the transistor is activated by the circuit. The circuit is further configured to output another signal, which is set to a first state or a second state. The other signal is set to the first state when the circuit detects the electrical short. The other signal is set to the second state when the circuit detects the transistor does not conduct current while activated.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 15, 2020
    Date of Patent: November 15, 2022
    Assignee: NXP USA, Inc.
    Inventors: Jean-Christophe Patrick Rince, Jean-Philippe Meunier, Erik Santiago, Antoine Fabien Dubois, Maxime Clairet
  • Publication number: 20220329085
    Abstract: In a battery management system, during a pre-charge mode, a first contactor is closed to provide a pre-charge current path from a low voltage battery supply node through a DCDC converter and through the first contactor to pre-charge a capacitor of an inverter for an electric motor. During a drive mode following the pre-charge mode, the first contactor is opened and a second contactor is closed to provide a drive mode current path from a high voltage battery supply node through the second contactor to the inverter to power the electric motor. In response to detecting an open fault in the second contactor during the drive mode, a limp mode is entered. During the limp mode, the first contactor is closed to provide a limp mode current path from the high voltage battery supply node through the first contactor to the inverter to power the electric motor.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 7, 2022
    Publication date: October 13, 2022
    Inventors: Antoine Fabien Dubois, Erik Santiago
  • Publication number: 20220131477
    Abstract: An apparatus to insure safe behavior in an inverter system. In one embodiment, the apparatus includes a first high side gate driver, a first low side gate driver, a microcontroller configured to control the first high side and low side gate drivers. A voltage regulator provides a supply voltage to the microcontroller. A first pair of high side voltage regulators provide a first pair of high side supply voltages to the first high side gate driver. A first pair of low side voltage regulators provide a first pair of low side supply voltages to the first low side gate driver.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 8, 2021
    Publication date: April 28, 2022
    Inventors: Jean-Christophe Patrick Rince, Maxime Clairet, Erik Santiago, Jean-Philippe Meunier, Antoine Fabien Dubois
  • Publication number: 20210331591
    Abstract: A dynamic safe state control circuit is disclosed that controls an electrical motor based on vehicle speed. A microcontroller or other processing device is configured to control an inverter system of an electrical motor. The dynamic safe state control circuit is configured to receive a first signal that corresponds to a speed of the electric motor. The circuit is configured to activate any one of a plurality of safe states in the inverter system based on the first signal and in response to a malfunction in the microcontroller.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 18, 2021
    Publication date: October 28, 2021
    Inventors: Erik Santiago, Jean-Christophe Patrick Rince, Antoine Fabien Dubois, Maxime Clairet, Jean-Philippe Meunier
  • Publication number: 20210111621
    Abstract: An apparatus is disclosed that in one embodiment includes a circuit configured to selectively activate a transistor. The circuit is further configured to assert a signal when the circuit detects an electrical short between terminals of the transistor or when the circuit detects the transistor does not conduct current while the transistor is activated by the circuit. The circuit is further configured to output another signal, which is set to a first state or a second state. The other signal is set to the first state when the circuit detects the electrical short. The other signal is set to the second state when the circuit detects the transistor does not conduct current while activated.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 15, 2020
    Publication date: April 15, 2021
    Inventors: Jean-Christophe Patrick Rince, Jean-Philippe Meunier, Erik Santiago, Antoine Fabien Dubois, Maxime Clairet