Patents by Inventor John C. Canfield

John C. Canfield 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: 8866463
    Abstract: A switching power supply includes a circuit having at least two reactive components to provide an output voltage and capable of being switched from a first output state to a second output state. A switching component switches the circuit between at least two switching states including the first output state and the second output state. A pulse width modulator receives a duty cycle and drives the switching component to cause switching between two of the at least two switching states. A nonlinear controller component provides a duty cycle to the pulse width modulator. The duty cycle corresponds to at least one predetermined power supply state variable. The nonlinear controller component includes a processor to apply an optimization technique to minimize a predetermined function of the duty cycle and internal states of the power supply and to obtain a relationship between the duty cycle and at least one predetermined state variable.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 25, 2013
    Date of Patent: October 21, 2014
    Assignee: Maxim Integrated Products, Inc.
    Inventors: Paul W. Latham, II, John C. Canfield
  • Patent number: 8751021
    Abstract: A system includes a power supply model component and a disturbance estimating component. The power supply model component receives an estimated disturbance. The disturbance estimating component provides said estimated disturbance from a difference between a sensed output of a power supply and an estimated output from said power supply model component.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 8, 2011
    Date of Patent: June 10, 2014
    Assignee: L & L Engineering, LLC
    Inventors: Paul Latham, John C. Canfield
  • Patent number: 8700184
    Abstract: A switching power supply includes a circuit that provides an output voltage, a switching component that switches the circuit between a first output voltage state and a second output voltage state, and a driver component that receives an input control signal and that drives the switching component to cause the circuit to switch between the first output voltage state and the second output voltage state. An adaptive plant estimator receives the output voltage from the circuit and an input to the switching power supply and provides a model of the switching power supply that reflects changes in an output voltage state of the switching power supply. A compensator design component receives the model and provides compensator parameters that reflect changes in the output voltage state of the switching power supply. An adaptive compensator receives the compensator parameters and provides the input control signal to the driver component.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 8, 2011
    Date of Patent: April 15, 2014
    Assignee: L&L Engineering, LLC
    Inventors: Paul Latham, John C. Canfield
  • Patent number: 8400130
    Abstract: A controller for switching power supplies includes a nonlinear controller component capable of providing a duty cycle to a pulse width modulator. The duty cycle corresponds to at least one predetermining switching power supply state variable. A nonlinear controller component receives as inputs at least one predetermined switching power supply state variable. A relationship between duty cycle and at least one predetermined switching power supply state variable is obtained by a predetermined method. The nonlinear controller component comprises memory for access by an application component. The memory includes a data structure stored in memory and a plurality of duty cycles. Each of the plurality of duty cycles has a corresponding at least one predetermined switching power supply state variable. Each duty cycle, when provided to the pulse width modulator of the switching power supply, provides a predetermined switching power supply output.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 4, 2011
    Date of Patent: March 19, 2013
    Assignee: Maxim Integrated Products, Inc.
    Inventors: Paul Latham, John C. Canfield
  • Patent number: 8395365
    Abstract: In one embodiment, the controller of these teachings includes a nonlinear controller component capable of providing an amplitude determining input signal to a control signal providing component, the control signal providing component providing output having a predetermined amplitude substantially over one time interval from a number of time intervals or output having a predetermined average amplitude substantially over one time interval from a number of time intervals, the amplitude determining input signal corresponding to at least one predetermined system state variable. The nonlinear controller component is operatively connected to receive as inputs at least one predetermined system state variable. A relationship between the amplitude determining input signal and at least one predetermined system state variable is obtained by a predetermined method.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 19, 2008
    Date of Patent: March 12, 2013
    Assignee: Maxim Integrated Products, Inc.
    Inventors: Paul W. Latham, John C. Canfield
  • Publication number: 20120046932
    Abstract: A system includes a power supply model component and a disturbance estimating component. The power supply model component receives an estimated disturbance. The disturbance estimating component provides said estimated disturbance from a difference between a sensed output of a power supply and an estimated output from said power supply model component.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 8, 2011
    Publication date: February 23, 2012
    Applicant: L&L Engineering, LLC
    Inventors: Paul Latham, John C. Canfield
  • Publication number: 20120035779
    Abstract: A switching power supply includes a circuit that provides an output voltage, a switching component that switches the circuit between a first output voltage state and a second output voltage state, and a driver component that receives an input control signal and that drives the switching component to cause the circuit to switch between the first output voltage state and the second output voltage state. An adaptive plant estimator receives the output voltage from the circuit and an input to the switching power supply and provides a model of the switching power supply that reflects changes in an output voltage state of the switching power supply. A compensator design component receives the model and provides compensator parameters that reflect changes in the output voltage state of the switching power supply. An adaptive compensator receives the compensator parameters and provides the input control signal to the driver component.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 8, 2011
    Publication date: February 9, 2012
    Applicant: L&L Engineering, LLC
    Inventors: Paul Latham, John C. Canfield
  • Patent number: 8014879
    Abstract: A digital controller includes a sampling component that samples an output signal from a system and an input signal to the system at a first sampling rate, which is at least equal to a predetermined operating rate. An input parameter obtaining component obtains a plurality of input parameters from the samples at the first sampling rate. A decimator component generates subsampled values for the plurality of input parameters at a second sampling rate, which is slower than the first sampling rate. An adaptive plant estimator component generates a model of the system based on the subsampled values. A compensator design component determines compensator parameters based on the model. The compensator parameters reflect changes in the system and are sampled at the second sampling rate. A feedback compensator adjusts the input signal to the system based on the compensator parameters.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 27, 2006
    Date of Patent: September 6, 2011
    Assignee: L&L Engineering, LLC
    Inventors: Paul Latham, John C. Canfield
  • Publication number: 20110193537
    Abstract: A controller for switching power supplies includes a nonlinear controller component capable of providing a duty cycle to a pulse width modulator. The duty cycle corresponds to at least one predetermining switching power supply state variable. A nonlinear controller component receives as inputs at least one predetermined switching power supply state variable. A relationship between duty cycle and at least one predetermined switching power supply state variable is obtained by a predetermined method. The nonlinear controller component comprises memory for access by an application component. The memory includes a data structure stored in memory and a plurality of duty cycles. Each of the plurality of duty cycles has a corresponding at least one predetermined switching power supply state variable. Each duty cycle, when provided to the pulse width modulator of the switching power supply, provides a predetermined switching power supply output.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 4, 2011
    Publication date: August 11, 2011
    Applicant: L&L Engineering LLC
    Inventors: Paul Latham, John C. Canfield
  • Patent number: 7884591
    Abstract: A nonlinear PWM controller for switching power supplies.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 13, 2010
    Date of Patent: February 8, 2011
    Assignee: L&L Engineering LLC
    Inventors: Paul Latham, John C. Canfield
  • Patent number: 7746048
    Abstract: A nonlinear PWM controller for switching power supplies.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 10, 2006
    Date of Patent: June 29, 2010
    Assignee: L&L Engineering, LLC
    Inventors: Paul Latham, John C. Canfield
  • Publication number: 20100109630
    Abstract: A nonlinear PWM controller for switching power supplies
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 13, 2010
    Publication date: May 6, 2010
    Inventors: Paul Latham, John C. Canfield
  • Patent number: 7498781
    Abstract: Feedforward compensated systems and methods for their use in disturbance rejection in switching power converters and other systems. In one instance, a compensating component receives a sensed output and provides a duty cycle adjustment signal, the duty cycle adjustment signal being obtained from signals indicative of present and past load current variations. In another instance, an adaptive compensating component receives a sensed output and provides an adjustment signal for compensating for load variations. A compensator design component receives the digitized sensed output and of provides compensating component parameters to the adaptive compensating component; the compensator design component including a learning function.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 2, 2007
    Date of Patent: March 3, 2009
    Assignee: L&L Engineering LLC
    Inventors: John C. Canfield, Paul W. Latham
  • Publication number: 20090027025
    Abstract: In one embodiment, the controller of these teachings includes a nonlinear controller component capable of providing an amplitude determining input signal to a control signal providing component, the control signal providing component providing output having a predetermined amplitude substantially over one time interval from a number of time intervals or output having a predetermined average amplitude substantially over one time interval from a number of time intervals, the amplitude determining input signal corresponding to at least one predetermined system state variable. The nonlinear controller component is operatively connected to receive as inputs at least one predetermined system state variable. A relationship between the amplitude determining input signal and at least one predetermined system state variable is obtained by a predetermined method.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 19, 2008
    Publication date: January 29, 2009
    Applicant: L&L Engineering, LLC
    Inventors: Paul W. Latham, John C. Canfield
  • Publication number: 20070236200
    Abstract: Feedforward compensated systems and methods for their use.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 2, 2007
    Publication date: October 11, 2007
    Applicant: L&L Engineering, LLC
    Inventors: John C. Canfield, Paul W. Latham
  • Patent number: 6873203
    Abstract: An integrated circuit regulates current flowing from a battery to a load without requiring an external current sense resistor. The IC includes a primary charge pump; a model charge pump; a current sense circuit, a first control circuit to force a voltage level at the output of the model charge pump to be equal to a voltage level at the output of the primary charge pump; and, a second control circuit to force a model current put out by the model charge pump to be equal to a reference current. Current passing through the primary charge pump is regulated at a level established by the capacitance value of an external flying capacitor irrespective of input voltage variation of the battery power source.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 20, 2003
    Date of Patent: March 29, 2005
    Assignee: Tyco Electronics Corporation
    Inventors: Paul W. Latham, II, John C. Canfield