Patents by Inventor Steve X. Zhou

Steve X. Zhou 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: 9152193
    Abstract: A method and system for reducing acoustic power supply noise, specifically acoustic noise related to power supply switching frequencies in a computing device, is disclosed. In one embodiment, a controller can monitor power consumed by the computing device, and an operational state of the computing device can be determined. If the computing device is in a first operational state and the power consumed is greater than a threshold amount, then the power supply can be operated at a first switching frequency or mode of operation, thereby avoiding switching frequencies that can produce acoustic noise.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 30, 2012
    Date of Patent: October 6, 2015
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Paul J. Costa, David R. Cox, Bharat K. Patel, Nicholas W. Ruhter, Xiaoyang Zhang, Steve X. Zhou
  • Publication number: 20130332765
    Abstract: A method and system for reducing acoustic power supply noise, specifically acoustic noise related to power supply switching frequencies in a computing device, is disclosed. In one embodiment, a controller can monitor power consumed by the computing device, and an operational state of the computing device can be determined. If the computing device is in a first operational state and the power consumed is greater than a threshold amount, then the power supply can be operated at a first switching frequency or mode of operation, thereby avoiding switching frequencies that can produce acoustic noise.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 30, 2012
    Publication date: December 12, 2013
    Applicant: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Paul J. COSTA, David R. COX, Bharat K. PATEL, Nicholas W. RUHTER, Xiaoyang ZHANG, Steve X. ZHOU
  • Patent number: 7515478
    Abstract: The present invention is to provide a logic based single-poly non-volatile memory cell which is compatible with the CMOS process, uses lower voltages for operating, and is more reliable in program, read, or erase operation. A non-volatile memory cell in accordance with the present invention comprises a program transistor with a program transistor source as a first program terminal; a select transistor with a select transistor gate as a select terminal and a select transistor drain as a second program terminal; and an erase transistor with an erase transistor source and an erase transistor drain connected as an erase terminal, wherein the erase transistor shares a floating gate with the program transistor and the drain program transistor is connected to the select transistor source. By employing the present invention, significant cost advantages in feature-rich semiconductor products, such as System-on-Chip (SoC) design, compared to conventional dual-poly floating gate embedded Flash memory are provided.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 20, 2007
    Date of Patent: April 7, 2009
    Assignee: Nantronics Semiconductor, Inc.
    Inventors: Daniel D. Li, Steve X. Zhou
  • Publication number: 20090052245
    Abstract: The present invention is to provide a logic based single-poly non-volatile memory cell which is compatible with the CMOS process, uses lower voltages for operating, and is more reliable in program, read, or erase operation. A non-volatile memory cell in accordance with the present invention comprises a program transistor with a program transistor source as a first program terminal; a select transistor with a select transistor gate as a select terminal and a select transistor drain as a second program terminal; and an erase transistor with an erase transistor source and an erase transistor drain connected as an erase terminal, wherein the erase transistor shares a floating gate with the program transistor and the drain program transistor is connected to the select transistor source. By employing the present invention, significant cost advantages in feature-rich semiconductor products, such as System-on-Chip (SoC) design, compared to conventional dual-poly floating gate embedded Flash memory are provided.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 20, 2007
    Publication date: February 26, 2009
    Inventors: Daniel D. Li, Steve X. Zhou
  • Publication number: 20080310237
    Abstract: The present invention teaches a single-poly non-volatile memory cell which is compatible with the CMOS process, uses lower voltages for operating, and is more reliable in program, read, or erase operation. The single-poly non-volatile memory cell in accordance with the present invention comprises a program transistor with a program terminal; a sensing transistor with a sensing terminal; and an erase transistor with an erase terminal, wherein the sensing transistor shares a floating gate with the program transistor and the erase transistor. By employing the present invention, significant cost advantages in feature-rich semiconductor products, such as System-on-Chip (SoC) design, compared to conventional dual-poly floating gate embedded Flash memory are provided.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 18, 2007
    Publication date: December 18, 2008
    Applicant: Nantronics Semiconductor. Inc.
    Inventors: Steve X. Zhou, Daniel D. Li