Patents by Inventor William C. Plants
William C. Plants 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).
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Publication number: 20110234258Abstract: An enhanced performance field programmable gate array integrated circuit comprises a field programmable gate array and other functional circuitry such as a mask-programmable gate array in the same integrated circuit. A circuit interface provides communication between the field programmable gate array, the mask-programmable gate array and the integrated circuit I/O.Type: ApplicationFiled: June 10, 2011Publication date: September 29, 2011Applicant: ACTEL CORPORATIONInventors: Samuel W. Beal, Sinan Kaptonoglu, Jung-Cheun Lien, William Shu, King W. Chan, William C. Plants
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Patent number: 7977970Abstract: An enhanced performance field programmable gate array integrated circuit comprises a field programmable gate array and other functional circuitry such as a mask-programmable gate array in the same integrated circuit. A circuit interface provides communication between the field programmable gate array, the mask-programmable gate array and the integrated circuit I/O.Type: GrantFiled: June 4, 2010Date of Patent: July 12, 2011Assignee: Actel CorporationInventors: Samuel W. Beal, Sinan Kaptanoglu, Jung-Cheun Lien, William Shu, King W. Chan, William C. Plants
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Patent number: 7956404Abstract: A two-transistor non-volatile memory cell is formed in a semiconductor body. A memory-transistor well is disposed within the semiconductor body. A switch-transistor well is disposed within the semiconductor body and is electrically isolated from the memory transistor well. A memory transistor including spaced-apart source and drain regions is formed within the memory-transistor well. A switch transistor including spaced-apart source and drain regions is formed within the switch-transistor well region. A floating gate is insulated from and self aligned with the source and drain regions of the memory transistor and switch transistor. A control gate is disposed above and aligned to the floating gate and with the source and drain regions of the memory transistor and the switch transistor.Type: GrantFiled: February 13, 2009Date of Patent: June 7, 2011Assignee: Actel CorporationInventors: Fethi Dhaoui, John McCollum, Vidyadhara Bellippady, William C. Plants, Zhigang Wang
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Patent number: 7941685Abstract: A DLL provides a deskew mode for aligning a reference clock that passes through a clock distribution tree to a feedback by adding additional delay to the feedback clock to align the feedback clock with reference clock at one cycle later. A 0 ns clock-to-out mode is provided by adding additional delay to account for an input buffer into a feedback path. The feedback clock can be doubled by a clock doubler with 50% duty cycle adjustment disposed in the feedback path. Flexible timing is aligning the reference clock to the feedback clock is obtained with additional delay elements disposed in the feedback and reference clock paths.Type: GrantFiled: December 17, 2008Date of Patent: May 10, 2011Assignee: Actel CorporationInventors: William C. Plants, Nikhil Mazumder, Arunangshu Kundu, James Joseph, Wayne W. Wong
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Patent number: 7937601Abstract: A programmable system-on-a-chip integrated circuit device comprises a programmable logic block, a non-volatile memory block, an analog sub-system, an analog input/output circuit block, and a digital input/output circuit block. A programmable interconnect architecture includes programmable elements and interconnect conductors. Ones of the programmable elements are coupled to the programmable logic block, the non-volatile memory block, the analog sub-system, the analog input/output circuit block, the digital input/output circuit block, and to the interconnect conductors, such that inputs and outputs of the programmable logic block, the non-volatile memory block, the analog sub-system, the analog input/output circuit block, and the digital input/output circuit block can be programmably coupled to one another.Type: GrantFiled: August 5, 2009Date of Patent: May 3, 2011Assignee: Actel CorporationInventors: Greg Bakker, Khaled El-Ayat, Theodore Speers, Limin Zhu, Brian Schubert, Rabindranath Balasubramanian, Kurt Kilkind, Thomas Barraza, Venkatesh Narayanan, John McCollum, William C. Plants
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Patent number: 7924051Abstract: A computer program product in a computer-readable medium for use in a microcontroller-based control system in a programmable logic integrated circuit device. The computer program product comprises first instructions for initializing the device, second instructions for reading programming data from a data source external to the programmable logic integrated circuit device, third instructions for transferring the programming data into control elements internal to the device. Provision is made for fourth instructions for saving a part of the internal logic state of the user logic programmed into the device into a non-volatile memory block and for fifth instructions for restoring a part of the internal logic state of the user logic programmed into the device from a non-volatile memory block. The device comprises a microcontroller block and a programmable logic block with programming circuitry, and has a sub-bus which couples the microcontroller block to the programming circuitry.Type: GrantFiled: February 5, 2010Date of Patent: April 12, 2011Assignee: Actel CorporationInventors: Gregory Bakker, Joel Landry, William C. Plants
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Patent number: 7915665Abstract: A two-transistor non-volatile memory cell is formed in a semiconductor body. A memory-transistor well is disposed within the semiconductor body. A switch-transistor well is disposed within the semiconductor body and is electrically isolated from the memory transistor well. A memory transistor including spaced-apart source and drain regions is formed within the memory-transistor well. A switch transistor including spaced-apart source and drain regions is formed within the switch-transistor well region. A floating gate is insulated from and self aligned with the source and drain regions of the memory transistor and switch transistor. A control gate is disposed above and aligned to the floating gate and with the source and drain regions of the memory transistor and the switch transistor.Type: GrantFiled: April 2, 2009Date of Patent: March 29, 2011Assignee: Actel CorporationInventors: Fethi Dhaoui, John McCollum, Vidyadhara Bellippady, William C. Plants, Zhigang Wang
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Patent number: 7885122Abstract: A flash-based programmable integrated circuit includes programmable circuitry, a flash memory array coupled to the programmable circuitry for configuring it, flash programming circuitry for programming the flash memory array, and an on-chip intelligence, such as a microcontroller or state machine, coupled to the programming circuitry to program the flash memory from off-chip data supplied via an I/O pad, or to refresh the data stored in the flash memory to prevent it from degrading.Type: GrantFiled: September 29, 2009Date of Patent: February 8, 2011Assignee: Actel CorporationInventors: Joel Landry, William C. Plants, Randall Sexton
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Patent number: 7886130Abstract: A system-on-a-chip integrated circuit has a field programmable gate array core having logic clusters, static random access memory modules, and routing resources, a field programmable gate array virtual component interface translator having inputs and outputs, wherein the inputs are connected to the field programmable gate array core, a microcontroller, a microcontroller virtual component interface translator having input and outputs, wherein the inputs are connected to the microcontroller, a system bus connected to the outputs of the field programmable gate array virtual component interface translator and also to the outputs of said microcontroller virtual component interface translator, and direct connections between the microcontroller and the routing resources of the field programmable gate array core.Type: GrantFiled: December 29, 2008Date of Patent: February 8, 2011Assignee: Actel CorporationInventors: Arunangshu Kundu, Arnold Goldfein, William C. Plants, David Hightower
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Patent number: 7872497Abstract: A fast, flexible carry scheme for use in clustered field programmable gate array architectures is described. Each cluster has a cluster carry input node, a cluster carry output node, a cluster carry output circuit having an output coupled to the cluster carry output node, a first input coupled to the cluster carry input node, and a second input and a plurality of logic modules each comprising a logic function generator circuit coupled to a carry circuit. The logic modules are coupled in a series carry arrangement between the cluster carry input node and the second input of the cluster carry output circuit such that the least significant bit of an arithmetic logic circuit can be programmably placed in any of the logic modules.Type: GrantFiled: December 23, 2009Date of Patent: January 18, 2011Assignee: Actel CorporationInventor: William C. Plants
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Publication number: 20100244894Abstract: An enhanced performance field programmable gate array integrated circuit comprises a field programmable gate array and other functional circuitry such as a mask-programmable gate array in the same integrated circuit. A circuit interface provides communication between the field programmable gate array, the mask-programmable gate array and the integrated circuit I/O.Type: ApplicationFiled: June 4, 2010Publication date: September 30, 2010Inventors: Samuel W. Beal, Sinan Kaptanoglu, Jung-Cheun Lien, William Shu, King W. Chan, William C. Plants
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Patent number: 7755386Abstract: An enhanced performance field programmable gate array integrated circuit comprises a field programmable gate array and other functional circuitry such as a mask-programmable gate array in the same integrated circuit. A circuit interface provides communication between the field programmable gate array, the mask-programmable gate array and the integrated circuit I/O.Type: GrantFiled: April 29, 2008Date of Patent: July 13, 2010Assignee: Actel CorporationInventors: Samuel W. Beal, Sinan Kaptonoglu, Jung-Cheun Lien, William Shu, King W. Chan, William C. Plants
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Publication number: 20100156459Abstract: A delay line compensated for process, voltage, and temperature variations, includes a delay locked loop (DLL) configured to delay a digital signal by the clock period of the digital signal, the DLL including a DLL delay line arranged as a plurality of cascaded sub-delay lines each sub-delay line providing one of a plurality of delay quanta in response to a digital control signal. A fractionating circuit is configured to generate a digital delay line control signal that is a fraction of the digital control signal. A digital delay line is arranged as a plurality of cascaded sub-delay lines each sub-delay line providing one of a plurality of delay quanta in response to the digital delay line control signal.Type: ApplicationFiled: March 3, 2010Publication date: June 24, 2010Inventors: William C. Plants, Suhail Zain, Joel Landry, Gregory W. Bakker, Tomek P. Jasionowski
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Publication number: 20100134142Abstract: A computer program product in a computer-readable medium for use in a microcontroller-based control system in a programmable logic integrated circuit device. The computer program product comprises first instructions for initializing the device, second instructions for reading programming data from a data source external to the programmable logic integrated circuit device, third instructions for transferring the programming data into control elements internal to the device. Provision is made for fourth instructions for saving a part of the internal logic state of the user logic programmed into the device into a non-volatile memory block and for fifth instructions for restoring a part of the internal logic state of the user logic programmed into the device from a non-volatile memory block. The device comprises a microcontroller block and a programmable logic block with programming circuitry, and has a sub-bus which couples the microcontroller block to the programming circuitry.Type: ApplicationFiled: February 5, 2010Publication date: June 3, 2010Inventors: Gregory Bakker, Joel Landry, William C. Plants
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Publication number: 20100100864Abstract: A fast, flexible carry scheme for use in clustered field programmable gate array architectures is described. Each cluster has a cluster carry input node, a cluster carry output node, a cluster carry output circuit having an output coupled to the cluster carry output node, a first input coupled to the cluster carry input node, and a second input and a plurality of logic modules each comprising a logic function generator circuit coupled to a carry circuit. The logic modules are coupled in a series carry arrangement between the cluster carry input node and the second input of the cluster carry output circuit such that the least significant bit of an arithmetic logic circuit can be programmably placed in any of the logic modules.Type: ApplicationFiled: December 23, 2009Publication date: April 22, 2010Applicant: ACTEL CORPORATIONInventor: William C. Plants
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Patent number: 7701246Abstract: A delay line compensated for process, voltage, and temperature variations, includes a delay locked loop (DLL) configured to delay a digital signal by the clock period of the digital signal, the DLL including a DLL delay line arranged as a plurality of cascaded sub-delay lines each sub-delay line providing one of a plurality of delay quanta in response to a digital control signal. A fractionating circuit is configured to generate a digital delay line control signal that is a fraction of the digital control signal. A digital delay line is arranged as a plurality of cascaded sub-delay lines each sub-delay line providing one of a plurality of delay quanta in response to the digital delay line control signal.Type: GrantFiled: July 17, 2008Date of Patent: April 20, 2010Assignee: Actel CorporationInventors: William C. Plants, Suhail Zain, Joel Landry, Gregory W. Bakker, Tomek Jasionowski
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Patent number: 7683660Abstract: A computer program product in a computer-readable medium for use in a microcontroller-based control system in a programmable logic integrated circuit device is disclosed. The computer program product comprises first instructions for initializing the device, second instructions for reading programming data from a data source external to the programmable logic integrated circuit device, third instructions for transferring the programming data into control elements internal to the programmable logic integrated circuit device. Provision is made for fourth instructions for saving at least a part of the internal logic state of the user logic programmed into the programmable logic integrated circuit device into a non-volatile memory block and for fifth instructions for restoring at least a part of the internal logic state of the user logic programmed into the programmable logic integrated circuit device from a non-volatile memory block.Type: GrantFiled: January 31, 2008Date of Patent: March 23, 2010Assignee: Actel CorporationInventors: Gregory Bakker, Joel Landry, William C. Plants
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Patent number: 7672153Abstract: A method for providing a deglitching circuit for a radiation tolerant static random access memory (SRAM) comprising: providing a configuration memory having a plurality of configuration bits; coupling read and write circuitry to the configuration memory for configuring the plurality of configuration bits; coupling a radiation hard latch to a programmable element, the radiation hard latch controlling the programmable element; and providing an interface that couples at least one of the plurality of configuration bits to the radiation hard latch when the write circuitry writes to the at least one of the plurality of configuration bits.Type: GrantFiled: July 14, 2008Date of Patent: March 2, 2010Assignee: Actel CorporationInventor: William C. Plants
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Publication number: 20100038697Abstract: A two-transistor non-volatile memory cell is formed in a semiconductor body. A memory-transistor well is disposed within the semiconductor body. A switch-transistor well is disposed within the semiconductor body and is electrically isolated from the memory transistor well. A memory transistor including spaced-apart source and drain regions is formed within the memory-transistor well. A switch transistor including spaced-apart source and drain regions is formed within the switch-transistor well region. A floating gate is insulated from and self aligned with the source and drain regions of the memory transistor and switch transistor. A control gate is disposed above and aligned to the floating gate and with the source and drain regions of the memory transistor and the switch transistor.Type: ApplicationFiled: February 13, 2009Publication date: February 18, 2010Applicant: Actel CorporationInventors: Fethi Dhaoui, John McCollum, Vidyadhara Bellippady, William C. Plants, Zhigang Wang
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Patent number: 7663400Abstract: A fast, flexible carry scheme for use in clustered field programmable gate array architectures is described. Each cluster has a cluster carry input node, a cluster carry output node, a cluster carry output circuit having an output coupled to the cluster carry output node, a first input coupled to the cluster carry input node, and a second input and a plurality of logic modules each comprising a logic function generator circuit coupled to a carry circuit. The logic modules are coupled in a series carry arrangement between the cluster carry input node and the second input of the cluster carry output circuit such that the least significant bit of an arithmetic logic circuit can be programmably placed in any of the logic modules.Type: GrantFiled: December 21, 2007Date of Patent: February 16, 2010Assignee: Actel CorporationInventor: William C. Plants