By Periodic Switching (e.g., Chopper, Etc.) Patents (Class 327/124)
  • Patent number: 11979120
    Abstract: Amplifying circuitry configured such that when a detection circuit detects an abnormal state in which the level of signals input to a main amplifying circuit exceeds a normal range, a control circuit sets the state of integration of signals in the integration circuit to a default state. When the detection circuit detects the abnormal state and then detects that an operating state returns to a normal state in which the level of signals input to the main amplifying circuit is included in the normal range, the control circuit cancels the setting of the default state in the integration circuit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 25, 2022
    Date of Patent: May 7, 2024
    Assignee: ALPS ALPINE CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Takaharu Uekura, Masahiko Ota
  • Patent number: 11962276
    Abstract: In examples of a chopper operational amplifier, a current control circuit comprises a pair of voltage sources, each of which may be varied to generate a voltage signal of a particular value, and multiple inverters, each of which is configured to receive either a clock signal or its complement signal and one of the voltage signals. Based on these inputs, each inverter generates a control signal that is delivered to a corresponding switch in the input stage of the chopper operational amplifier to control the gate voltage of that switch. Based on the difference between the values of the voltage signals, the current control circuit operates to reduce the amplitudes of base currents induced by charge injection at the input terminals of the chopper operational amplifier.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 14, 2021
    Date of Patent: April 16, 2024
    Assignee: Texas Instruments Incorporated
    Inventors: Vadim Valerievich Ivanov, Srinivas Kumar Pulijala
  • Patent number: 11949422
    Abstract: A pulse width modulation (PWM) circuit, a method for PWM, and an electronic device are provided. In the PWM circuit, a control word providing circuit can generate, based on an obtained target duty cycle, two target frequency control words with a ratio of the target duty cycle, and output the two target frequency control words to a pulse generation circuit, wherein a ratio of the first target frequency control word to the second target frequency control word is the target duty cycle; and the pulse generation circuit can output a target pulse signal with the target duty cycle under the control of the two target frequency control words.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 9, 2021
    Date of Patent: April 2, 2024
    Assignees: Beijing BOE Technology Development Co., Ltd., BOE Technology Group Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Xiangye Wei, Liming Xiu
  • Patent number: 11863137
    Abstract: Systems and methods are provided for which a chopper modulator and a chopper demodulator of a chopped apparatus having a variable chopper frequency are described. A feedback path is used to reduce ripples and/or remaining offsets as a result of the variable chopper frequency.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 3, 2021
    Date of Patent: January 2, 2024
    Assignee: Infineon Technologies AG
    Inventors: Mario Motz, Umberto Aracri
  • Patent number: 11789049
    Abstract: A power detector includes a detection circuit and a bias circuit. The detection circuit is used to receive an input signal and output a power indication signal. The bias circuit includes a first impedance unit, a second impedance unit and a transistor. The transistor includes a first terminal and a control terminal coupled to the first impedance unit, and a second terminal. The second impedance unit is coupled between the first terminal of the transistor and an output terminal of the bias circuit, or between the second terminal of the transistor and a second terminal of the bias circuit. The output terminal of the bias circuit is coupled to an input terminal of the detection circuit, and is used to output a bias signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 30, 2020
    Date of Patent: October 17, 2023
    Assignee: RichWave Technology Corp.
    Inventor: Shun-Nan Tai
  • Patent number: 11545989
    Abstract: An ADC includes a plurality of sub ADCs configured to operate in a time-interleaved manner and a sampling circuit configured to receive an analog input signal of the ADC, wherein the sampling circuit is common to all sub ADCs. The ADC includes a test signal generation circuit configured to generate a test signal for calibration of the ADC. The sampling circuit has a first input configured to receive the analog input signal and a second input configured to receive the test signal. The sampling circuit includes an amplifier circuit and a first feedback switch connected between an output of the amplifier circuit and an input of the amplifier circuit. The first feedback switch is configured to be closed during a first clock phase and open during a second clock phase, which is non-overlapping with the first clock phase.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 22, 2017
    Date of Patent: January 3, 2023
    Assignee: Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (publ)
    Inventors: Lars Sundström, Daniele Mastantuono, Mattias Palm
  • Patent number: 11228291
    Abstract: Chopper amplifiers with multiple sensing points for correcting input offset are disclosed herein. In certain embodiments, a chopper amplifier includes chopper amplifier circuitry including an input chopping circuit, an amplification circuit, and an output chopping circuit electrically connected in a cascade along a signal path. The chopper amplifier further incudes a multi-point sensed offset correction circuit that generates an input offset compensation signal based on sensing a signal level of the signal path at multiple signal points. Furthermore, the multi-point sensed offset correction circuit injects the input offset compensation signal into the signal path to thereby compensate for input offset voltage of the amplification circuit while suppressing output chopping ripple from arising.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 22, 2020
    Date of Patent: January 18, 2022
    Assignee: Analog Devices, Inc.
    Inventor: Yoshinori Kusuda
  • Patent number: 11133737
    Abstract: In one embodiment, the electronic circuit includes a first amplifying circuit configured to generate a first compensation voltage based on a first reference voltage and an output voltage. The output voltage is from a functional circuit bloc. A second amplifying circuit is configured to generate a control voltage based on an input voltage, a second reference voltage and the first compensation voltage. The second reference voltage is different than the first reference voltage.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 6, 2019
    Date of Patent: September 28, 2021
    Assignee: SAMSUNG ELECTRONICS CO., LTD.
    Inventor: Hyunseok Nam
  • Patent number: 10998916
    Abstract: A sigma-delta analog-to-digital converter includes: a subtractor for subtracting a feedback signal from an analog input signal; a loop filter for processing the output signal from the subtractor to generate a filtered signal; a signal comparing circuit for selectively operating in an offset detection mode or a signal comparison mode, wherein the signal comparing circuit generates an error signal irrelevant to the relative magnitude between the filtered signal and a reference signal in the offset detection mode, and generates a comparison signal corresponding to the relative magnitude between the filtered signal and the reference signal in the signal comparison mode; an offset calibration control circuit for calibrating the offset of the signal comparing circuit and for controlling the signal comparing circuit to alternately switch between the offset detection mode and the signal comparison mode; and a digital-to-analog converter for generating the feedback signal according to the comparison signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 14, 2020
    Date of Patent: May 4, 2021
    Assignee: REALTEK SEMICONDUCTOR CORP.
    Inventor: Chih-Chiang Wang
  • Patent number: 10951222
    Abstract: An input current (Iin) is transformed into an output integrated voltage (Vout_int) using a parallel connection of an operational transconductance amplifier and an integration capacitor. The output integrated voltage is reduced by repeatedly discharging the integration capacitor through a feedback loop via a digital-to-analog converter generating feedback pulses, a feedback clock period (Tclk_DAC) defining time intervals between successive rising edges of the feedback pulses. Sampling is performed during an extended feedback clock period (T*) after a lapse of a plurality of feedback clock periods (Tclk_DAC).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 4, 2018
    Date of Patent: March 16, 2021
    Assignee: ams International AG
    Inventor: Fridolin Michel
  • Patent number: 10938408
    Abstract: A semiconductor device includes a signal input circuit configured to select one of the plurality of differential sensor signals according to a channel selection signal; an amplifier circuit configured to amplify an output of the signal input circuit; and an analog-to-digital converter (ADC) configured to convert an output of the amplifier circuit into a digital value, wherein each of the plurality of sensor signals is a differential signals and the signal input circuit changes polarity of an output signal thereof according to a first chopping signal, and wherein the ADC includes a delta-sigma modulator configured to generate a bit stream from an output of the amplifier circuit; an output chopping circuit configured to adjust phase of the bit stream according to the first chopping signal; and a filter configured to filter an output of the output chopping circuit and to output the digital value.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 24, 2020
    Date of Patent: March 2, 2021
    Assignee: Seoul National University R&DB Foundation
    Inventors: Jaehoon Jun, Cyuyeol Rhee, Suhwan Kim
  • Patent number: 10931247
    Abstract: A chopper amplifier circuit includes a first amplifier path, a second amplifier path, and a third amplifier path. The first amplifier path includes chopper circuitry configured to modulate an input signal and an offset voltage at a chopping frequency, and ripple reduction circuitry configured to attenuate the chopping frequency in a signal in the first amplifier path. The second amplifier path includes a feedforward gain stage, and is configured to apply higher gain to intermediate signal frequencies than is applied in the first amplifier path. The third amplifier path includes a feedforward gain stage, and is configured to apply higher gain to high signal frequencies than is applied in the first amplifier path and the second amplifier path. The intermediate signal frequencies are lower than the high signal frequencies.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 19, 2019
    Date of Patent: February 23, 2021
    Assignee: TEXAS INSTRUMENTS INCORPORATED
    Inventors: Vadim Valerievich Ivanov, Bharath Karthik Vasan, Piyush Kaslikar, Srinivas K. Pulijala
  • Patent number: 10790791
    Abstract: A feedback stage for an integrator circuit is provided. The integrator receives a first input current and a second input current that include respective measurement current components and an offset current component. The integrator integrates the first input current and the second input current and generates a first output voltage and a second output voltage. The feedback stage including a transconductance amplifier detects a difference between the first output voltage and the second output voltage and sinks or sources a first output current and a second output current based on the difference between the first output voltage and the second output voltage. The first output current is additively combined with the first input current and the second output current is additively combined with the second input current to mitigate the offset current component at an input of the integrator.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 8, 2018
    Date of Patent: September 29, 2020
    Assignee: STMicroelectronics Asia Pacific PTE Ltd
    Inventors: Supriya Raveendra Hegde, Hugo Gicquel
  • Patent number: 10778165
    Abstract: A high dynamic range sensing front-end for bio-signal recording systems in accordance with embodiments of the invention are disclosed. In one embodiment, a bio-signal amplifier includes an input signal, where the input signal is modulated to a predetermined chopping frequency, a first amplifier stage, a parallel-RC circuit connected to the first amplifier stage and configured to generate a parallel-RC circuit output by selectively blocking an offset current, a second amplifier stage connected to the parallel-RC circuit that includes a second input configured to receive the parallel-RC circuit output and generate a second output that is an amplified version of the input signal with ripple-rejection. Further, the bio-signal amplifier can also include an auxiliary path configured for boosting input impedance by pre-charging at least one input capacitor. In addition, the bio-signal amplifier can also include a DC-servo feedback loop that includes an integrator that utilizes a duty-cycled resistor.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 30, 2015
    Date of Patent: September 15, 2020
    Assignee: The Regents of the University of California
    Inventors: Hariprasad Chandrakumar, Dejan Markovic
  • Patent number: 10756674
    Abstract: An amplifier including a first routing circuit, an input stage circuit, an output stage circuit, a second routing circuit, and a bias voltage generating circuit is provided. The bias voltage generating circuit generates a first bias voltage and a second bias voltage for respectively supplying a first tail current source and a second tail current source of the input stage circuit. During a first period, the first bias voltage is related to the voltage at a first input terminal of the amplifier, and the second bias voltage is related to the voltage at a second input terminal of the amplifier. During a second period, the first bias voltage is related to the voltage at the second input terminal of the amplifier, and the second bias voltage is related to the voltage at the first input terminal of the amplifier.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 16, 2019
    Date of Patent: August 25, 2020
    Assignee: Faraday Technology Corp.
    Inventors: Hsu-Ming Tsai, Ta-Wei Wang
  • Patent number: 10718834
    Abstract: A gradient amplifier includes N working half-bridge groups. In each of the working half-bridge groups, a first working half-bridge includes a first switch and a second switch, and a second working half-bridge includes a third switch and a fourth switch. An emitter of the first switch is coupled with a collector of the second switch at a first coupling point, and an emitter of the third switch is coupled with a collector of the fourth switch at a second coupling point. A gradient coil is coupled between the first coupling point and the second coupling point in each of the working half-bridge groups, and a current flowing through the gradient coil is a sum of currents flowing through the N working half-bridge groups.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 25, 2018
    Date of Patent: July 21, 2020
    Assignee: Shanghai Neusoft Medical Technology Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Dongri Cai
  • Patent number: 10644664
    Abstract: An offset cancellation circuit and method are provided where successive stages of cascaded amplifiers are operated in a saturated state. Biasing is provided, by a feedback amplifier, connected in a feedback loop for each cascaded amplifier, so as to be responsive, in a non-saturated state, to the input of an associated amplifier stage operating in the saturated state.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 26, 2017
    Date of Patent: May 5, 2020
    Assignee: TEXAS INSTRUMENTS INCORPORATED
    Inventors: Jikai Chen, Gerd Schuppener, Yanli Fan
  • Patent number: 10594264
    Abstract: A dynamic amplifier includes a first output capacitor, a first switch, a current source, a second switch, a voltage detector, a third switch and a level shifter. The first switch is coupled between a first terminal of the first output capacitor and a voltage detection node. The second switch is coupled to the current source and the voltage detection node. The voltage detector is coupled to the voltage detection node and the first switch. The third switch is coupled between the voltage detection node and a power source. The level shifter is coupled to a second terminal of the first output capacitor.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 28, 2018
    Date of Patent: March 17, 2020
    Assignee: NOVATEK Microelectronics Corp.
    Inventors: Cheng-En Hsieh, Shen-Iuan Liu, Tzu-Chien Tzeng, Jin-Yi Lin, Kuo-Sheng Huang, Ju-Lin Huang
  • Patent number: 10530302
    Abstract: A circuit, comprising an input chopper configured to receive an input signal, a differential amplifier having an input coupled to an output of the input chopper, a current mode chopping circuit coupled to an output of the differential amplifier, and a first current mirror bias transistor pair coupled between a voltage supply and the current mode chopping circuit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 23, 2018
    Date of Patent: January 7, 2020
    Assignee: TEXAS INSTRUMENTS INCORPORATED
    Inventors: Ravinthiran Balasingam, Dimitar Trifonov, Biraja Prasad Dash
  • Patent number: 10515708
    Abstract: An apparatus includes a sample-and-hold (S/H) circuit. The S/H circuit includes a first switch to provide an input signal that is to be sampled, and a second switch coupled to receive the sampled signal. The second switch is further coupled to a capacitor. The S/H circuit further includes at least one native transistor coupled to the second switch and to the capacitor.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 14, 2017
    Date of Patent: December 24, 2019
    Assignee: Silicon Laboratories Inc.
    Inventor: Mohamed M. Elsayed
  • Patent number: 10505500
    Abstract: Provided is a differential amplification device reduced in DC offset voltage. The amplification device amplifies an input signal, and includes a chopper switch circuit which switches the polarity of the input signal between a normal phase and a reverse phase and outputs the input signal, a V-I conversion circuit which is connected to the chopper switch circuit, a capacitance circuit which is connected to the V-I conversion circuit to store electric charges supplied from the V-I conversion circuit, and an amplification circuit which is connected to the V-I conversion circuit to switch the polarity of an input signal between the normal phase and the reverse phase and amplify the input signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 29, 2018
    Date of Patent: December 10, 2019
    Assignee: ABLIC INC.
    Inventors: Masakazu Sugiura, Toshiyuki Tsuzaki, Yuji Shiine, Manabu Fujimura
  • Patent number: 10355595
    Abstract: A circuit and method providing switching regulation configured to provide a pulse frequency modulation (PFM) mode of Operation with reduced electromagnetic interference (EMI) comprising an output stage configured to provide switching comprising a first and second transistor, a sense circuit configured to provide output current information sensing from an output stage and a current limit reference, a first digital-to-analog converter (DAC) configured to provide signal to the current limit reference, an adder function configured to provide a signal to the first digital-to-analog converter (DAC), and a linear shift feedback register (LSFR) configured to provide a signal to an adder function followed by the first digital-to-analog converter (DAC), and the LSFR receives a clock signal from said output stage.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 22, 2018
    Date of Patent: July 16, 2019
    Assignee: Dialog Semiconductor (UK) Limited
    Inventors: Mark Childs, Tiago Patrao, Pietro Gallina, Alexandre Tavares, Michele De Fazio
  • Patent number: 10347352
    Abstract: According to an example, discrete-time analog filtering may include receiving an input signal, and sampling the input signal to determine sampled input signal values related to the input signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 29, 2015
    Date of Patent: July 9, 2019
    Assignee: Hewlett Packard Enterprise Development LP
    Inventor: Brent Buchanan
  • Patent number: 10270992
    Abstract: A device includes a current source and sampling units. Each of the sampling units includes a transistor and a capacitor electrically coupled to a gate of the transistor. The sampling units are sequentially activated such that the capacitor samples a voltage of a column line of a pixel array and are activated together such that the transistor is turned on according to the sampled voltage of the capacitor, to drain a current from the current source through an output node to generate an output voltage thereat.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 30, 2017
    Date of Patent: April 23, 2019
    Assignee: TAIWAN SEMICONDUCTOR MANUFACTURING CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Shang-Fu Yeh, Chih-Lin Lee, Chin Yin, Kuo-Yu Chou
  • Patent number: 10240983
    Abstract: A method of estimating a junction temperature of a converter for a vehicle includes: calculating, by a vehicle controller, an IGBT power loss value of the converter using an input current and an input voltage between a battery and the converter, an output voltage output from the converter to an inverter, and a duty ratio and an IGBT characteristic value of the converter.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 20, 2015
    Date of Patent: March 26, 2019
    Assignee: Hyundai Motor Company
    Inventors: Gi Bong Son, Heon Young Kwak
  • Patent number: 10148238
    Abstract: Provided are an amplifier circuit capable of reducing DC offset voltage without an increase in chip area and degradation in frequency characteristics, and a multipath nested miller amplifier circuit. The amplifier circuit includes a chopper switching circuit, a sampling circuit configured to sample an output signal from the chopper switching circuit, and a holding circuit configured to hold a signal output from the sampling circuit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 30, 2017
    Date of Patent: December 4, 2018
    Assignee: ABLIC INC.
    Inventors: Masakazu Sugiura, Toshiyuki Tsuzaki, Yuji Shiine, Manabu Fujimura
  • Patent number: 10148237
    Abstract: A semiconductor circuit comprising an input block having a first chopper providing a chopped voltage signal, a first transconductance converting said chopped voltage signal into a chopped current signal, a second chopper providing a demodulated current signal, a current integrator having an integrating capacitor providing a continuous-time signal, a first feedback path comprising: a sample-and-hold block and a first feedback block, the first feedback path providing a proportional feedback signal upstream of the current integrator. The amplification factor is at least 2. Charge stored on the integrating capacitor at the beginning of a sample period is linearly removed during one single sampling period. Each chopper operates at a chopping frequency. The sample-and-hold-block operates at a sampling frequency equal to an integer times the chopping frequency.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 10, 2017
    Date of Patent: December 4, 2018
    Assignee: MELEXIS TECHNOLOGIES SA
    Inventors: Johan Raman, Pieter Rombouts
  • Patent number: 10110179
    Abstract: An audio amplifier includes an operational amplifier, a replica of an output stage of the operational amplifier, and a feedback circuit configured such that, in a normal mode, an output signal of the operational amplifier is fed back to the input side of the operational amplifier, and such that, in a calibration mode, an output signal of the replica is fed back to the input side of the operational amplifier. The calibration circuit cancels out the offset voltage of the audio amplifier. An adjustment circuit changes the offset of the audio amplifier according to a control signal S1. A control circuit adjusts the control signal such that an output signal VS of the replica is within a predetermined target range in a state in which a predetermined voltage is input to the audio amplifier. Memory stores the control signal S2 acquired in the final stage.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 13, 2016
    Date of Patent: October 23, 2018
    Assignee: ROHM CO., LTD.
    Inventor: Hirotsugu Ego
  • Patent number: 10097146
    Abstract: An electrical circuit comprising a modulating chopper configured to receive a differential input signal at a first frequency and modulate the differential input signal to a second frequency to form a modulated differential signal, a null amplifier coupled to the modulating chopper and configured to amplify the modulated differential signal to form an amplifier output, wherein amplifying the modulated differential signal causes a ripple in the amplifier output, a demodulating chopper coupled to the null amplifier and configured to demodulate the amplifier output to form a demodulated differential signal having a first portion at the first frequency and a second portion at a third frequency, an integrator coupled to the demodulating chopper and configured to integrate the demodulated differential signal to form an integrated differential signal, and an attenuator coupled to the integrator and configured to attenuate the integrated differential signal to compensate for at least part of the ripple.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 10, 2017
    Date of Patent: October 9, 2018
    Assignee: SEMICONDUCTOR COMPONENTS INDUSTRIES, LLC
    Inventors: Matei Nicolae Stan, Pavel-Viorel Brinzoi
  • Patent number: 10060951
    Abstract: In a case in which an input offset voltage of a main amplification circuit deviates from a predetermined range, a retaining operation of retaining an output voltage of a low pass filter in a sample and hold circuit stops, and an output voltage of the low pass filter is directly output to a correction signal supply circuit. As a result, for example, negative feedback control is not temporarily performed due to influence or the like of an excessive input voltage on the main amplification circuit, and in a case in which the input offset voltage of the main amplification circuit deviates from the predetermined range, a response delay due to the retaining operation of the sample and hold circuit does not occur, and the response speed of an offset correction circuit increases.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 22, 2015
    Date of Patent: August 28, 2018
    Assignee: Alps Electric Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Masahiko Ota
  • Patent number: 9935595
    Abstract: Disclosed is a switch control circuit, including an error amplifier, a compensation network and a control circuit, wherein the compensation network is connected to an output end of the error amplifier; and the control circuit includes switches from a first switch to a fifth switch and is configured to control operating states of the error amplifier and the compensation network by controlling on/off states of switches from the first switch to the fifth switch. Further disclosed are switch control method, a regulator including the above switch control circuit as well as a computer storage medium.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 8, 2014
    Date of Patent: April 3, 2018
    Assignee: SANECHIPS TECHNOLOGY CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Dong Wei, Weisheng Geng
  • Patent number: 9912309
    Abstract: Aspects of the disclosure provide an amplifier system and a method for dynamically cancelling an offset voltage. The amplifier system includes a chopper amplifier system that includes a differential amplifier with an offset calibration circuit. The chopper amplifier system is configured to generate an output signal including voltage variations indicating an offset voltage of the differential amplifier. The amplifier system also includes a feedback circuit configured to determine a polarity of the offset voltage of the differential amplifier based on the output signal, and to transmit a control signal to the offset calibration circuit to reduce the offset voltage of the differential amplifier.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 26, 2016
    Date of Patent: March 6, 2018
    Assignee: MARVELL ISRAEL (M.I.S.L.) LTD.
    Inventors: Reuven Ecker, Shimon Avitan
  • Patent number: 9899974
    Abstract: A main amplifier generates an output signal SOUT according to a difference between first and second voltages VP and VN. A first gm amplifier is arranged as a differential input stage. A second, fully differential, gm amplifier amplifies a voltage difference between its non-inverting and inverting input terminals, and outputs a differential current signal I3N/I3P via its inverting and non-inverting output terminals. An integrator integrates a differential input current I4P/I4N input via its non-inverting and inverting input terminals, and samples and holds the signal every predetermined period, to generate a differential voltage signal. A first selector is arranged as an upstream stage of the second gm amplifier, and outputs the differential input signal without change or otherwise after swapping. A second selector is arranged as a downstream stage of the second gm amplifier, and outputs the signal I3N/I3P output from the second gm amplifier without change or otherwise after swapping.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 14, 2016
    Date of Patent: February 20, 2018
    Assignee: ROHM CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Sachito Horiuchi, Naohiro Nomura
  • Patent number: 9887578
    Abstract: A charging control system for charging a secondary battery from a solar battery, including a first path for transmitting power from the solar battery to the secondary battery, a second path for sensing the voltage of the secondary battery, and a comparison unit for comparing the solar battery voltage with the sensed voltage of the secondary battery. The first path includes a first interrupter, controlled by the comparison unit, which interrupts the first path to prevent discharge of the secondary battery through the solar battery when the solar battery voltage falls below the secondary battery voltage. The second path includes a second interrupter that interrupts the second path after the first path is interrupted, to prevent the secondary battery from discharging through the second path when not being charged through the first path.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 15, 2016
    Date of Patent: February 6, 2018
    Assignee: LAPIS SEMICONDUCTOR CO., LTD.
    Inventor: Kikuo Utsuno
  • Patent number: 9800280
    Abstract: A radio frequency (RF) receiver device may include a receive path including a first amplifier. The device also includes a first mixer coupled to an output of the first amplifier and to an input of a second amplifier. Further, the device may include an auxiliary path including a second mixer coupled between an output of the first mixer and an input of the first mixer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 7, 2016
    Date of Patent: October 24, 2017
    Assignee: QUALCOMM Incorporated
    Inventors: Hajir Hedayati, Milad Darvishi, Jeremy Dunworth
  • Patent number: 9766103
    Abstract: A measuring device, measuring arrangement and a method for determining a measured quantity. The measuring device a sensor device, an evaluation device and an interface. The sensor device generates measurement information which is dependent on the measured quantity and the evaluation device determines a result value for the measured quantity. To devise a measuring device which manages with a limited power demand and storage demand and which also allows a complex evaluation for obtaining the result value for the measured quantity, the evaluation device of the measuring device outputs the measurement information or information dependent on it via the interface to a separate data device of the measuring arrangement, receives intermediate information from the data device which is generated depending on the measurement information or the information dependent on it and determines the result value based on the intermediate information.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 28, 2013
    Date of Patent: September 19, 2017
    Assignee: KROHNE Messtechnik GmbH
    Inventor: Michael Daheim
  • Patent number: 9742366
    Abstract: A fully differential class-D amplifier having a controlled common-mode output voltage is disclosed. The differential class-D amplifier may include a correction circuit to determine the common-mode output voltage associated with differential pulse width modulated output signals and to generate differential correction signals to control the common-mode output voltage. In some exemplary embodiments, the differential class-D amplifier may include a plurality of gain stages to generate the differential PWM output signals. The differential correction signals may be provided to at least one stage of the differential class-D amplifier.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 14, 2015
    Date of Patent: August 22, 2017
    Assignee: QUALCOMM Incorporated
    Inventor: Sherif Galal
  • Patent number: 9705455
    Abstract: A random chopper control circuit is disclosed. The random chopper control circuit is coupled to an operational amplifier. The random chopper control circuit includes a random generator. The random generator is configured to generate a random chopper control signal and output the random chopper control signal to the operational amplifier to control an operation of the operational amplifier.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 11, 2016
    Date of Patent: July 11, 2017
    Assignee: Raydium Semiconductor Corporation
    Inventors: Chih-Chuan Huang, Wen-Tsung Lin
  • Patent number: 9685933
    Abstract: A notch filter is controlled synchronously with a chopper to filter out chopping ripple. In one embodiment, the notch filter is coupled to the differential output of the chopper and includes a sampling capacitor, a hold capacitor, and a second set of switches between the sampling capacitor and the hold capacitor. The second set of switches is temporarily closed once per chopper switching cycle to transfer charge from the sampling capacitor to the hold capacitor such that the ripple from the chopper is not transferred to the hold capacitor. The voltage across the hold capacitor may be coupled to any other circuit, such as to the differential inputs of an amplifier.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 26, 2015
    Date of Patent: June 20, 2017
    Assignee: Linear Technology Corporation
    Inventors: Jeremy H. Wong, Joseph G. Petrofsky
  • Patent number: 9664567
    Abstract: A method and apparatus suitable for measuring temperature of a surface of a segment of a rail using a sensor underneath a moving or a stationary rail car. The measurement is based on intensities of infrared radiation emitted by the surface. The method uses relationships among emissivity, radiation intensity and surface temperature without assuming an emissivity value for the surface. The apparatus comprises radiation detectors containing sensing elements, a lens system, and an analog to digital conversion board to convert radiation intensities to temperature.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 18, 2013
    Date of Patent: May 30, 2017
    Inventors: Yudaya Raju Sivathanu, Jongmook Lim, Vinoo Narayanan
  • Patent number: 9667194
    Abstract: Switched capacitor circuits and charge transfer methods comprising a sampling phase and a transfer phase. Circuits and methods are implemented via a plurality of switches, a set of at least two capacitors, at least one voltage amplifier, and an operational amplifier. In one example, during the sampling phase at least one input voltage is sampled, and during the transfer phase at least a first reference voltage provided by the at least one voltage amplifier is subtracted from the at least one input voltage using the operational amplifier. The same set of at least two capacitors may be used in both the sampling phase and the transfer phase.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 23, 2016
    Date of Patent: May 30, 2017
    Assignee: Omni Design Technologies Inc.
    Inventor: Hae-Seung Lee
  • Patent number: 9648257
    Abstract: A method for reading an imaging device intended for capturing images in a detector including a large number of photosensitive points called pixels organized into a matrix. The pixels of the same column are linked to a column conductor enabling the successive reading of the photosignals acquired by the pixels of the column, the method consisting for each of the pixels in carrying out a correlated double sampling read phase, the read phase comprising an operation of resetting the pixel followed by two read operations, the first without the photosignal, and the second with the photosignal. Three steps are concatenated in succession for the pixels of the same column: 1. a first of the operations of reading the pixel of a first row, 2. one of the operations of reading a second row, 3. a second of the operations of reading the pixel of the first row.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 20, 2013
    Date of Patent: May 9, 2017
    Assignee: TRIXELL
    Inventors: Bruno Bosset, Laurent Charrier
  • Patent number: 9634617
    Abstract: Described examples include multistage amplifier circuits having first and second forward circuits, a comparator or sensor circuit coupled to sense a signal in the second forward circuit to identify nonlinear operation or slewing conditions in the multistage amplifier circuit, and one or more sample hold circuits operative according to a sensor circuit output signal to selectively maintain the amplitude of an amplifier input signal in the second forward circuit and/or in a feedback circuit in response to the sensor circuit output signal indicating nonlinear operation or slewing conditions in the multistage amplifier circuit. Certain examples further include a clamping circuit operative to selectively maintain a voltage at a terminal of a Miller compensation capacitance responsive to the comparator output signal indicating nonlinear operation or slewing conditions.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 2, 2015
    Date of Patent: April 25, 2017
    Assignee: Texas Instruments Incorporated
    Inventors: Vadim V. Ivanov, Vaibhav Kumar, Munaf H. Shaik
  • Patent number: 9577616
    Abstract: An exemplary level shifter includes a clock level shifter configured to generate a level shifted clock signal from an input clock signal; and a switched capacitor logic controller coupled to the clock level shifter. The switched capacitor logic controller is configured to steer the level shifted clock signal based on a data signal and the input clock signal, providing a level shifted version of the data signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 19, 2015
    Date of Patent: February 21, 2017
    Assignee: ANALOG DEVICES, INC.
    Inventors: Ralph D. Moore, Bryan S. Puckett, Brad P. Jeffries
  • Patent number: 9570486
    Abstract: A solid-state imaging device includes: a photoelectric conversion unit which converts light into signal charges; an accumulation unit which accumulates the signal charges; a transfer transistor connected between the photoelectric conversion unit and the accumulation unit for transferring to the accumulation unit, the signal charges obtained through the conversion by the photoelectric conversion unit; an amplification transistor for amplifying the signal charges accumulated in the accumulation unit to generate a voltage signal, the amplification transistor having a gate connected to the accumulation unit; a reset transistor for resetting a voltage of the accumulation unit; a first amplification circuit for negatively feeding back the voltage signal generated by the amplification transistor to the reset transistor; and a second amplification circuit for positively feeding back the voltage signal generated by the amplification transistor to the amplification transistor.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 22, 2014
    Date of Patent: February 14, 2017
    Assignee: PANASONIC INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY MANAGEMENT CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Motonori Ishii, Shigetaka Kasuga
  • Patent number: 9537499
    Abstract: A method includes sampling an input voltage signal applied to an ADC, comparing the sampled input voltage signal with an output signal of a feedback DAC, and determining in a search logic block a digital code representation for the comparison result. The method may also include performing a calibration by: performing an additional cycle, wherein a last comparison carried out for determining a least significant bit of the digital code representation is repeated with a second comparator resolution mode different from a first comparator resolution mode, so obtaining an additional comparison; determining from a difference between results of the additional comparison and the last comparison a sign of a comparator offset error between the comparator resolution modes; and tuning, in accordance with a sign of the comparator offset error, a programmable capacitor connected at an input of the comparator, thereby inducing a voltage step to counteract the comparator offset error.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 19, 2016
    Date of Patent: January 3, 2017
    Assignee: Stichting IMEC Nederland
    Inventor: Pieter Harpe
  • Patent number: 9473088
    Abstract: A signal processing circuit includes a chopper amplifier that has a differential amplifier circuit that amplifies differential input signals Vsp(t) and Vsm(t), and an adder circuit that generates an addition signal Vfil(t) by addition of the chopper output signal Vsub(t) that the chopper amplifier generates. Differential signals inputted into the differential amplifier circuit are interchanged for every first phase period and second phase period, and the adder circuit generates the addition signal by addition of the chopper output signal in the first phase period and in the second phase period.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 17, 2015
    Date of Patent: October 18, 2016
    Assignee: Renesas Electronics Corporation
    Inventors: Yoshihiro Funato, Toshio Kumamoto, Tomoaki Yoshizawa, Kazuaki Kurooka
  • Patent number: 9461465
    Abstract: An apparatus relates generally to an analog switch. In such apparatus, the analog switch has a transistor. A first node of the transistor is coupled to an input node of the analog switch. A second node of the transistor is coupled to an output node of the analog switch. An overvoltage protection circuit is coupled to provide a control voltage to a gate node of the transistor. The overvoltage protection circuit is used to at least substantially reduce an overvoltage state caused by an analog voltage at the input node of the analog switch exceeding an overvoltage threshold voltage.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 23, 2013
    Date of Patent: October 4, 2016
    Assignee: Pericom Semiconductor Corporation
    Inventors: Yiu-Ming Tam, Chi-Wa Lo, Sin-Luen Cheung
  • Patent number: 9438192
    Abstract: An apparatus includes an operational amplifier and a plurality of capacitors coupled to an input terminal of the operational amplifier and configured to be selectively coupled to receive one of an input voltage signal and an output voltage signal of the operational amplifier.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 1, 2014
    Date of Patent: September 6, 2016
    Assignee: QUALCOMM Incorporated
    Inventors: Wenchang Huang, Peter Jivan Shah, Meysam Azin, Arash Mehrabi
  • Patent number: RE48112
    Abstract: A notch filter is controlled synchronously with a chopper to filter out chopping ripple. In one embodiment, the notch filter is coupled to the differential output of the chopper and includes a sampling capacitor, a hold capacitor, and a second set of switches between the sampling capacitor and the hold capacitor. The second set of switches is temporarily closed once per chopper switching cycle to transfer charge from the sampling capacitor to the hold capacitor such that the ripple from the chopper is not transferred to the hold capacitor. The voltage across the hold capacitor may be coupled to any other circuit, such as to the differential inputs of an amplifier.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 24, 2018
    Date of Patent: July 21, 2020
    Assignee: Linear Technology LLC
    Inventors: Jeremy H. Wong, Joseph G. Petrofsky