Power control of circuit modules within an integrated circuit
DCFirst Claim
1. A monolithic integrated circuit, including a plurality of modular logic circuits, each module having a defined function pertaining to a corresponding plurality of operations to be performed by said integrated circuit in response to circuit control signals, said integrated circuit further including a clock signal input circuit for receiving an input clock signal from an external source;
- a clock signal distribution circuit for distributing a plurality of individual clock signals to said modular logic circuits; and
a clock control circuit for selectively enabling or disabling selected clock signals for each of said modular logic circuits;
wherein said clock control circuit further comprises a programmable register including a plurality of power control bit positions and a power control logic circuit responsive to the states of said bit positions to selectively enable or disable individual clock signals distributed to selected individual modular logic circuits within said integrated circuit.
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Abstract
A power control and memory refresh rate management circuit is described. The power control circuit provides circuitry for selectively disabling or enabling modular logic circuit blocks within a VLSI integrated circuit under program control from an external processor, or for suspended circuit operation in general. In low-power modes external memory refresh signal generation circuits are provided with a low-frequency oscillator signal to conserve power.
146 Citations
13 Claims
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1. A monolithic integrated circuit, including a plurality of modular logic circuits, each module having a defined function pertaining to a corresponding plurality of operations to be performed by said integrated circuit in response to circuit control signals, said integrated circuit further including a clock signal input circuit for receiving an input clock signal from an external source;
- a clock signal distribution circuit for distributing a plurality of individual clock signals to said modular logic circuits; and
a clock control circuit for selectively enabling or disabling selected clock signals for each of said modular logic circuits;
wherein said clock control circuit further comprises a programmable register including a plurality of power control bit positions and a power control logic circuit responsive to the states of said bit positions to selectively enable or disable individual clock signals distributed to selected individual modular logic circuits within said integrated circuit. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12)
- a clock signal distribution circuit for distributing a plurality of individual clock signals to said modular logic circuits; and
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13. A monolithic integrated circuit, including a plurality of modular logic circuits, each module having a defined function pertaining to a corresponding plurality of operations to be performed by said integrated circuit in response to circuit control signals, said integrated circuit further including a clock signal input circuit for receiving an input clock signal from an external source, a clock signal distribution circuit for distributing a plurality of individual clock signals to said modular logic circuits, and a clock control circuit for selectively enabling or disabling selected clock signals for each of said modular logic circuits;
wherein said clock control circuit further comprises a power-up delay circuit for delaying the enabling of said clock signals distributed to said selected modular logic circuits for a defined period to ensure that said input clock signal external source is stable prior to transitioning from power-down to power-up status;
wherein said clock control circuit further comprises a programmable register including a plurality of power control bit positions and a power control logic circuit responsive to the states of said bit positions to selectively enable or disable individual clock signals distributed to selected individual modular logic circuits within said integrated circuit.
Specification