Voltage regulation using an estimated current
First Claim
1. A method of operating a voltage regulator having an input terminal to be coupled to an input voltage source, an output terminal to be coupled to a load, a switching circuit to couple the input terminal to an intermediate terminal, and a filter having an inductor to generate a substantially DC voltage at the output terminal, comprising:
- storing an initial estimated current representing the current flowing through the inductor;
adjusting the initial estimated current based on the status of the switching circuit to generate a new estimated current;
determining a total desired output current to pass through the inductor which will maintain an output voltage at the output terminal substantially constant; and
controlling the switching circuit based on the new estimated current and the total desired output current so that a total current passing through the inductor is approximately equal to the total desired output current.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A method of estimating a current passing through an inductor in a voltage regulator in which an initial estimated current is stored representing the current flowing through the inductor, and the initial estimated current is adjusted based on the status of the switching circuit in the voltage regulator to generate a new estimated current. An incremental current is added to the initial estimated current if an output terminal is coupled to an input terminal, and a decremental current is subtracted from the initial estimated current if the output terminal is coupled to ground. The estimated current can be used for controlling the switching circuit.
49 Citations
30 Claims
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1. A method of operating a voltage regulator having an input terminal to be coupled to an input voltage source, an output terminal to be coupled to a load, a switching circuit to couple the input terminal to an intermediate terminal, and a filter having an inductor to generate a substantially DC voltage at the output terminal, comprising:
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storing an initial estimated current representing the current flowing through the inductor; adjusting the initial estimated current based on the status of the switching circuit to generate a new estimated current; determining a total desired output current to pass through the inductor which will maintain an output voltage at the output terminal substantially constant; and controlling the switching circuit based on the new estimated current and the total desired output current so that a total current passing through the inductor is approximately equal to the total desired output current. - View Dependent Claims (5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25)
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2. A method of operating a voltage regulator having an input terminal to be coupled to an input voltage source, an output terminal to be coupled to a load, a switching circuit to couple the input terminal to an intermediate terminal, and a filter having an inductor to generate a substantially DC voltage at the output terminal, comprising:
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storing an initial estimated current representing the current flowing through the inductor; adjusting the initial estimated current based on the status of the switching circuit to generate a new estimated current; determining a total desired output current to pass through the inductor which will maintain an output voltage at the output terminal substantially constant; and controlling the switching circuit based on the estimated current and the total desired output current so that a total current passing through the inductor is approximately equal to the total desired output current; wherein the switching circuit includes a first transistor to intermittently couple the input terminal to the intermediate terminal, and a second transistor to intermittently couple the intermediate terminal to ground. - View Dependent Claims (3, 4)
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26. A method of estimating a current passing through an inductor in a voltage regulator, the voltage regulator including a switching circuit to intermittently couple an output terminal to an input terminal, comprising:
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storing an initial estimated current representing the current flowing through the inductor; and adjusting the initial estimated current based on the status of the switching circuit to generate a new estimated current.
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27. A method of estimating a current passing through an inductor in a voltage regulator, the voltage regulator including a switching circuit to intermittently couple an output terminal to an input terminal, comprising:
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storing an initial estimated current representing the current flowing through the inductor; adding an incremental current to the initial estimated current if the output terminal is coupled to the input terminal; and subtracting a decremental current from the initial estimated current if the output terminal is coupled to ground.
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28. A voltage regulator having an input terminal to be coupled to an input voltage source and an output terminal to be coupled to a load, comprising:
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a) a switching circuit to intermittently couple the input terminal and the output terminal in response to a control signal; b) a filter to provide a generally DC output voltage at the output terminal, the filter including an inductor; c) a digital controller which i) stores an initial estimated current representing the current flowing through the inductor, ii) adjusts the initial estimated current based on the status of the switching circuit to generate a new estimated current, iii) determines a total desired output current to pass through the inductor which will maintain an output voltage substantially constant, and iv) generates the control signal based on the adjusted estimated current and the total desired output current to control the switching circuit so that the output voltage is maintained at a substantially constant level.
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29. A method of operating a voltage regulator having an input terminal to be coupled to an input voltage source, an output terminal to be coupled to a load, a switching circuit to couple the input terminal to an intermediate terminal, and a filter having an inductor to generate a substantially DC voltage at the output terminal, comprising:
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storing an initial estimated current representing the current flowing through the inductor; adjusting the initial estimated current by adding an incremental current to the initial estimated current if the intermediate terminal is coupled to the input terminal and subtracting a decremental current from the initial estimated current if the intermediate terminal not coupled to the input terminal to generate a new estimated current; determining a total desired output current to pass through the inductor which will maintain an output voltage at the output terminal substantially constant; and controlling the switching circuit based on the estimated current and the total desired output current so that a total current passing through the inductor is approximately equal to the total desired output current.
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30. A method of estimating a current passing through an inductor in a voltage regulator, the voltage regulator including a switching circuit to intermittently couple an output terminal to an input terminal, comprising:
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a) adjusting an initial estimated current that represents the current flowing through the inductor based on the status of the switching circuit to generate a new estimated current; b) storing the new estimated current as the initial estimated current; and c) iterating steps (a) and (b).
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Specification