Multiphase clamp coupled-buck converter and magnetic integration
First Claim
1. A voltage regulator circuit includinga plurality of branches switched in a complementary manner to define a plurality of phases, an inductor connected in series with an output of each said phase, a clamping circuit connected to a tap of said inductor and, means for providing coupling between respective inductors of respective neighboring ones of said plurality of phases.
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Accused Products
Abstract
Voltage regulation, transient response and efficiency of a voltage regulator module (VRM) is improved where short duty cycles are necessitated by large differentials of input and output voltage by including at least one clamping of a tap of an inductance in series with an output of each of a plurality of parallel branches or phases which are switched in a complementary fashion or providing coupling between inductors of respective phases. Such coupling between inductors is achieved in a small module with an integrated magnetic structure. Reduced component counts are achieved while deriving built-in input and output filters. Principals of the invention can be extended to isolation applications and push-pull forward converts, in particular. A lossless clamping circuit is also provided allowing spike currents to be suppressed while returning power to the output of the VRM.
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Citations
27 Claims
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1. A voltage regulator circuit including
a plurality of branches switched in a complementary manner to define a plurality of phases, an inductor connected in series with an output of each said phase, a clamping circuit connected to a tap of said inductor and, means for providing coupling between respective inductors of respective neighboring ones of said plurality of phases.
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11. An electronic device comprising, in combination,
an integrated circuit chip and a voltage regulator module, wherein said voltage regulator module includes a plurality of branches switched in a complementary manner to define a plurality of phases, an inductor connected in series with an output of each said phase, a clamping circuit connected to a tap of said inductor, and means for proving coupling between respective inductors of respective ones of said plurality of phases.
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22. A voltage regulator circuit comprising
an inductor connected in series with an output, said inductor having first and second inductively coupled windings, a first switch connected in series between said first and second inductively coupled windings, a second switch connected between a node between said first switch and said second inductively coupled winding and a reference voltage, and a lossless clamp circuit connected across said first inductively coupled winding and said reference voltage.
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25. An electronic device comprising, in combination,
an integrated circuit chip and a voltage regulator module, wherein said voltage regulator module includes an inductor connected in series with an output, said inductor having first and second inductively coupled windings, a first switch connected in series between said first and second inductively coupled windings, a second switch connected between a node between said first switch and said second inductively coupled winding and a reference voltage, and a lossless clamp circuit connected across said first inductively coupled winding and said reference voltage.
Specification