Method, apparatus and system for predictive power regulation to a microelectronic circuit

• US 6,909,265 B2
• Filed: 03/21/2002
• Issued: 06/21/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 03/21/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Infineon Technologies Austria Ag (Infineon Technologies AG)
• Original Assignee: Primarion Incorporated (Infineon Technologies AG)
• Inventors: Tang, Benjamim
• Primary Examiner(s): Patel, Rajnikant B.
• Application Number:
  US10/104,227
• Publication Number:
  US 20020135962A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,188 Days
• Field of Search: 361/111, 361/90, 361/91, 361/92.2, 361/172, 361/93.2, 361/96, 323/266, 323/284, 323/274, 323/268, 323/282, 323/283, 323/285, 323/272, 700/293, 700/294, 700/295, 700/291, 700/292, 700/297, 320/108, 320/109, 363/37, 363/51, 363/49, 363/46, 363/16, 363/27, 363/19
• US Class Current: 323/274
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/305 in the event of power-supply fluctuations

Abstract

A transient suppression system is configured for providing power regulation to a microelectronic device. A pre-adjust stage is configured to pre-charge or pre-discharge a bypass capacitor as driven by a predictive transient event signal and in anticipation of a transient event.

Claims

1. A predictive transient power suppression system comprising:

a microelectronic device configured to generate a predictive transient event signal and adapted to provide said signal to a transient suppressor device; and

a transient suppressor device, wherein the transient suppressor device is configured to receive the predictive transient event signal and to adjust the charge supplied to the microelectronic device in response to the predictive transient event signal.

2. The predictive transient power suppression system of claim 1, wherein the transient suppressor device comprises a direct charge supply element configured to adjust the amount of current supplied directly to the microlectronic device.

3. The predictive transient power suppression system of claim 1, wherein the transient suppressor device comprises a pre-adjust stage and a capacitive element.

4. The predictive transient power suppression system of claim 1, wherein transient suppressor device comprises a voltage regulator and a capacitive element.

5. The predictive transient power suppression system of claim 1, wherein transient suppressor device comprises a voltage regulator, a pre-adjust stage, and a capacitive element.

6. The predictive transient power suppression system of claim 4, wherein the voltage regulator comprises a power integrated circuit configured to receive the predictive transient event signal.

7. The predictive transient power suppression system of claim 4, wherein voltage regulator comprises a controller configured to receive the predictive transient event signal and the controller is configured to drive a power integrated circuit.

8. The predictive transient power suppression system of claim 1, wherein the microelectronic device is configured to perform a pre-transient activity.

9. The predictive transient power suppression system of claim 8 wherein the predictive transient signal is an instruction to perform the pre-transient activity.

10. The predictive transient power suppression system of claim 1, wherein the predictive transient event signal is an enable system.

11. The predictive transient power suppression system of claim 1, wherein the predictive transient signal represents a change in the power usage of a circuit.

12. The predictive transient power suppression system of claim 3, wherein the capacitive element is a bypass capacitor configured in parallel with the microelectronic device.

13. The predictive transient power suppression system of claim 1, wherein the transient suppressor device comprises at least one capacitive element and more than one pre-adjust stage configured in an array.

14. The predictive transient power suppression system of claim 13, wherein each of the more than one pre-adjust stages is configured to receive at least one of a plurality of predictive transient event signals and to individually adjust the charge supplied to the miocroelectronic device in response to the at least one of a plurality of predictive transient event signals.

15. The predictive transient power suppression system of claim 1, wherein the transient suppressor device is further configured to receive a reactive transient event signal and to adjust the charge supplied to the microelectronic device in response to the reactive transient signal.

16. The predictive transient power suppression system of claim 1, wherein the reactive transient event signal comprises a current sense reactive transient event signal.

17. The predictive transient power suppression system of claim 1, wherein the reactive transient event signal comprises a voltage sense reactive transient event signal.

18. A method for regulating voltage to a variable load, the method comprising the steps of:

generating a predictive transient event signal; and

providing the predictive transient event signal to a circuit that is coupled to the variable load; and

adjusting the charge provided to the variable load based on the predictive transient event signal.

19. The method of claim 18 further comprising the step of providing the predictive transient signal to a transient suppressor device.

20. The method of claim 19 wherein the transient suppressor device comprises a pre-adjust stage configured to adjust the charge supplied to a microelectronic device in anticipation of a transient event.

21. The method of claim 19 wherein the transient suppressor device comprises a voltage regulation stage configured to adjust the charge supplied to a microelectronic device in anticipation of a transient event.

22. The method of claim 19, wherein the transient suppressor device compromises both a pre-adjust stage and a voltage regulation stage configured to adjust the charge supplied to a capacitive element in parallel with a microelectronic device on anticipation of a transient event.

23. The method of claim 20 wherein, the adjusting step further compromises adjusting the charge on a bypass capacitor.

24. The method of claim 22, further compromising the step of using reactive transient suppression techniques to suppress a transient event.

25. The method of claim 18, wherein the adjusting step comprises the step of switching to cause a pre-charged storage capacitor to add charge to a bypass capacitor.

26. The method of claim 18, wherein the adjusting step comprises the step of switching to cause the charge on a bypass capacitor to discharge to a pre-discharged storage capacitor.

27. A predictive transient power suppression system comprising:

a transient suppressor device, wherein the transient suppressor device is configured to receive a predictive transient event signal from a microelectronic device, and wherein the transient suppressor device is configured to adjust the charge supplied to the microelectronic device in response to the predictive transient event signal.

28. A power regulation system comprising:

a microelectronic device configured to generate a predictive event signal; and

a power supply, wherein the power supply is configured to receive the predictive event signal and to adjust the charge supplied to the microelectronic device in response to the predictive event signal, and wherein the power supply comprises a voltage regulator configured to adjust the amount of current supplied to as bypass capacitor across the microelectronic device.