Methods and apparatus to provide self-tracking pre-driver controls

• US 7,719,245 B2
• Filed: 11/08/2007
• Issued: 05/18/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 11/08/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Texas Instruments, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Texas Instruments, Inc.
• Inventors: Smith, Brett E., Li, Huijuan, Rahman, Md Abidur
• Primary Examiner(s): Vu; Bao Q
• Application Number:
  US11/937,282
• Publication Number:
  US 20090121702A1
• Time in Patent Office: 922 Days
• Field of Search: 323/282, 323/284, 323/285, 323/286, 323/351
• US Class Current: 323/282
• CPC Class Codes: H02M 1/08 Circuits specially adapted for the generation of control voltages for semiconductor devices incorporated in static converters
• CPC Class Codes: H02M 3/158 including plural semiconductor devices as final control devices for a single load

Abstract

Methods and apparatus for a self-tracking high-side pre-driver control are described. In an example, a method is described comprising charging a first terminal associated with a first capacitive element to a first voltage with respect to ground and a second terminal associated with a second capacitive element to a second voltage with respect to ground, changing the first voltage and the second voltage with respect to ground by changing a swing voltage, selecting one of the first voltage or the second voltage based on a first switched-mode power supply topology or a second switched-mode power supply topology and driving a transistor using the selected voltage.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

charging a first terminal associated with a first capacitive element to a first voltage with respect to ground and a second terminal associated with a second capacitive element to a second voltage with respect to ground;

changing the first voltage and the second voltage with respect to ground by changing a swing voltage;

selecting one of the first voltage or the second voltage based on a first switched-mode power supply topology or a second switched-mode power supply topology; and

driving a transistor using the selected voltage.

2. A method as defined in claim 1, further comprising discharging the first terminal or the second terminal.

3. A method as defined in claim 2, wherein discharging the first terminal or the second terminal is done in response to the selecting one of the first voltage or the second voltage.

4. A method as defined in claim 1, wherein the first switched-mode power supply topology comprises a boost topology and the second switched-mode power supply topology comprises a buck-boost topology.

5. A method as defined in claim 1, wherein the swing voltage is electrically coupled to a third terminal and a fourth terminal, wherein the third terminal is associated with the first capacitive element and the fourth terminal is associated with the second capacitive element.

6. A method as defined in claim 1, wherein when selecting the first voltage or the second voltage, the first voltage is higher or lower than the second voltage based on the first switched-mode power supply topology or the second switched-mode power supply topology.

7. A method as defined in claim 1, wherein driving the transistor using the selected voltage comprises using the selected voltage as the upper supply voltage and the swing voltage as the lower supply voltage.

8. A circuit comprising:

an input and an output;

a first capacitive element to provide a first voltage and a second capacitive element to provide a second voltage;

a first switching element to change the first voltage and the second voltage with respect to ground;

a second switching element to select one of the first voltage or the second voltage based on a first switched-mode power supply topology or a second switched-mode power supply topology; and

a pre-driving element to drive a transistor using the selected voltage as an upper output limit and the swing voltage as a lower output limit.

9. A circuit as defined in claim 8, wherein the first switched-mode power supply topology comprises a boost topology and the second switched-mode power supply topology comprises a buck-boost topology.

10. A circuit as defined in claim 8, wherein the first voltage when changed by the first switching element is higher or lower than the second voltage when changed by the first switching element based on the first switched-mode power supply topology or the second switched-mode power supply topology.

11. A circuit as defined in claim 8, wherein the first capacitive element or the second capacitive element further discharge to change the first voltage or the second voltage.

12. A circuit as defined in claim 8, wherein the first capacitive element or the second capacitive element further discharge in response to the second switching element selecting the first voltage or the second voltage.

14. A pre-driver control as defined in claim 10, wherein the pre-driver uses the selected voltage as a supply voltage.

13. A pre-driver control comprising:

an input and an output;

a first bootstrap to provide a first voltage and a second bootstrap to provide a second voltage;

a first switch to change the first voltage and the second voltage;

a second switch to select one of the first voltage or the second voltage based on a first switched-mode power supply topology or a second switched-mode power supply topology; and

a pre-driver to drive a transistor.