Low noise fast dithering switching power supply

• US 7,928,712 B1
• Filed: 06/01/2007
• Issued: 04/19/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 06/01/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Qorvo US, Inc. (Qorvo, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: RF Micro Devices Incorporated (Qorvo, Inc.)
• Inventors: Berchtold, Jean-Christophe, Levesque, Chris, Colles, Joseph H.
• Primary Examiner(s): Sterrett; Jeffrey L
• Assistant Examiner(s): Finch, III; Fred E
• Application Number:
  US11/756,909
• Time in Patent Office: 1,418 Days
• Field of Search: 323/222, 323282-290
• US Class Current: 323/282
• CPC Class Codes: H02M 3/156 with automatic control of output voltage or current, e.g. switching regulators

Abstract

The present invention is a switching power supply that switches (dithers) between at least two switching frequencies without introducing a ripple signal at the dithering frequency, which is based on the time duration of a dithering cycle. In one embodiment of the present invention, an average current in an energy transfer element, such as an inductive element, during operation using one switching frequency is regulated to be approximately equal to the average current during operation using any other switching frequency. The average current may be regulated by controlling the durations of transition periods between operating using one switching frequency and operating using another switching frequency. By maintaining a constant average current while operating using different switching frequencies, dithering frequency ripple may be significantly reduced or eliminated.

Claims

1. A circuit comprising:

switching circuitry adapted to;

receive a switching signal having a switching frequency;

transfer energy from a power source to an energy transfer circuit based on the switching signal; and

transfer energy from the energy transfer circuit to a load to create a load voltage, which has a first ripple voltage at the switching frequency and a second ripple voltage at a dithering frequency, based on the switching signal; and

control circuitry adapted to;

provide the switching signal to regulate the load voltage based on the power source and a setpoint; and

frequency-dither the switching frequency between a first frequency and a second frequency at the dithering frequency such that the second ripple voltage is approximately zero;

wherein the switching signal further comprises;

a first transitional period immediately following a period at the first frequency, and immediately preceding a period at the second frequency; and

a second transitional period immediately following a period at the second frequency, and immediately preceding a period at the first frequency wherein the first transitional period and the second transitional period compensate an inductor current such that an average inductor current remains substantially constant.

2. The circuit of claim 1 wherein the energy transfer circuit comprises an average energy transfer current, such that the average energy transfer current when the switching frequency is the first frequency is approximately equal to the average energy transfer current when the switching frequency is the second frequency.

3. The circuit of claim 1 wherein the switching signal further comprises:

a first transitional period immediately following a period at the first frequency, and immediately preceding a period at the second frequency; and

a second transitional period immediately following a period at the second frequency, and immediately preceding a period at the first frequency.

4. The circuit of claim 1 wherein the switching signal further comprises:

an active supply state such that energy is allowed to be transferred from the power source to the energy transfer circuit, and the first and second transitional periods are coincident with the active supply state; and

an inactive supply state such that energy not is allowed to be transferred from the power source to the energy transfer circuit.

5. The circuit of claim 1 wherein the switching signal further comprises:

an active supply state such that energy is allowed to be transferred from the power source to the energy transfer circuit; and

an inactive supply state such that energy not is allowed to be transferred from the power source to the energy transfer circuit, and the first and second transitional periods are coincident with the inactive supply state.

6. The circuit of claim 1 wherein the switching signal further comprises:

an active load state such that energy is allowed to be transferred from the energy transfer circuit to the load, and the first and second transitional periods are coincident with the active load state; and

an inactive load state such that energy not is allowed to be transferred from the energy transfer circuit to the load.

7. The circuit of claim 1 wherein the switching signal further comprises:

an active load state such that energy is allowed to be transferred from the energy transfer circuit to the load; and

an inactive load state such that energy not is allowed to be transferred from the energy transfer circuit to the load, and the first and second transitional periods are coincident with the inactive load state.

8. The circuit of claim 1 wherein the first transitional period is approximately equal to the second transitional period.

9. The circuit of claim 8 wherein the first transitional period is approximately equal to a sum times a difference divided by two, such that the sum is approximately equal to the period at the first frequency plus the period at the one of the at least one other frequency, and the difference is approximately equal to one minus a duty-cycle of the switching signal.

10. The circuit of claim 1 wherein the control circuitry further comprises a timing signal having the switching frequency, and a switching threshold, such that the switching signal is based on the timing signal and the switching threshold.

11. The circuit of claim 10 wherein the timing signal has an approximate sawtooth shape.

12. The circuit of claim 10 wherein the timing signal has an approximate triangle shape.

13. The circuit of claim 12 wherein the control circuitry further comprises a current source coupled to a capacitive element to form a node, such that the current source provides a timing current and the timing signal is provided by the node.

14. The circuit of claim 13 wherein the switching frequency is based on the timing current.

15. The circuit of claim 14 wherein the control circuitry further comprises a current source digital-to-analog converter (DAC) coupled to the current source, such that the timing current is based on the DAC.

16. The circuit of claim 12 wherein the control circuitry further comprises a first comparator and a second comparator, such that the timing signal is based on the first comparator and the second comparator.

17. The circuit of claim 16 wherein the first comparator and the second comparator have at least one propagation delay, such that the switching threshold is adjusted to compensate for the at least one propagation delay.

18. The circuit of claim 1 wherein the control circuitry is further adapted to frequency-dither the switching frequency between a plurality of frequencies at the dithering frequency such that the second ripple voltage is approximately zero.

19. The circuit of claim 18 wherein the frequency-dither the switching frequency between a plurality of frequencies is based on a pseudo-random frequency dithering method.

20. The circuit of claim 18 wherein the frequency-dither the switching frequency between a plurality of frequencies is based on a triangular-shaped dithering method.

21. The circuit of claim 1 wherein the control circuitry further comprises digital circuitry adapted to provide the switching signal and the frequency-dither the switching frequency.

22. The circuit of claim 1 wherein the energy transfer circuit comprises at least one inductive element.

23. The circuit of claim 1 wherein the load comprises a radio frequency (RF) power amplifier (PA).

24. A method comprising:

transferring energy based on a switching signal from a power source to a load, which has a first ripple voltage at a switching frequency and a second ripple voltage at a dithering frequency; and

regulating power at the load based on the transferring and a setpoint; and

frequency-dithering the switching frequency of the switching signal between a first frequency and at least one other frequency at the dithering frequency, such that the second ripple voltage is approximately zero;

wherein the switching signal further comprises;

a first transitional period immediately following a period at the first frequency, and immediately preceding a period at the second frequency; and

a second transitional period immediately following a period at the second frequency, and immediately preceding a period at the first frequency wherein the first transitional period and the second transitional period compensate an inductor current such that an average inductor current remains substantially constant.