Power switch with an overcurrent protection device

• US 8,169,224 B2
• Filed: 07/08/2009
• Issued: 05/01/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 07/10/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Infineon Technologies Austria Ag (Infineon Technologies AG)
• Original Assignee: Infineon Technologies Austria Ag (Infineon Technologies AG)
• Inventors: Sander, Rainald, Thiele, Steffen, Winkler, Markus
• Primary Examiner(s): NGUYEN, HOAI AN D
• Application Number:
  US12/499,611
• Publication Number:
  US 20100007328A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,028 Days
• Field of Search: 324/76.11, 324/713, 324/522, 324/123.R, 324/126, 324/691, 324/649, 324/600, 323/316, 323/315, 323/312, 323/311, 323/304, 702/1, 702/57, 702/64
• US Class Current: 324/522
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 19/0092 measuring current only all subgroups of G01R19/00 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H03K 17/0822 in field-effect transistor switches

Abstract

A power circuit includes a power transistor for feeding a load current to a load, a measuring transistor for coupling out a measurement current dependent on the load current, at least two coupling transistors for dividing the measurement current into an internal measurement current and into an external measurement current, wherein the external measurement current can be fed to an external evaluation circuit, and the internal measurement current is fed to an internal evaluation circuit for evaluation. A third coupling transistor can be coupled to the measuring transistor if a measuring device determines a non-coupled state, and the third coupling transistor can be decoupled from the measuring transistor if the measuring device determines a coupled state. The measuring device determines the coupled state if the external evaluation device is coupled to the power circuit, and the measuring device determines a non-coupled state if the external evaluation device is not coupled to the power circuit.

Claims

1. A power circuit comprising:

a power transistor configured to feed a load current to a load;

a measuring transistor for coupling out a measurement current dependent on the load current;

at least two coupling transistors for dividing the measurement current into an internal measurement current and an external measurement current, wherein the external measurement current can be fed to an external evaluation circuit, and the internal measurement current is fed to an internal evaluation circuit for evaluation, wherein the at least two coupling transistors comprise a first coupling transistor configured to conduct the external measurement current, a second coupling transistor configured to conduct the internal measurement current, a third coupling transistor and a measuring device configured to determine a coupled nature of the external evaluation circuit to the power circuit, wherein the third coupling transistor is coupled to the measuring transistor if the measuring device determines a non-coupled state in which the external evaluation circuit is not coupled to the power circuit, and wherein the third coupling transistor is decoupled from the measuring transistor if the measuring device determines a coupled state in which the external evaluation circuit is coupled to the power circuit.

2. The power circuit of claim 1, comprising a regulating circuit for regulating the measuring transistor, such that the measuring transistor is operated with the same current density as the power transistor.

3. The power circuit as claimed in any of the preceding claims, wherein a first load terminal of the power transistor (M0) is connected to a first load terminal of the measuring transistor (M1) and wherein a gate terminal of the power transistor (M0) is connected to a gate terminal of the measuring transistor (M1).

4. The power circuit of claim 2, wherein an output of the regulating circuit is connected to gate terminals of the coupling transistors, wherein a first input of the regulating circuit is connected to a second load terminal of the power transistor, and wherein a second input of the regulating circuit is connected to a second load terminal of the measuring transistor.

5. The power circuit of claim 1, wherein a ratio of the external measurement current to the internal measurement current is determined by a ratio of channel widths of the coupling transistors.

6. The power circuit of claim 1, wherein the measuring device determines the coupled state by measuring a voltage at a drain terminal of the first coupling transistor, wherein the measuring device determines the coupled state if the voltage falls below a threshold, and wherein the measuring device determines the non-coupled state if the voltage exceeds the threshold.

7. The power circuit of claim 1, wherein the measuring device determines the coupled state by measuring a current through the first coupling transistor, wherein the measuring device determines the coupled state if the current exceeds a threshold, and wherein the measuring device determines the non-coupled state if the current falls below the threshold.

8. The power circuit of claim 7, wherein a series resistor is coupled to a source terminal of the first coupling transistor, through which series resistor the current of the first coupling transistor can flow, wherein the measuring device is configured to measure a voltage caused by the current of the first coupling transistor at the series resistor, wherein the measuring device determines the coupled state if the voltage exceeds a threshold, and wherein the measuring device determines the non-coupled state if the voltage falls below the threshold.

9. The power circuit of claim 8, wherein the coupling transistors have source terminals, and wherein a respective series resistor is coupled to at least two source terminals of the coupling transistors, through which series resistors a current of the respective coupling transistor can flow, wherein at least two of the series resistors are embodied such that identical voltages drop across the at least two series resistors given identical current density in the respective coupling transistors.

10. The power circuit of claim 9, wherein the measuring device is configured to compare voltages at the at least two series resistors of the first and second coupling transistors, and wherein the measuring device is configured to determine the coupled state if a voltage at the series resistor of the first coupling transistor is greater than or equal to a voltage at the series resistor of the second coupling transistor, and the measuring device is configured to determine the non-coupled state if a voltage at the series resistor of the first coupling transistor is less than the voltage at the series resistor of the second coupling transistor.

11. The power circuit of claim 10, wherein an offset voltage is associated with the measuring device, wherein the measuring device determines the coupled state if the voltage at the series resistor of the first coupling transistor and the offset voltage are greater than or equal to the voltage at the series resistor of the second coupling transistor, and the measuring device determines the non-coupled state if the voltage at the series resistor of the first coupling transistor and the offset voltage are less than the voltage at the series resistor of the second coupling transistor.