Methods and apparatus for voltage sensing and reporting

• US 8,395,958 B2
• Filed: 03/20/2012
• Issued: 03/12/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 07/30/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Micron Technology, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Micron Technology, Inc.
• Inventors: Resnick, David R.
• Primary Examiner(s): DINH, SON T
• Application Number:
  US13/424,936
• Publication Number:
  US 20120176847A1
• Time in Patent Office: 357 Days
• Field of Search: 365/226, 365/189.07, 365/227
• US Class Current: 365/226
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 19/16552 in I.C. power supplies
• CPC Class Codes: G11C 5/14 Power supply arrangements , e.g. power down, chip selection or deselection, layout of wirings or power grids, or multiple supply levels
• CPC Class Codes: G11C 5/147 Voltage reference generators, voltage or current regulators; Internally lowered supply levels; Compensation for voltage drops G11C5/141 takes precedence

Abstract

Semiconductor devices comprising at least one voltage sensor for sensing an operating voltage associated with an operational circuit of the semiconductor device. The at least one voltage sensor is configured to generate a signal indicative of a state of the operating voltage. Methods of monitoring a voltage in a semiconductor device include determining a magnitude of an operating voltage for an operational circuit in a semiconductor device. A signal may be generated indicating a state of the operating voltage.

Claims

1. An electronic system, comprising:

an external component; and

a semiconductor device operably coupled with the external component, the semiconductor device comprising;

an operational circuit;

at least one voltage sensor configured to sense an operating voltage associated with the operational circuit, and to generate an alarm signal indicative of a state of the sensed operating voltage; and

at least one output pin coupled to the at least one voltage sensor and the external component such that the at least one voltage sensor is configured to transmit the alarm signal to the external component through the at least one output pin,

wherein the external component is configured to modify at least one operating parameter of the operational circuit responsive to receiving the alarm signal.

2. The electronic system of claim 1, wherein the external component includes at least one of a memory controller, a maintenance system, and a processor.

3. The electronic system of claim 2, further comprising:

an input device operably coupled with the external component; and

an output device operably coupled with the external component.

4. The electronic system of claim 1, further comprising a printed circuit board including a plurality of memory devices, wherein at least one of the memory devices of the plurality includes the semiconductor device.

5. The electronic system of claim 4, wherein the operating parameter includes at least one of a timing parameter and a voltage level for the operational circuit.

6. The electronic system of claim 1, wherein the semiconductor device is a device selected from the group consisting of microprocessor, a microcontroller, a system-on-a-chip, and an image sensor.

7. The electronic system of claim 1, wherein the at least one operating parameter is a parameter for an image processor that is selected from the group consisting of an integration time, a pixel reset time, a pixel reset voltage, an analog-to-digital conversion operation, a signal processing operation, a bit repair, and image compression.

8. An electronic system, comprising:

a semiconductor device, comprising;

an operational circuit;

an output pin; and

at least one voltage sensor configured to sense an operating voltage associated with the operational circuit and to generate an alarm signal including a numeric value indicative of a magnitude of the sensed operating voltage and to externally deliver the alarm signal through the output pin; and

an external device operably coupled with the output pin of the semiconductor device, wherein the external device is configured to modify at least one operating parameter of the operational circuit of the semiconductor device responsive to receiving the alarm signal.

9. The electronic system of claim 8, wherein the operational circuit includes at least one of a column decoder circuit, a write driver circuit, a data read and write multiplexer, and a DC sense amplifier.

10. The electronic system of claim 8, wherein the output pin is a dedicated output pin operably coupled to only deliver the alarm signal to the external device.

11. The electronic system of claim 8, wherein the output pin is a shared output pin operably coupled to deliver the alarm signal to the external device during a first operational mode, and to deliver another signal to carry out functions during a second operational mode.

12. The electronic system of claim 10, wherein the shared output pin is a scan pin used to carry out functions of a scan mode.

13. The electronic system of claim 8, further comprising a computer system that includes the semiconductor device and the external device, wherein the computer system is selected from the group consisting of a personal computer, a server, a wireless communications device, a camera, a chip set, a set top box, a controller, a vehicle engine control system, and a sensor system.

14. An electronic system, comprising:

a processor; and

a semiconductor device operably coupled with the processor, wherein the semiconductor device includes;

an output pin operably coupled with the processor; and

at least one voltage sensor configured to generate an alarm signal indicative of a state of an operating voltage of the semiconductor device, and to communicate the alarm signal externally through the output pin to the processor,

wherein the processor is configured to modify at least one operating parameter of the semiconductor device responsive to receiving the alarm signal.

15. The electronic system of claim 14, wherein the processor includes at least one of a system processor and a memory controller.

16. The electronic system of claim 14, further comprising a maintenance system that includes the processor.

17. The electronic system of claim 14, wherein the state of the operating voltage comprises at least one of:

a sensed operating voltage being beyond a predetermined threshold; and

a numeric value related to the sensed operating voltage.

18. The electronic system of claim 17, wherein the at least one voltage sensor comprises a voltage comparator configured to compare the sensed operating voltage to at least one reference voltage.

19. The electronic system of claim 18, wherein the sensed operating voltage being beyond a predetermined threshold includes the sensed operating voltage having a voltage level above the at least one reference voltage.

20. The electronic system of claim 18, wherein the sensed operating voltage being beyond a predetermined threshold includes the sensed operating voltage having a voltage level below the at least one reference voltage.

21. The electronic system of claim 17, wherein the at least one voltage sensor is further configured to determine a voltage difference between the sensed operating voltage and the at least one reference voltage.

22. The electronic system of claim 18, wherein the voltage difference is expressed as the numeric value.

23. The electronic system of claim 22, further comprising an output register coupled to the at least one voltage sensor to receive and store the numeric value.

24. The electronic system of claim 23, wherein the output register is coupled to the output pin to communicate the numeric value externally through the output pin to the processor.

25. The electronic system of claim 14, wherein the at least one voltage sensor is configured to compare a plurality of different operating voltages with a plurality of different reference voltages.

26. The electronic system of claim 25, wherein the at least one voltage sensor includes a plurality of voltage sensors, wherein each voltage of the sensor of the plurality compares one of the different operating voltages of the plurality with one of the different reference voltages of the plurality.

27. The electronic system of claim 26, further comprising an output controller to receive outputs from each of the plurality of voltage sensors and deliver one of the outputs as the alarm signal.

28. The electronic system of claim 27, wherein the output controller includes at least one of an OR gate and a multiplexer.

29. The electronic system of claim 26, further comprising at least one mode register configured to perform at least one of the following functions:

enable/disable the plurality of voltage sensors;

define at least one of an upper threshold value and a lower threshold value for each of the plurality of voltage sensors;

select which voltage sensor from among the plurality of voltage sensors generate the alarm signal;

control the output pin to selectively change between carrying the alarm signal and at least one other output signal;

select which reference voltage is used for comparison if there are more than one reference voltages available;

select which operating voltage is used for comparison if there are more than one operating voltages available;

select which voltage sensor from among the plurality of voltage sensors communicates through the output pin at a given time; and

control an output of an output controller coupled with the plurality of voltage sensors.