Over voltage protection of a switching converter

• US 8,634,171 B2
• Filed: 06/18/2012
• Issued: 01/21/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 12/23/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: R2 Semiconductor, Inc.
• Original Assignee: R2 Semiconductor, Inc.
• Inventors: Burns, Lawrence M., Fisher, David
• Primary Examiner(s): PATEL, DHARTI HARIDAS
• Application Number:
  US13/525,557
• Publication Number:
  US 20120257311A1
• Time in Patent Office: 582 Days
• Field of Search: 361/18, 361/91.1
• US Class Current: 361/18
• CPC Class Codes: H02M 1/32 Means for protecting converters other than automatic disconnection
• CPC Class Codes: H02M 1/348 Passive dissipative snubbers
• CPC Class Codes: H02M 3/158 including plural semiconductor devices as final control devices for a single load
• CPC Class Codes: H02M 3/1584 with a plurality of power processing stages connected in parallel
• CPC Class Codes: H03K 17/08142 in field-effect transistor switches
• CPC Class Codes: H03K 17/102 in field-effect transistor switches
• CPC Class Codes: H03K 19/018521 of complementary type, e.g. CMOS
• CPC Class Codes: H03K 2217/0081 Power supply means, e.g. to the switch driver

Abstract

Embodiments for at least one method and apparatus of generating a regulated voltage are disclosed. One apparatus includes a voltage regulator. The voltage regulator includes regulator circuitry for generating a regulated voltage from a first power supply and a second power supply, and voltage spike protection circuitry for voltage-spike-protecting the regulator circuitry. The voltage spike protection circuitry includes a charge-storage circuit, and at least one switching element, wherein the at least one switching element comprises a plurality of switching block segments. The charge-storage circuit includes charge-storage circuit segments, and each charge-storage circuit segment is physically closer to at least one of the plurality of switching block segments the charge-storage circuit segment protects, than any other switching block segment.

Claims

1. A voltage regulator, comprising:

regulator circuitry generating a regulated voltage from a first power supply and a second power supply;

voltage spike protection circuitry for voltage-spike-protecting the regulator circuitry, comprising a charge-storage circuit;

at least one switching element, wherein the at least one switching element comprises a plurality of switching block segments, wherein the plurality of switching block segments of the at least one switching element are electrically connected in parallel;

wherein

the charge-storage circuit comprises charge-storage circuit segments, and each charge-storage circuit segment is physically closer to at least one of the plurality of switching block segments the charge-storage circuit segment protects than any other switching block segment.

2. The voltage regulator of claim 1, further comprising at least one MOS structure, wherein the MOS structure comprises the charge-storage circuit.

3. The voltage regulator of claim 1, wherein charge-storage circuit comprises a plurality of MOS capacitors connected in series, wherein a voltage across each MOS capacitor is maintained below a predetermined threshold as determined by a maximum allowed DC voltage of each MOS capacitor.

4. The voltage regulator of claim 1, wherein at least a portion of the voltage spike protection circuitry is located between the plurality of switching block segments.

5. A voltage regulator, comprising:

regulator circuitry generating a regulated voltage from a first power supply and a second power supply;

voltage spike protection circuitry for voltage-spike-protecting the regulator circuitry, comprising a charge-storage circuit;

at least one switching element, wherein the at least one switching element comprises a plurality of switching block segments, wherein the plurality of switching block segments of the at least one switching element are electrically connected in parallel;

wherein

the charge-storage circuit comprises charge-storage circuit segments, and the charge-storage circuit segments are located adjacent to the plurality of switching block segments, wherein only interconnections are located between the charge-storage circuit segments and the plurality of switching block segments.

6. The voltage regulator of claim 5, further comprising at least one MOS structure, wherein the MOS structure comprises the charge-storage circuit.

7. The voltage regulator of claim 5, wherein charge-storage circuit comprises a plurality of MOS capacitors connected in series, wherein a voltage across each MOS capacitor is maintained below a predetermined threshold as determined by a maximum allowed DC voltage of each MOS capacitor.

8. A method of generating a regulated voltage, comprising:

generating, by regulator circuitry, a regulated voltage from an input voltage, comprising generating the regulated voltage though controlled closing and opening of at least one switch element, wherein the at least one switch element is segmented into a plurality of switching block segments, wherein the plurality of switching block segments of the at least one switching element are electrically connected in parallel;

voltage-spike-protecting the regulator circuitry with voltage spike protection circuitry, wherein the voltage spike protection circuitry comprises a charge-storage circuit;

wherein

the charge-storage circuit comprises charge-storage circuit segments, and each charge-storage circuit segment is physically closer to at least one of the plurality of switching block segments the charge-storage circuit segment protects than any other switching block segment.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the MOS structure comprises the charge-storage circuit.

10. The method of claim 8, wherein the charge-storage circuit comprises a plurality of MOS capacitors connected in series, wherein a voltage across each MOS capacitor is maintained below a predetermined threshold as determined by a maximum allowed DC voltage of each MOS capacitor.

11. The method of claim 8, wherein at least a portion of the voltage spike protection circuitry is located between the plurality of switching block segments.