Determining addresses of electrical components arranged in a daisy chain

• US 9,552,315 B2
• Filed: 01/06/2012
• Issued: 01/24/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 01/16/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Allegro Microsystems Incorporated (Sanken Electric Company Limited)
• Original Assignee: Allegro Microsystems Incorporated (Sanken Electric Company Limited)
• Inventors: Monreal, Gerardo
• Primary Examiner(s): Tsai, Henry
• Assistant Examiner(s): Phan, Dean
• Application Number:
  US13/344,959
• Publication Number:
  US 20120131231A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,845 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 13/37 using a physical-position-dependent priority, e.g. daisy chain, round robin or token passing
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 13/4068 Electrical coupling

Abstract

In one aspect, a system includes electrical components arranged in a daisy chain that include a first electrical component disposed at a first end of the daisy chain and a second electrical component disposed at an opposite end of the daisy chain than the first end. Each of the first and second electrical components includes an input port, an output port and a common port. The input port of the first electrical component is coupled to one of a supply voltage port or ground and the common ports of the first and second electrical components are coupled to the other one of the supply voltage or the ground. An address of the second electrical component is determined before addresses of the other of the electrical components are determined, and the addresses determine a position of an electrical component with respect to the other of the electrical components.

Claims

1. A system, comprising:

electrical components arranged in a daisy chain and comprising;

a first electrical component disposed at a first end of the daisy chain; and

a second electrical component disposed at an opposite end of the daisy chain than the first end, each of the first and second electrical components comprising;

an input port;

an output port; and

a common port,

wherein the first electrical component is directly coupled to a master component by no more than two connections comprising a first connection and a second connection,

wherein the input port of the first electrical component is directly coupled to one of a supply voltage port of the master component or a ground port of the master component by the first connection and the common ports of the first and second electrical components are coupled to the other one of the supply voltage of the master component or the ground port of the master component by the second connection,

wherein each electrical component is configured to determine its own address, and

wherein an address of the second electrical component is determined by the second electrical component before addresses of the other of the electrical components are determined and the addresses of the electrical components determine a position of an electrical component with respect to the other of the electrical components in the daisy chain,

wherein the current detection circuit comprises;

a first resistor;

a second resistor;

a first current source configured to provide a threshold current to the first resistor;

a second current source coupled to the input port through a first switch and configured to provide a start current and

a comparator configured to compare the output current with the threshold current.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein each of the electrical components further comprises a timer set to a predetermined time and the electrical components are configured to determines their respective addresses at power-up within the predetermined time.

3. The system of claim 1 wherein the electrical components are slave components, the first electrical component is a first slave component and the second electrical component is a second slave component, and further comprising:

a master component comprising;

a supply voltage port to provide the supply voltage; and

a ground port to supply the ground.

4. The system of claim 1 wherein a current from the supply voltage port of the master component is equal to N times the start current, where N is equal to a number of slave components in the daisy chain.

5. The system of claim 1 wherein the current detection circuit further comprises a third current source coupled to the input port through a second switch and configured to provide a high current, the high current being greater than the start current,

wherein the second switch is turned on when the comparator determines that the output current is less than the threshold current.

6. The system of claim 5 wherein the threshold current is equal to about half of the start current and the high current is equal to about ten times the start current.

7. A method, comprising:

determining addresses of slave components in a master-slave system comprising a master component and slave components in which a first slave component is disposed at a first end of the daisy chain and directly coupled to the master component by no more than two connections and a second slave component is disposed at an opposite end of the daisy chain from the first end, the determining comprising;

receiving at least one signal from the master component; and

determining the addresses of slave components arranged in the daisy chain based on the at least one signal by determining an address of the second slave component before determining addresses of the other of the slave components and by determining a position of a slave component with respect to the other of the slave components,

wherein each slave component determines its own address,

wherein if the output current is less than the threshold current, determining the addresses for each of the first and second slave components further comprises;

increasing an input current to a value higher than the first current value;

determining the address based on the counter value; and

placing the slave component in a sleep mode.

8. The method of claim 7 wherein each of the first and second slave components comprises an input port, an output port, a counter, a current detection circuit and a control logic circuit, and

wherein determining the addresses further comprises, for each of the first and second slave components:

receiving an input current at the input port having a first current value;

sensing an output current at the output port; and

comparing the output current to a threshold current.

9. The method of claim 8 wherein determining the addresses for each slave component further comprises if the output current is greater than the threshold, current incrementing a value stored in the counter.

10. The method of claim 8 wherein comparing the output current to a threshold current comprises comparing the output current to the threshold current having a current equal to about one-half as much as the first current value.

11. The method of claim 10 wherein increasing an input current to a value higher than the first current value comprises increasing an input current to a value equal to about ten times the first current value.

12. The method of claim 11 wherein increasing an input current to a value higher than the first current value comprises activating a current source connected to the input port.

13. An electrical component disposed in a daisy chain, comprising

an input port;

an output port;

a third port;

a current detection circuit connected to the input port, the output port and the third port and configured to measure an output current at the output port;

a counter used to determine an address of the electrical component;

a sensor circuit; and

a control logic circuit coupled to the input port, the current detection circuit, the counter and the sensor circuit,

wherein the control logic circuit is configured to determine the address of the electrical component based on the output current,

wherein the address of the electrical component determines a position of the electrical component with respect to other electrical components disposed in the daisy chain,

wherein the electrical component is configured to determine its address first if disposed with other like electrical components in a daisy chain at an opposite end of the daisy chain from an electrical component directly coupled to a master component by no more than two connections,

wherein a current from the master component is equal to N times a start current, where N is equal to a number of slave components in the daisy chain.

14. The electrical component of claim 13, further comprising a timer set to a predetermined time, and

wherein the electrical component is configured to determine its respective address at power-up within the predetermined time.

15. The electrical component of claim 13 wherein the current detection circuit further comprises a third current source connected in series with a second switch to the input port and configured to provide a high current, the high current being greater than the start current,

wherein the second switch is turned on when the comparator determines that the output current is less than the threshold current.

16. The electrical component of claim 15 wherein the threshold current is equal to about one-half of the start current and the high current is about equal to ten times the start current.

17. The electrical component of claim 13 wherein the control logic circuit is configured to determine the address of the electrical component based on the output current and at least one command received from a master component.

18. The electrical component of claim 17 wherein the control circuit further comprises:

a reset circuit configured to reset the counter and circuitry in the control circuit; and

a control logic circuit configured to receive the at least one command and to provide control signals based on the at least one command.

19. The electrical component of claim 13 wherein the sensor circuit is a magnetic field sensor circuit.

20. An article comprising:

a non-transitory machine-readable medium that stores executable instructions to determine an address of an unknown slave component in a master-slave system comprising a master component and slave components in which a first slave component is disposed at a first end of the daisy chain and directly coupled to the master component by no more than two connections and a last slave component is disposed at an opposite end of the daisy chain from the first end, the instructions causing the unknown slave component to;

receive at least one signal from the master component; and

determine the address of the unknown slave component arranged in the daisy chain based on the at least one signal,

wherein the instructions causing the unknown slave component to determine the address of the unknown slave component comprises instructions causing the unknown slave component to determine the address of the unknown slave component before determining addresses of the other of the slave components if the unknown slave component is the last slave component, and

wherein the instructions causing the unknown slave component to determine the address of the unknown slave component comprises instructions causing the unknown slave component to determine a position of the unknown slave component with respect to the other of the slave components,

wherein the instructions causing the unknown slave component to determine the address of the unknown slave component further comprises instructions causing the unknown slave component to increment a value stored in the counter if the output current is greater than the threshold current.

21. The article of claim 20 wherein the unknown slave component comprises an input port, an output port, a counter, a current detection circuit and a control logic circuit, and

wherein the instructions causing the unknown slave component to determine the address of the unknown slave component further comprises instructions causing the unknown slave component to:

receive an input current at the input port having a first current value;

sense an output current at the output port; and

compare the output current to a threshold current.

22. The article of claim 21 wherein if the output current is less than the threshold current, and further comprising instructions causing the unknown slave component to:

increase an input current to a value higher than the first current value;

determine the address based on the counter value; and

placing the slave component in a sleep mode.

23. The article of claim 20 wherein the instructions causing the unknown slave component to compare the output current to a threshold current comprises instructions causing the unknown slave component to compare the output current to the threshold current having a current equal to about one-half as much as the first current value.

24. The article of claim 23 wherein the instructions causing the unknown slave component to increase an input current to a value higher than the first current value comprises instructions causing the unknown slave component to increase an input current to a value equal to about ten times the first current value.

25. The article of claim 24 wherein the instructions causing the unknown slave component to increase an input current to a value higher than the first current value comprises instructions causing the unknown slave component to activate a current source connected to the input port.