Digital sensor system

• US 9,959,128 B2
• Filed: 03/27/2017
• Issued: 05/01/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 11/06/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Infineon Technologies AG
• Original Assignee: Infineon Technologies AG
• Inventors: Bodner, Christof, Kranz, Theodor, Motz, Mario, Scherr, Wolfgang
• Primary Examiner(s): JEANGLAUDE, JEAN BRUNER
• Application Number:
  US15/470,267
• Publication Number:
  US 20170242709A1
• Time in Patent Office: 400 Days
• Field of Search: 341155, 341156
• CPC Class Codes: G01D 5/145 influenced by the relative movement between the Hall device and magnetic fields see G01R33/06
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/3206 Monitoring of events, devices or parameters that trigger a change in power modality
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/3287 by switching off individual functional units in the computer system
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 13/364 using independent requests or grants, e.g. using separated request and grant lines
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 13/4226 with asynchronous protocol
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/4418 Suspend and resume; Hibernate and awake
• CPC Class Codes: H03M 1/002 Provisions or arrangements for saving power, e.g. by allowing a sleep mode, using lower supply voltage for downstream stages, using multiple clock domains or by selectively turning on stages when needed
• CPC Class Codes: H03M 1/12 Analogue/digital converters H03M1/001 – H03M1/10 take precedence

Abstract

A system may include a digital sensor system including a sensor element and a digital interface. The digital interface may provide a wake-up signal based on a sensing action being performed by the sensor element after a predefined event is detected by the digital sensor system. The system may include a microcontroller to receive the wake-up signal provided by the digital interface, and wake from a sleep mode based on receiving the wake-up signal provided by the digital interface.

Claims

1. A system, comprising:

a digital sensor system including;

a sensor element;

a wakeup circuit to provide a first wakeup signal to the sensor element based on a predefined event being detected,

the first wakeup signal activating the sensor element for performing a sensing action;

a digital interface to;

provide a second wakeup signal based on the sensing action being performed by the sensor element and a result of the sensing action; and

a microcontroller to;

receive the second wakeup signal provided by the digital interface, and

wake from a sleep mode based on receiving the second wakeup signal provided by the digital interface.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the microcontroller is further to:

determine information that describes a wakeup signal format;

determine that a format of the second wakeup signal matches the wakeup signal format; and

wherein the microcontroller, when waking from the sleep mode, is to;

wake from the sleep mode based on determining that the format of the second wakeup signal matches the wakeup signal format.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the second wakeup signal includes information associated with the predefined event or information associated with a sensor value.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the digital sensor system acts as a master on a bus associated with the system.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the microcontroller acts as a slave on a bus associated with the system.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the digital sensor system and the microcontroller communicate using a short pulse width modulation code (SPC) protocol, a peripheral sensor interface 5 (PSI5) protocol, or a universal asynchronous receiver transmitter (UART) protocol.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the microcontroller is further to:

return to the sleep mode after processing a signal associated with the sensing action.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein the sensor element is a first sensor element and the digital interface is a first digital interface, and

wherein the digital sensor system further comprises:

a second sensor element; and

a second digital interface to;

provide another wakeup signal based on another sensing action being performed by the second sensor element after another predefined event is detected by the digital sensor system; and

wherein the microcontroller is further to;

receive the other wakeup signal provided by the second digital interface, and

wake from the sleep mode based on receiving the other wakeup signal provided by the second digital interface.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the second wakeup signal includes information that identifies the digital sensor system.

10. The system of claim 1, wherein the second wakeup signal includes a complex pulse.

11. A system, comprising:

a sensor element to perform a sensing action based on a detection of a predefined event;

a wakeup circuit to provide a first wakeup signal to the sensor element,

the first wakeup signal activating the sensor element for performing the sensing action;

a digital interface to provide a second wakeup signal based on the sensing action being performed by the sensor element and a result of the sensing action; and

a microcontroller to;

receive the second wakeup signal provided by the digital interface, and

wake from a sleep mode based on receiving the second wakeup signal provided by the digital interface.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein the microcontroller is further to:

determine information associated with a wakeup signal format;

determine that a format of the second wakeup signal matches the wakeup signal format; and

wherein the microcontroller, when waking from the sleep mode, is further to;

wake from the sleep mode based on determining that the format of the second wakeup signal matches the wakeup signal format.

13. The system of claim 11, wherein the second wakeup signal includes information associated with the predefined event or information associated with a sensor value.

14. The system of claim 11, wherein a digital sensor, including the sensor element and the digital interface, acts as a master on a bus associated with the system, and wherein the microcontroller acts as a slave on the bus associated with the system.

15. The system of claim 11, wherein the digital interface and the microcontroller communicate in accordance with a short pulse width modulation code (SPC) protocol, a peripheral sensor interface 5 (PSI5) protocol, or a universal asynchronous receiver transmitter (UART) protocol.

16. The system of claim 11, wherein the microcontroller is further to:

return to the sleep mode after processing a signal associated with the sensing action.

17. The system of claim 16, wherein the sensor element is a first sensor element and the digital interface is a first digital interface, and

wherein the system further comprises:

a second sensor element to perform another sensing action based on a detection of another predefined event; and

a second digital interface to provide another wakeup signal based on the other sensing action being performed by the second sensor element; and

wherein the microcontroller is further to;

receive the other wakeup signal provided by the second digital interface, and

wake from the sleep mode based on receiving the other wakeup signal provided by the digital interface.

18. The system of claim 11, wherein the second wakeup signal includes information that identifies a digital sensor system associated with the sensor element.

19. The system of claim 11, wherein the second wakeup signal includes a single pulse.

20. A digital sensor system, comprising:

a sensor element to;

perform a sensing action based on a detection of a predefined event;

a wakeup circuit to;

provide a first wakeup signal to the sensor element,

the first wakeup signal activating the sensor element to perform the sensing action; and

a digital interface to;

provide a second wakeup signal based on the sensing action being performed by the sensor element and a result of the sensing action,

wherein the second wakeup signal causes a microcontroller, associated with the digital sensor system, to wake from a sleep mode, and

wherein the second wakeup signal includes information associated with the predefined event.