Patent · US Expired

Integrated circuit programmable cross-point connection technique

US4670749A · kind A · utility

74Cited by
4References
3Claims
0Family size

Assignee

Inventor

Key dates

Filing dateApr 13, 1984
Grant dateJun 2, 1987
Priority date
Expiry dateApr 13, 2004

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
  • CPC primaryH10D84/90
  • WIPO fieldSemiconductors
  • WIPO sectorElectrical engineering

Abstract

A technique for programming connections of conductors that is particularly adapted to be implemented as part of an integrated circuit so that a number of connections internal of the circuit can be made from outside the circuit in order to customize it after fabrication. A specific arrangement of five switching transistors is particularly advantageous for each cross-point of two conductors to be connected together in one of many possible ways. The desired switching arrangement at each cross-point may be programmed by use of the same conductors being interconnected to carry control signals from outside the circuit to a memory associated with each cross-point switching circuit. While these memories are being programmed, each cross-point is temporarily forced to a desired state for communicating the control signals from outside the circuit to the memories.

Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.