Current steering output circuit with switchable shunt resistor
US5966042A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Sep 29, 1997 |
| Grant date | Oct 12, 1999 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Sep 29, 2017 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
- CPC primaryH03K17/6871
- WIPO fieldBasic communication processes
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
A current output circuit comprises a current driver that is switchably connected across two output nodes by a switching assembly and having a switchable shunt resistor connected across the current driver. The switchable shunt resistor may be switched between a non-conducting state and a resistive conducting state. In a first data state, the current driver is connected to the output nodes by the switching assembly and the switchable shunt resistor is non-conducting so that the supplied current will flow through a load attached to the output nodes. In a second data state, the current driver is disconnected from the output nodes and the switchable shunt resistor is in a resistive conducting state. In this state the current bypasses the load and is diverted through the switchable shunt resistor. Several current drivers with appropriate switching arrangements and one or more switchable shunt resistors may be provided to allow for asymmetric current outputs in various data states.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.