Pre-charge of switched capacitor circuits with cascoded drivers
US8503203B1 · kind B1 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Oct 16, 2012 |
| Grant date | Aug 6, 2013 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Oct 16, 2032 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
- CPC primaryH02M3/073
- WIPO fieldElectrical machinery, apparatus, energy
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
An apparatus for voltage conversion includes a switched capacitor circuit, a pre-charge circuit, a voltage divider stage, and a driver stage. The switched capacitor circuit has pump capacitors to transfer energy and a steady-state operating mode and a pre-charge mode. The pre-charge circuit initially charges the pump capacitors when the switched capacitor circuit operates in the pre-charge mode. It includes a voltage divider stage having one or more nodes, each of which provides voltage at one of a corresponding one or more voltage levels, and a driver stage having one or more cascoded drivers, each of which comprises a first terminal for receiving a drive signal that depends at least in part on a voltage level at a corresponding one of the nodes, and a second terminal for coupling to a pump capacitor and to another of the drivers.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.