Patent · US Active

Switched-capacitor converters with low-voltage gate drivers

US9502968B2 · kind B2 · utility

12Cited by
50References
33Claims
0Family size

Assignee

Inventors

Key dates

Filing dateMay 13, 2014
Grant dateNov 22, 2016
Priority date
Expiry dateMay 13, 2034

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
  • CPC primaryH02M3/073
  • WIPO fieldElectrical machinery, apparatus, energy
  • WIPO sectorElectrical engineering

Abstract

An apparatus for converting voltage includes terminals coupled to external circuits at corresponding voltages and a switching network having driving circuits and semiconductor switches that interconnect capacitors in successive states to one another and to the terminals. The switches interconnect some capacitors to one another through a series of switches when an activation pattern causes them to be activated. Each driving circuit has power connections, a control input, and a drive output coupled to and controlling at least one switch. A drive output of one of them couples to and drives each switch. Some of the driving circuits are powered via corresponding power connections from at least one of the capacitors such that a voltage across the corresponding power connections is less than a highest of the corresponding voltages. The terminals and the switching network are constituents of a switched capacitor converter.

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