Voltage converter with feedback adjustment and power management device including the same

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11671001-B2
Application number	US-202017016903-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Sep 10, 2020
Priority date	Jan 30, 2020
Publication date	Jun 6, 2023
Grant date	Jun 6, 2023

Abstract

A voltage converter includes a converting circuit having an inductor connected to a switching node, a first switch element connected between the switching node and a ground voltage, and a second switch element connected between the switching node and an output node; and a switching control circuit configured to adjust a feedback voltage divided from an output voltage of the output node based on a current state of the inductor, and configured to generate switching control signals for charging the inductor with an input voltage and discharging a voltage charged in the inductor, based on a sensing signal based on a current of the inductor and the adjusted feedback voltage.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A voltage converter comprising:
a converting circuit having an inductor connected to a switching node, a first switch element connected between the switching node and a ground voltage, and a second switch element connected between the switching node and an output node; and
a switching control circuit configured to adjust a feedback voltage divided from an output voltage of the output node based on a current state of the inductor, and configured to generate switching control signals for charging the inductor with an input voltage and discharging a voltage charged in the inductor, the switching control signals based on the adjusted feedback voltage and an inverted sensing signal, the inverted sensing signal based on a current of the inductor,
wherein the switching control circuit is configured to adjust the feedback voltage by adding a ripple injection voltage reflecting the current state of the inductor to the feedback voltage, wherein the ripple injection voltage is based on the switching control signals, has a same phase as the current of the inductor, and a direct current (DC) component in the ripple injection voltage is removed.

2. The voltage converter of claim 1 , wherein the switching control circuit is configured to
perform a first comparison based on the adjusted feedback voltage and a reference voltage, and
output a first switching control signal for charging the inductor to the first switch element, based on an on-time control signal for limiting a charging time of the inductor and a result of the first comparison.

3. The voltage converter of claim 2 , wherein the switching control circuit is configured to generate the on-time control signal, based on the DC component of the ripple injection voltage based on a duty ratio of a voltage of the switching node.

4. The voltage converter of claim 3 , wherein the switching control circuit is configured to,
perform a second comparison based on a ramp voltage generated from the output voltage and the DC component, and
configured to generate the on-time control signal based on a result of the second comparison.

5. The voltage converter of claim 3 , wherein the switching control circuit is configured to
generate a discontinuous conduction mode (DCM) reference voltage having a same level as the DC component in a (DCM), and
generate the on-time control signal using the DCM reference voltage.

6. The voltage converter of claim 2 , wherein the switching control circuit is configured to output a second switching control signal for discharging the voltage charged in the inductor to the second switch element, based on,
the inverted sensing signal indicating whether the inductor current is at a zero level,
the result of the first comparison, and
the on-time control signal.

7. The voltage converter of claim 1 , wherein the inverted sensing signal is a zero current detection signal.

8. A voltage converter comprising:
a converting circuit having an inductor connected to a switching node, a first switch element connected between the switching node and a ground voltage, and a second switch element connected between the switching node and an output node; and
a switching control circuit configured to adjust a feedback voltage derived from the output node, and configured to generate a first switching control signal provided to the first switch element for charging the inductor and a second switching control signal provided to the second switch element for discharging a voltage charged in the inductor, using the adjusted feedback voltage,
wherein the switching control circuit further includes a ripple injection circuit configured to generate a reverse phase voltage of a voltage of the switching node, and configured to generate a ripple injection voltage for adjustment of the feedback voltage having a same phase as a current of the inductor using the reverse phase voltage.

9. The voltage converter of claim 8 , wherein the ripple injection circuit further includes:
a reverse phase voltage generation circuit connected to the output node and configured to generate the reverse phase voltage of the voltage of the switching node by using the first switching control signal, the second switching control signal, and a sensing signal based on the current of the inductor;
a first stage circuit connected to an output of the reverse phase voltage generation circuit and configured to filter the reverse phase voltage to generate the ripple injection voltage; and
a second stage circuit connected to an output of the first stage circuit, the second stage circuit configured to extract a DC component of the ripple injection voltage.

10. The voltage converter of claim 9 , wherein the ripple injection circuit further includes a discontinuous conduction mode (DCM) reference voltage generation circuit configured to provide a DCM reference voltage having a same level as a DC component of the ripple injection voltage to the first stage circuit when the reverse phase voltage generation circuit is deactivated in a DCM.

11. The voltage converter of claim 8 , wherein the switching control circuit further includes:
a pulse generating circuit configured to
sum the feedback voltage and the ripple injection voltage from which a DC component is removed,
perform a first comparison based on the summed voltage and a reference voltage, and
generate at least one of a first pulse signal and a second pulse signal, based on a result of the first comparison and a sensing signal; and

a driving circuit amplifying the first pulse signal and the second pulse signal, respectively, to output the first switching control signal and the second switching control signal.

12. The voltage converter of claim 11 , wherein the pulse generation circuit further includes an on-time control circuit configured to
generate an on-time control signal for limiting a charging time of the inductor, based on the DC component of the ripple injection voltage, and
generate at least one of the first pulse signal and the second pulse signal in an on-time period in which the on-time control signal has a first level.

13. The voltage converter of claim 12 , wherein the on-time control circuit is configured to
perform a second comparison based on the DC component and a ramp voltage generated from an output voltage of the output node, and
generate the on-time control signal for setting the on-time period proportional to a duty ratio of the reverse phase voltage based on a result of the second comparison.

14. The voltage converter of claim 8 , wherein the first switch element includes an n-channel power switch, and the second switch element includes a p-channel power switch connected between the switching node and the output node.

15. A power management device comprising:
a reference voltage generating circuit configured to generate a reference voltage; and
a voltage converter configured to
adjust a feedback voltage divided from an output voltage at an output node,
perform pulse frequency modulation or pulse width modulation using an inverted sensing signal, the adjusted feedback voltage and the reference voltage to generate switching control signals, and
convert an input voltage to the output voltage in response to the switching control signals,
the voltage converter including a converting circuit having an inductor connected to a switching node, a first switch element connected to the switching node, and a second switch element connected between the switching node and the output node,
the first switch element and the second switch element configured to switch for charging the inductor with the input

Assignees

• Samsung Electronics Co Ltd
• Samsung Electronios Co Ltd

Inventors

• Yun Dam
• Kim Haneul
• Baek Dongwoo
• Yoon Jehyung
• Cho Sangik

Classifications

• H02M3/158 Primary

  including plural semiconductor devices as final control devices for a single load · CPC title

• H02M1/0003

  Details of control, feedback or regulation circuits · CPC title

• Y02B70/10

  Technologies improving the efficiency by using switched-mode power supplies [SMPS], i.e. efficient power electronics conversion e.g. power factor correction or reduction of losses in power supplies or efficient standby modes · CPC title

• H02M1/08

  Circuits specially adapted for the generation of control voltages for semiconductor devices incorporated in static converters · CPC title

• H02M1/0025 Primary

  Arrangements for modifying reference values, feedback values or error values in the control loop of a converter · CPC title