Methods of powering a radio that is mounted on a tower of a cellular base station are provided in which a direct current (“DC”) power signal is provided to the radio over a power cable and a voltage level of the output of the power supply is adjusted so as to provide a substantially constant voltage at a first end of the power cable that is remote from the power supply. Related cellular base stations and programmable power supplies are also provided.

In one embodiment, a method is provided. The method comprises: setting a first voltage level provided to a cable; operating a radio, coupled to the cable, with constant power consumption; measuring a first current level provided to the cable; setting a second voltage level provided to the cable; measuring a second current level provided to the cable; and determining a first resistance of the cable using the first and second voltage and current levels.

In one embodiment, a method is provided. The method comprises: setting a first voltage level provided to a cable; operating a radio, coupled to the cable, with constant power consumption; measuring a first current level provided to the cable; setting a second voltage level provided to the cable; measuring a second current level provided to the cable; and determining a first resistance of the cable using the first and second voltage and current levels.

A voltage boosting method, system, and circuit which can be incorporated into a battery or device or can be added as a circuit that interfaces between a battery and a device. Optionally, the voltage boosting system can be added without requiring the battery or the device to be modified. The voltage boosting circuit incorporates a pair of transformers and does not require a step-up transformer, thus enabling the circuit to be constructed in a compact form, optionally within a single integrated circuit package. One or more mechanical or automatic switches can be provided which enable the voltage boosting circuit to be disconnected from the battery and the load until such time as the voltage of the battery or battery bank falls below a predetermined amount, at which time the one or more switches can be activated, thus engaging the voltage boosting circuit.

A voltage boosting method, system, and circuit which can be incorporated into a battery or device or can be added as a circuit that interfaces between a battery and a device. Optionally, the voltage boosting system can be added without requiring the battery or the device to be modified. The voltage boosting circuit incorporates a pair of transformers and does not require a step-up transformer, thus enabling the circuit to be constructed in a compact form, optionally within a single integrated circuit package. One or more mechanical or automatic switches can be provided which enable the voltage boosting circuit to be disconnected from the battery and the load until such time as the voltage of the battery or battery bank falls below a predetermined amount, at which time the one or more switches can be activated, thus engaging the voltage boosting circuit.

A fault-tolerant multiphase voltage regulator includes a plurality of power stages, each of which is configured to deliver a phase current to a processor, and a controller. The controller is configured to: control the plurality of power stages to regulate an output voltage provided to the processor; detect and disable a faulty power stage; generate a throttling signal to indicate that one or more of the power stages is faulty and disabled; communicate the throttling signal to the processor over a physical line running between the processor and the controller; and place the multiphase voltage regulator in a self-test mode in which the processor is operated at a known computational load and the controller operates each power stage independently to determine if any of the power stages is faulty under the known computational load. A corresponding method of operating a fault-tolerant power distribution system is also described.

The present disclosure relates to circuitry for selecting a bias voltage to output at a bias voltage output node of the circuitry. The circuitry comprises a first circuit node configured to receive a first voltage from a first, unregulated, voltage source and a second circuit node configured to receive a second voltage from a second, regulated, voltage source. A switch arrangement configured to selectively couple the bias voltage output node to the first circuit node or the second circuit node is also provided.

The present disclosure relates to circuitry for selecting a bias voltage to output at a bias voltage output node of the circuitry. The circuitry comprises a first circuit node configured to receive a first voltage from a first, unregulated, voltage source and a second circuit node configured to receive a second voltage from a second, regulated, voltage source. A switch arrangement configured to selectively couple the bias voltage output node to the first circuit node or the second circuit node is also provided.

A voltage regulator circuit comprises a switching circuit, a dynamic clamp circuit, and a comparison circuit. The switching circuit adjusts a switching duty cycle to produce a regulated output voltage using an error signal representative of a difference between a target voltage value and the output voltage. The dynamic clamp circuit determines a maximum peak inductor current command value using the output voltage and an input voltage of the voltage regulator circuit. The comparison circuit sets a maximum peak inductor current value using the maximum peak inductor current command value and a slope compensation current, wherein the maximum peak inductor current value is constant for different values of output voltage. The comparison circuit compares a sensed inductor current to a peak inductor current value and enables switching of the voltage regulator system according to the comparison.

A voltage regulator circuit comprises a switching circuit, a dynamic clamp circuit, and a comparison circuit. The switching circuit adjusts a switching duty cycle to produce a regulated output voltage using an error signal representative of a difference between a target voltage value and the output voltage. The dynamic clamp circuit determines a maximum peak inductor current command value using the output voltage and an input voltage of the voltage regulator circuit. The comparison circuit sets a maximum peak inductor current value using the maximum peak inductor current command value and a slope compensation current, wherein the maximum peak inductor current value is constant for different values of output voltage. The comparison circuit compares a sensed inductor current to a peak inductor current value and enables switching of the voltage regulator system according to the comparison.