A personal electronic device can include a main printed circuit board having disposed thereon a processing unit, one or more auxiliary circuits coupled to the main printed circuit board by one or more corresponding flexible printed circuits and one or more temperature sensors disposed on one of the flexible printed circuits. A processing unit of the portable electronic device can be configured to monitor the one or more temperature sensors, provide a warning in response to a monitored temperature exceeding a first threshold, and to cause a shutdown of at least a portion of the personal electronic device in response to the monitored temperature exceeding a second threshold. The temperature sensors can be negative temperature coefficient resistors.

A semiconductor device includes a power semiconductor switch; a logic circuit connected to an input terminal; an overheat detection circuit that outputs to the logic circuit an overheat detection signal when a temperature of the power semiconductor switch exceeds an overheat detection threshold; and an overcurrent detection circuit that monitors a current that flows through the power semiconductor switch and that outputs to the logic circuit and to the overheat detection circuit an overcurrent detection signal when the current that flows through the power semiconductor switch exceeds a prescribed threshold, wherein in the overheat detection circuit, the overheat detection threshold values is changed from a first threshold value to a second threshold value that is lower than the first threshold value when the overheat detection circuit receives the overcurrent detection signal from the overcurrent detection circuit.

A power supply system includes: a battery; a master device supplied with power from the battery; and a slave device supplied with power from the master device via a first power supply line. The slave device supplies power to a load via a second power supply line. The master device estimates a temperature of the second power supply line. When the estimated temperature of the second power supply line is higher than a second cutoff threshold, power supply via the second power supply line is cut off.

Provided is a power conversion device capable of directly performing a protection operation according to the state of a cooler. A control unit includes: a semiconductor switching element loss calculation unit which calculates a loss in a semiconductor switching element with use of a switching state of the semiconductor switching element, and a current detection value or a voltage detection value; and a cooler state estimation unit which estimates a state of a cooler on the basis of a loss calculation value from the semiconductor switching element loss calculation unit and a temperature detection value from a temperature detector. The control unit limits current flowing to the semiconductor switching element on the basi3 of the state of the cooler.

A thermal protection switch device may include: a power circuit that includes a phase line and a neutral line; a current sensor electrically connected to the phase line to detect the current flow in the phase line; a temperature sensor thermally coupled to the phase line to detect the temperature of the phase line; and another temperature sensor thermally coupled to the neutral line to detect the temperature of the neutral line. The device also includes a trip circuit configured to interrupt the phase line when activated and a controller configured to receive output signals from the above current and temperature sensors. The controller may activate the trip circuit to interrupt the phase line in response to determining that certain conditions have occurred.

An embodiment electronic circuit includes an electronic switch comprising a load path, and a control circuit configured to drive the electronic switch. The control circuit is configured to operate in one of a first operation mode and a second operation mode based at least on a level of a load current of the electronic switch. In the first operation mode the control circuit is configured to generate a first protection signal based on a current-time-characteristic of the load current and drive the electronic switch based on the first protection signal. The control circuit is configured to generate a status signal such that the status signal has a wakeup pulse when the operation mode changes from the second operation mode to the first operation mode and, after the wakeup pulse, a signal level representing a level of the load current.

A circuit protective system. The system includes an output controlling enablement of a transistor and an input sensing an operational parameter associated with the transistor. The system also includes detection circuitry providing an event fault indicator if the operational parameter violates a condition. The system also includes protective circuitry disabling the transistor in response to the event fault indicator and subsequently selectively applying an enabling bias to the transistor; the enabling bias is selected from at least two different bias levels and in response to a number of event fault indications from the detection circuitry.

Provided is a method implemented in a USB-C supply interface connected between a supply source and a USB-C connector coupled to a load. A comparison is performed between at least one signal representative of an operation of a voltage converter belonging to the interface and at least one threshold. A command module belonging to the interface emits an activation signal to control electrical isolation between the source and the converter. Isolation is implemented by a disconnection device connected between the source and the converter. The disconnection device irreversibly electrically isolates the converter from the source when the activation signal is emitted. The present description also relates to a USB-C supply interface configured to implement such a method.

An overcurrent protection apparatus that protects, from overcurrent, a load circuit including an electric load and wiring electrically connected with each other is provided. The overcurrent protection apparatus includes: a semiconductor switching element that is configured to control energization to the load circuit; and a breaker that stops the semiconductor switching element upon detection of abnormality of overheat or overcurrent at the semiconductor switching element, the breaker having a latch operation mode of continuously stopping the semiconductor switching element even upon cancellation of abnormality detection, and a retry operation mode of canceling stoppage of the semiconductor switching element upon the cancellation of the abnormality detection. The breaker is configured to initially operate in the latch operation mode upon the abnormality detection, and then be switched to the retry operation mode after satisfaction of a predetermined condition.

A semiconductor-switch control device includes a controller that detects an analog signal of a load current, converts the detected analog signal into a digital signal, and determines an over-current based on the converted digital signal; a short circuit detector that detects an analog signal of a load voltage, and detects an over-current based on the analog signal without converting the detected analog signal into a digital signal; and a drive unit that drives an FET based on a determination result of the over-current determined by the controller or a detection result of the over-current detected by the short circuit detector.