A current sensing technique for coupled inductors in switching regulator circuits, where the current sensing technique can provide the current information needed for a power converter design and can be implemented as a real-world solution. The current sensing techniques can provide complete information of the coupled inductor current, such as peak current, valley current, and intermediate ripples. The current sensing techniques can use a simple RC network, such as two resistors and two capacitors for 2-phase operation. The techniques, however, are not limited to two-phase operation. The current sensing techniques of this disclosure can be extended to power stage assembly implementations, e.g., DrMOS modules, with current output in order to increase signal-to-noise ratio, which is significant for reliable control. in addition, the current sensing techniques of this disclosure can be extended to multi-phase operation, such as three or more phases.

A digital average-input current-mode control loop for a DC/DC power converter. The power converter may be, for example, a buck converter, boost converter, or cascaded buck-boost converter. The purpose of the proposed control loop is to set the average converter input current to the requested current. Controlling the average input current can be relevant for various applications such as power factor correction (PFC), photovoltaic converters, and more. The method is based on predicting the inductor current based on measuring the input voltage, the output voltage, and the inductor current. A fast cycle-by-cycle control loop may be implemented. The conversion method is described for three different modes. For each mode a different control loop is used to control the average input current, and the control loop for each of the different modes is described. Finally, the algorithm for switching between the modes is disclosed.

A method is provided for soft starting a single inductor multiple output (SIMO) power supply. The method includes selecting operation in a pulse width modulation (PWM) mode. A first pulse frequency modulation (PFM) mode is enabled to supply a first load with a first voltage and the power supply begins to ramp up the output voltage. After the output voltage has reached a desired value in the PFM mode, the PFM mode is disabled. Then, operation is enabled in the PWM mode. The SIMO power supply then supplies a current to one or more loads in the PWM mode.

A buck-boost converter circuit, such as a non-inverting buck-boost converter, can include two separate control loop circuits to separately control operation of the buck circuit and the boost circuit. The control loop circuits may include two different voltage reference signals, two different current reference signals, two different current feedback signals, two different voltage feedback signals, or a combination thereof. The buck-boost converter circuit can operate in three modes: a buck mode, a transition mode, and a boost mode.

A Single Input Dual Output converter includes a first switch coupling an input to a first inductor terminal, a second switch coupling a second inductor terminal to ground, a third switch coupling the second inductor terminal to a positive output, and a fourth switch coupling the first inductor terminal to a negative output. During time-shared control, the negative and positive outputs are independently served by conversion cycles. Each conversion cycle includes: a positive phase with a positive charge phase (closing only the first and second switches), followed by an additional phase (closing only the first and third switches for a given time duration), and followed by a positive discharge phase (closing only the third and fourth switches). Each conversion cycle further includes a negative phase with a negative charge phase (closing only the first and second switches) followed by a negative discharge phase (closing only the second and fourth switches).

One example discloses a voltage converter, comprising: an input configured to receive a first voltage from a battery; an output configured to provide a second voltage to a load; a controller configured to reduce a battery current received from the battery if the first voltage received from the battery is below a first threshold voltage.

An apparatus such as a power supply includes management hardware. The management hardware monitors operation of multiple power converter phases coupled in parallel to produce an output voltage. Based on the monitored operation, the management hardware determines a status of a series circuit path connecting windings of the multiple power converter phases. The management hardware produces status information indicating the status of the series circuit path.

An electronic device includes: a first DC/DC converter including switches, a first capacitor, and a first inductor; and control circuit configured to control on/off states of the switches. In an on state, the switches include: a first switch configured to connect one end of the first capacitor to the input power source; a second switch configured to connect the one end of the first capacitor to one end of the first inductor; a third switch configured to connect another end of the first capacitor to the one end of the first inductor; and a fourth switch configured to connect the other end of the first capacitor to an output terminal of the first DC/DC converter. The first inductor includes the one end connected to the other end of the second switch and the one end of the third switch, and another end connected to a ground.

A power distribution apparatus includes: a power transmitter to which a power transmission cable for supplying power to an external device is connected; a fast charger to which a fast charging cable for receiving power from a power source is connected; a processor configured to, in response to an execution command of a fast charging mode and a load power supply mode, distribute power supplied through the fast charging cable, transfer a portion of the distributed power to the external device, and transfer a remainder of the distributed power to a battery; and a power converter provided between the fast charger and the power transmitter, and configured to, when transferring the portion of the distributed power to the external device, convert a voltage of the power supplied through the fast charging cable, and transfer the voltage-converted power to the power transmitter.

A power conversion device includes: a switching circuit; a signal generator to generate a switching signal of a switching element based on a first instruction value; a current controller to generate a second instruction value based on a deviation between a current target value and the current flowing through the switching circuit such that the current flowing through the switching circuit approaches the current target value; an operation mode detector to detect an operation mode based on the first instruction value; and a compensator to adjust the second instruction value so as to compensate a gain between the deviation and an amount of a change in the current of the switching circuit. The compensator adjusts the second instruction value so as to suppress a change in the gain based on the operation mode, and outputs the first instruction value.