Method for improving safety of voltage regulator

Abstract

A method for improving safety of voltage regulator is disclosed. In order to improve safety of a voltage regulator, a MOS-FET is disposed on a source power lane that receives power supplied from a DC power supply. A set of voltage regulators is connected to a set of fork power lanes, correspondingly, branching off from the source power lane. PTC thermistors are disposed on a surface or in the vicinity of semiconductor chips of the voltage regulators. When temperature at any one of the PTC thermistors increases, a protection controller turns off the MOS-FET. When temperature detected by a temperature sensor incorporated within the semiconductor chip has increased, each of the voltage regulators turns off the MOS-FET via a base management controller.

Description

PRIORITY CLAIM[0001]The present application claims benefit of priority under 35 U.S.C. §§120, 365 to the previously filed Japanese Patent Application No. JP2014-122932 with a priority date of Jun. 14, 2014, which is incorporated by reference herein.BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION[0002]1. Technical Field[0003]The present invention relates to voltage regulators in general, and particularly to a method for improving the safety of a voltage regulator having a switching element, and to a method for preventing smoking and burning of a switching element.[0004]2. Description of Related Art[0005]FIG. 7 describes the outline of a typical power-supply system used for a server. A power-supply unit (PSU) 501 supplies power to a group of sub-systems 503 to 507 making up a server with DC voltage. Each sub-system 503 to 507 is mainly made up of voltage regulators (VRs) 511a to 511c that convert the output voltage of the PSU 501 to predetermined voltage and loads 513a to 513c corresponding to the VRs, s...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

The present invention is a power-supply system that includes a protection switch, voltage regulators, temperature sensors, and a controller. The protection switch is designed to prevent smoking and burning caused by a failure of the switching element in the voltage regulators. The temperature sensors can detect temperature at the surface or vicinity of the semiconductor chip, and the controller can turn the protection switch off when temperature increases. This prevents damage to the device caused by sudden heat generation. The system also includes a first and second voltage regulator that output different voltages, and a device that operates with output voltage from both regulators. This prevents latch up of the device as a load when abnormality occurs at one of the voltage regulators. The technical effects of this invention are to provide reliable protection against smoking and burning, and to prevent damage to the device caused by sudden heat generation.

Problems solved by technology

In the power-supply system of FIG. 7; however, the VRs 511a to 511c may cause smoking and burning.

Investigations on such a phenomenon show that a switching element burns severely.

A direct cause of the burning of a switching element results from the element generating a large amount of heat due to large current.

However, smoking or burning generated means that the fuses 509a to 509c do not melt, or the timing of the melting, if any, may not work together with the circuit.

Such a current value and energizing time are sufficient to cause smoking and burning at the switching elements.

If a switching element burns while generating heat severely, all of the devices around it may be damaged or a normal sub-system also has to be replaced in some cases.

Further, if a switching element generates heat, it causes the risk of fire, and so it is not favorable to leave such a situation unsolved even when the risk is small.

Another problem occurs, which results from the loads 513a to 513c including a device that receives power from VRs 511a to 511c.

Then the device of the load 513b generates latch up, which increases the risk leading to secondarily generated smoking and burning.

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