A voltage regulation system and apparatus

Abstract

The application provides a voltage adjustment system and device, and relates to the technical field of switching power supply. The voltage adjustment system comprises a processing module, at least one software voltage adjustment module and one hardware voltage adjustment module. The software voltage adjustment module and the hardware voltage adjustment module are connected with the processing module respectively. The software voltage adjustment module and the hardware voltage adjustment module are used for outputting corresponding initial voltage signals respectively. The processing module is used for converting the initial voltage signals into output voltage signals according to a preset proportion. The low-precision software voltage adjustment mode and the high-precision hardware voltage adjustment mode are combined together, so that the flexibility and the precision of device adjustment can be improved on the basis of ensuring the cost of the device.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of switching power supply technology, and more specifically, to a voltage regulation system and device. Background Technology

[0002] To ensure precise power supply to electronic systems, it is often necessary to adjust the output voltage of the switching power supply. This can usually be achieved by changing the reference voltage value of the error amplifier in the power supply feedback loop through hardware or software.

[0003] Taking hardware voltage regulation as an example, the reference voltage circuit can be set as an analog circuit, and then the reference voltage value can be changed by altering analog quantities in the analog circuit, such as resistance and voltage values. Although this method can reduce component costs, it requires changes to the hardware structure, resulting in lower voltage regulation flexibility.

[0004] Taking software voltage regulation as an example, the reference voltage can be adjusted by controlling digital signals, and the magnitude of the reference voltage can be adjusted by changing the value of the digital signals. For example, the reference voltage can be adjusted by a digital-to-analog converter (DAC) controlled by a microcontroller (MCU). While this method offers high adjustment flexibility, the accuracy of voltage regulation is limited by the accuracy of the DAC, and the voltage regulation accuracy of a conventional DAC is lower than that of hardware voltage regulation. Improving the accuracy of the DAC would significantly increase the cost of the components.

[0005] Therefore, there is an urgent need for an output voltage adjustment scheme that can improve the flexibility and accuracy of device adjustment while ensuring device cost. Summary of the Invention

[0006] In view of this, the purpose of the present invention is to provide a voltage regulation system and device that combines low-precision software voltage regulation with high-precision hardware voltage regulation, thereby improving the flexibility and accuracy of device adjustment while ensuring device cost.

[0007] To achieve the above objectives, the technical solutions adopted in the embodiments of the present invention are as follows:

[0008] In a first aspect, the present invention also provides a voltage regulation system, comprising: a processing module and at least one software voltage regulation module and one hardware voltage regulation module, wherein each software voltage regulation module and each hardware voltage regulation module are respectively connected to the processing module;

[0009] Each software voltage regulation module and each hardware voltage regulation module are used to output the corresponding initial voltage signal;

[0010] The processing module is used to convert each initial voltage signal into an output voltage according to a preset ratio.

[0011] Optionally, when the voltage regulation system includes a software voltage regulation module and a hardware voltage regulation module, and the software voltage regulation module is the first regulation module and the hardware voltage regulation module is the second regulation module, the first regulation module is used to provide a first initial voltage;

[0012] The second adjustment module is used to provide the second initial voltage;

[0013] The processing module is used to acquire and convert the first initial voltage and the second initial voltage into an output voltage according to a preset ratio.

[0014] Optionally, the first adjustment module includes a processing unit and a digital-to-analog conversion unit; the processing unit is connected to the digital-to-analog conversion unit.

[0015] The processing unit is used to provide digital signals to the digital-to-analog converter unit;

[0016] A digital-to-analog converter unit is used to convert digital signals into a first initial voltage.

[0017] Optionally, the processing module includes a weighting circuit, which has multiple input terminals, each of which is connected to the output terminal of a software voltage regulation module or a hardware voltage regulation module.

[0018] The weighting circuit is used to receive the initial voltage signals output by each software voltage regulation module or hardware voltage regulation module; and convert each initial voltage signal into an initial output voltage according to a preset ratio.

[0019] The weighting circuit is also used to match and adjust the initial output voltage to obtain the final output voltage.

[0020] Optionally, when the voltage regulation system includes a software voltage regulation module and a hardware voltage regulation module, and the software voltage regulation module is the first regulation module and the hardware voltage regulation module is the second regulation module, the weighting circuit includes a first resistor and a second resistor. The first end of the first resistor is connected to the output terminal of the first regulation module; the first end of the second resistor is connected to the output terminal of the second regulation module; and the second end of the first resistor is connected to the second end of the second resistor.

[0021] The resistance values ​​of the first resistor and the second resistor satisfy a preset ratio so that the output voltage meets a preset accuracy.

[0022] Optionally, the expression for the preset ratio satisfies:

[0023]

[0024] Where K is the preset ratio, ΔV0 is the voltage change corresponding to each adjustment of the least significant bit by the digital-to-analog converter, and V00 is the maximum output reference voltage corresponding to the software voltage regulation module. is the preset precision; N is the number of quantization bits corresponding to the digital-to-analog conversion unit; a is the voltage regulation value of the software voltage regulation module.

[0025] Optionally, the expression for the output voltage is:

[0026]

[0027] Where V0 is the output voltage; K is the preset ratio; V1 is the initial voltage output by the software voltage regulation module; and V2 is the initial voltage output by the hardware voltage regulation module.

[0028] Optionally, the output voltage includes a reference voltage component and an adjustable voltage component; the adjustable voltage component is determined by the second adjustment module; and the reference voltage component is determined by the first adjustment module.

[0029] Optionally, the reference voltage component is less than the maximum output reference voltage corresponding to the software voltage regulation module;

[0030] The expression for the maximum output reference voltage satisfies:

[0031]

[0032] In the formula, V00 is the maximum output reference voltage corresponding to the software voltage regulation module; Vcc is the full-scale output voltage of the digital-to-analog converter; a is the voltage regulation value of the software voltage regulation module; and K is the preset ratio.

[0033] In a second aspect, the present invention also provides a voltage adjustment device, comprising the voltage adjustment system of any one of the first aspects described above.

[0034] The voltage regulation system and device provided by this invention have the following beneficial effects:

[0035] The voltage regulation system of this invention includes a processing module, at least one software voltage regulation module, and one hardware voltage regulation module. Both the software and hardware voltage regulation modules are connected to the processing module. The software and hardware voltage regulation modules are used to output corresponding initial voltage signals. The processing module converts each initial voltage signal into an output voltage according to a preset ratio. This invention combines low-precision software voltage regulation with high-precision hardware voltage regulation, improving the flexibility and accuracy of device adjustment while ensuring device cost.

[0036] To make the above-mentioned objects, features and advantages of the present invention more apparent and understandable, preferred embodiments are described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Attached Figure Description

[0037] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present invention, the accompanying drawings used in the embodiments will be briefly introduced below. It should be understood that the following drawings only show some embodiments of the present invention and should not be regarded as a limitation on the scope. For those skilled in the art, other related drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative effort.

[0038] Figure 1 One of the structural schematic diagrams of the voltage regulation system provided in the embodiment of the present invention is shown;

[0039] Figure 2 A second schematic diagram of the voltage regulation system provided in an embodiment of the present invention is shown;

[0040] Figure 3 This shows one of the structural schematic diagrams of the first adjustment unit provided in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0041] Figure 4 This is a second schematic diagram of the structure of the first adjustment unit provided in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0042] Figure 5 This is a third schematic diagram of the structure of the first adjustment unit provided in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0043] Figure 6 The circuit diagram of the weighting circuit provided in the embodiment of the present invention is shown.

[0044] Icons: 10-Voltage regulation system; 101-Processing module; 102-Software voltage regulation module; 103-Hardware voltage regulation module; 201-Processing unit; 202-Digital-to-analog conversion unit; 301-Weighting circuit; 302-Adjustment circuit; R1-First resistor; R2-Second resistor; AMP-Operational amplifier. Detailed Implementation

[0045] The technical solutions of the embodiments of the present invention will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some embodiments of the present invention, and not all embodiments. The components of the embodiments of the present invention described and shown in the accompanying drawings can generally be arranged and designed in various different configurations.

[0046] Therefore, the following detailed description of the embodiments of the invention provided in the accompanying drawings is not intended to limit the scope of the claimed invention, but merely to illustrate selected embodiments of the invention. All other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art based on the embodiments of the invention without inventive effort are within the scope of protection of the invention.

[0047] It should be noted that relational terms such as "first" and "second" are used merely to distinguish one entity or operation from another, and do not necessarily require or imply any such actual relationship or order between these entities or operations. Furthermore, the terms "comprising," "including," or any other variations thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion, such that a process, method, article, or apparatus that comprises a list of elements includes not only those elements but also other elements not expressly listed, or elements inherent to such a process, method, article, or apparatus. Without further limitations, an element defined by the phrase "comprising one..." does not exclude the presence of other identical elements in the process, method, article, or apparatus that includes said element.

[0048] As described in the background section, hardware voltage regulation changes analog quantities through analog circuits, which can reduce component costs but offers less flexibility. Software voltage regulation uses digital quantities to adjust the reference voltage, allowing for more flexible voltage adjustment, but its accuracy is limited by the DAC's precision, and software voltage regulation is generally less accurate than hardware voltage regulation. Increasing voltage regulation accuracy to meet setting requirements significantly increases component costs.

[0049] Based on this, the present invention provides an output voltage adjustment scheme that improves the flexibility and accuracy of device adjustment while ensuring device cost.

[0050] The above scheme will be described in detail below.

[0051] Please refer to Figure 1 , Figure 1 A schematic diagram of a voltage regulation system is shown. The voltage regulation system 10 includes a processing module 101, at least one software voltage regulation module 102, and a hardware voltage regulation module 103. The software voltage regulation module 102 and the hardware voltage regulation module 103 are both connected to the processing module 101.

[0052] The software voltage regulation module 102 and the hardware voltage regulation module 103 are respectively used to output the corresponding initial voltage signals;

[0053] The processing module 101 is used to convert each initial voltage signal into an output voltage according to a preset ratio.

[0054] The expression for the preset ratio satisfies:

[0055]

[0056] Where K is the preset ratio, ΔV0 is the voltage change corresponding to each adjustment of the least significant bit by the digital-to-analog converter, and V00 is the maximum output reference voltage corresponding to the software voltage regulation module. is the preset precision; N is the number of quantization bits corresponding to the digital-to-analog conversion unit; a is the voltage regulation value of the software voltage regulation module.

[0057] This invention combines software and hardware voltage regulation methods. A processing module converts the initial voltage signals output by the software and hardware voltage regulation modules into an output voltage according to a preset ratio, which serves as the reference voltage for the power supply feedback loop. It should be noted that in this embodiment, the preset ratio K can be adjusted by the processing module to ensure the required voltage regulation accuracy.

[0058] Based on this, this embodiment can balance the cost-effectiveness of software voltage regulation and hardware voltage regulation, and achieve the required voltage regulation accuracy while ensuring the flexibility of voltage regulation.

[0059] In this embodiment, the structure of the voltage regulation system is not limited, that is, neither the number of software voltage regulation modules and / or hardware voltage regulation modules is limited, nor is the specific structure of the software voltage regulation modules and / or hardware voltage regulation modules limited.

[0060] In one possible implementation, if the voltage regulation system includes multiple software voltage regulation modules and multiple hardware voltage regulation modules, each software voltage regulation module and / or each hardware voltage regulation module can output an initial voltage of a preset value according to a certain ratio, so that the processing module can process it to obtain the corresponding output voltage.

[0061] In another possible implementation, please Figure 1 Based on, refer to Figure 2 , Figure 2 The diagram shows another voltage regulation system. When the voltage regulation system 10 includes a software voltage regulation module 102 and a hardware voltage regulation module 103, and the software voltage regulation module 102 is the first regulation module and the hardware voltage regulation module 103 is the second regulation module, the first regulation module is used to provide a first initial voltage; the second regulation module is used to provide a second initial voltage.

[0062] The processing module 101 is used to acquire and convert the first initial voltage and the second initial voltage into an output voltage according to a preset ratio.

[0063] It should be noted that, in order to maximize cost-effectiveness in this embodiment, both low-precision software voltage regulation modules and high-precision hardware voltage regulation modules can be selected.

[0064] Taking a low-precision software voltage regulation module as an example, in Figure 2 Based on this, please refer to Figure 3 , Figure 3 A schematic diagram of the structure of the first adjustment module (software voltage regulation module) is shown. In this embodiment, the first adjustment module includes a processing unit 201 and a digital-to-analog conversion unit 202; the processing unit 201 is connected to the digital-to-analog conversion unit 202.

[0065] Processing unit 201 is used to provide digital signals to digital-to-analog conversion unit;

[0066] The digital-to-analog converter unit 202 is used to convert the digital signal into a first initial voltage.

[0067] In this embodiment, a conventional digital-to-analog converter (DAC) can be used as the digital-to-analog converter (DAC), as long as its corresponding accuracy is relatively low. For example, the resolution of the N-bit DAC can be set by limiting the quantization bit depth of the DAC, thereby maximizing the cost-effectiveness of the device. In this embodiment, the DAC can have 8 bits.

[0068] In one possible implementation, the processing module in this embodiment only needs to be able to perform the above steps, that is, convert the first initial voltage and the second initial voltage into an output voltage according to a preset ratio. This embodiment does not limit the specific structure of the processing module.

[0069] exist Figure 3 Based on this, please refer to Figure 4 , Figure 4 The diagram shows the structure of the processing module in this embodiment. The processing module 101 includes a weighting circuit 301, which has multiple input terminals. Each input terminal is connected to the output terminal of a software voltage regulation module 102 or a hardware voltage regulation module 103.

[0070] The weighting circuit 301 is used to receive the initial voltage signals output by each software voltage regulation module or hardware voltage regulation module; and convert each initial voltage signal into an initial output voltage according to a preset ratio.

[0071] The weighting circuit 301 is also used to match and adjust the initial output voltage to obtain the output voltage.

[0072] exist Figure 3 Based on this, please refer to Figure 5 , Figure 5 Another structural schematic diagram of the processing module in this embodiment is shown. In this embodiment, the processing module 101 may further include an adjustment circuit 302, which is disposed at the output terminal of the weighting circuit 301 and connected to the output terminal of the weighting circuit 301, for matching the initial output voltage.

[0073] This embodiment also provides a circuit diagram of a weighted circuit. When the voltage adjustment system includes a software voltage regulation module and a hardware voltage regulation module, and the software voltage regulation module is the first adjustment module and the hardware voltage regulation module is the second adjustment module, in Figure 4 Based on this, please refer to Figure 6In this embodiment, the weighting circuit 301 includes a first resistor R1 and a second resistor R2. The first end of the first resistor R1 is connected to the output end of the first adjustment module; the first end of the second resistor R2 is connected to the output end of the second adjustment module; and the second end of the first resistor R1 is connected to the second end of the second resistor R2.

[0074] The resistance values ​​of the first resistor R1 and the second resistor R2 are in a preset ratio so that the output voltage meets a preset accuracy.

[0075] Continue to refer to Figure 6 When the second terminal of the first resistor R1 outputs the initial output voltage, the weighting circuit 301 further includes an operational amplifier AMP to convert the initial voltage into a condition-compliant output voltage. The non-inverting input terminal of the operational amplifier AMP is connected to the second terminals of both the first resistor R1 and the second resistor R2, and the non-inverting input terminal of the operational amplifier AMP is connected to its output terminal. Based on this, the weighting circuit constructs a voltage follower using the operational amplifier AMP to perform impedance matching on the initial output voltage, thereby obtaining the adjusted output voltage.

[0076] exist Figure 6 Based on this, the working principle of the above circuit will be explained:

[0077] In this embodiment, the processing module includes at least a weighting circuit to convert the initial voltage signals output by the software voltage regulation module and the hardware voltage regulation module into output voltage according to a preset ratio. Correspondingly, since the resolution of the corresponding digital-to-analog converter can be determined after selecting the corresponding digital-to-analog converter, if a digital-to-analog converter with a higher resolution is selected, the device cost will increase. Therefore, while ensuring that the software voltage regulation cost is certain, a more precise adjustment can be achieved through a hardware voltage regulation structure.

[0078] In this embodiment, the output voltage can be composed of a reference voltage component and an adjustable voltage component. The adjustable voltage component is determined by the second adjustment module (hardware voltage regulation module), and the reference voltage component is determined by the first adjustment module (software voltage regulation module).

[0079] Based on this, the corresponding output voltage in this embodiment is expressed as: K > 0; In the formula: V0 is the output voltage; K is the preset ratio; V1 is the initial voltage output by the software voltage regulation module; V2 is the initial voltage output by the hardware voltage regulation module. The reference voltage component satisfies: The adjustable voltage component satisfies:

[0080] This invention also provides a method for calculating a preset ratio K, the steps of which are as follows:

[0081] When the preset accuracy is set and an N-bit digital-to-analog converter is selected, the full-scale output voltage of the digital-to-analog converter is VCC, and the reference point of the corresponding digital-to-analog converter is required to fluctuate up and down by 'a'. To ensure that the software voltage regulation module does not exceed the maximum range when adjusting the voltage, the maximum output reference voltage V00 of the corresponding software voltage regulation module must satisfy: The voltage change ΔV0 corresponding to each adjustment of the least significant bit (1 LSB) by the digital-to-analog converter satisfies: because To preset the precision, the formula for calculating the preset precision can be expressed as: This leads to the formula for calculating the preset ratio K: satisfying K > 0. Because of the above... Since the values ​​of N and a are both constants, the value of K can be calculated accordingly.

[0082] Meanwhile, this embodiment also demonstrates a method for calculating the accuracy of existing pure software voltage regulation. That is, with the same preset accuracy, digital-to-analog converter, and a reference point for the corresponding digital-to-analog converter that can fluctuate up and down by 'a', the maximum output reference voltage V"00 of the corresponding software voltage regulation module satisfies: Correspondingly, the voltage change ΔV"0 corresponding to each adjustment of the least significant bit (1 LSB) by the digital-to-analog converter satisfies: Correspondingly, the accuracy of existing pure software voltage regulation meets the following requirements:

[0083]

[0084] Based on the two accuracy calculation formulas mentioned above, it is understandable that the accuracy in this embodiment is better than that of existing pure software voltage regulation.

[0085] In summary, the voltage regulation system of this invention combines low-precision software voltage regulation with high-precision hardware voltage regulation, which can improve the flexibility and accuracy of device adjustment while ensuring device cost.

[0086] Following the same approach as the previous embodiment, the present invention provides a voltage adjustment device, including the voltage adjustment system according to any one of the first aspects described above. The voltage adjustment system includes a processing module, at least one software voltage adjustment module, and one hardware voltage adjustment module. Both the software and hardware voltage adjustment modules are connected to the processing module. The software and hardware voltage adjustment modules are respectively used to output corresponding initial voltage signals. The processing module is used to convert each initial voltage signal into an output voltage according to a preset ratio.

[0087] Based on this, this embodiment combines low-precision software voltage regulation with high-precision hardware voltage regulation, which can improve the flexibility and accuracy of device adjustment while ensuring device cost.

[0088] The above description is merely a preferred embodiment of the present invention and is not intended to limit the invention. Various modifications and variations can be made to the present invention by those skilled in the art. Any modifications, equivalent substitutions, improvements, etc., made within the spirit and principles of the present invention should be included within the scope of protection of the present invention.

Claims

1. A voltage regulation system, characterized in that, The voltage regulation system includes: a processing module, at least one software voltage regulation module, and a hardware voltage regulation module, wherein the software voltage regulation module and the hardware voltage regulation module are respectively connected to the processing module; The software voltage regulation module and the hardware voltage regulation module are respectively used to output the corresponding initial voltage signal; The processing module is used to convert each of the initial voltage signals into an output voltage according to a preset ratio.

2. The voltage regulation system according to claim 1, characterized in that, When the voltage regulation system includes a software voltage regulation module and a hardware voltage regulation module, and the software voltage regulation module is used as the first regulation module and the hardware voltage regulation module is used as the second regulation module... The first adjustment module is used to provide a first initial voltage; The second adjustment module is used to provide a second initial voltage; The processing module is used to acquire and convert the first initial voltage and the second initial voltage into an output voltage according to a preset ratio.

3. The voltage regulation system according to claim 2, characterized in that, The first adjustment module includes a processing unit and a digital-to-analog conversion unit; the processing unit is connected to the digital-to-analog conversion unit. The processing unit is used to provide digital signals to the digital-to-analog conversion unit; The digital-to-analog converter unit is used to convert the digital signal into a first initial voltage.

4. The voltage regulation system according to claim 1, characterized in that, The processing module includes a weighting circuit, which has multiple input terminals, each of which is connected to the output terminal of a software voltage regulation module or a hardware voltage regulation module. The weighting circuit is used to receive the initial voltage signals output by each of the software voltage regulation modules or the hardware voltage regulation modules; and convert each of the initial voltage signals into an initial output voltage according to a preset ratio. The weighting circuit is also used to match and adjust the initial output voltage to obtain the output voltage.

5. The voltage regulation system according to claim 4, characterized in that, When the voltage regulation system includes a software voltage regulation module and a hardware voltage regulation module, and the software voltage regulation module is the first regulation module and the hardware voltage regulation module is the second regulation module, the weighting circuit includes a first resistor and a second resistor. The first end of the first resistor is connected to the output terminal of the first regulation module; the first end of the second resistor is connected to the output terminal of the second regulation module; and the second end of the first resistor is connected to the second end of the second resistor. The resistance values ​​of the first resistor and the second resistor satisfy a preset ratio so that the output voltage meets a preset accuracy.

6. The voltage regulation system according to claim 1, characterized in that, The expression for the preset ratio satisfies: Where K is the preset ratio, ΔV0 is the voltage change corresponding to each adjustment of the least significant bit by the digital-to-analog converter, and V00 is the maximum output reference voltage corresponding to the software voltage regulation module. is the preset precision; N is the number of quantization bits corresponding to the digital-to-analog conversion unit; a is the voltage regulation value of the software voltage regulation module.

7. The voltage regulation system according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that, The expression for the output voltage is: Where V0 is the output voltage; K is the preset ratio; V1 is the initial voltage output by the software voltage regulation module; and V2 is the initial voltage output by the hardware voltage regulation module.

8. The voltage regulation system according to claim 2 or 5, characterized in that, The output voltage includes a reference voltage component and an adjustable voltage component; the adjustable voltage component is determined by the second adjustment module; and the reference voltage component is determined by the first adjustment module.

9. The voltage regulation system according to claim 8, characterized in that, The reference voltage component is less than the maximum output reference voltage corresponding to the software voltage regulation module; The expression for the maximum output reference voltage satisfies: In the formula, V00 is the maximum output reference voltage corresponding to the software voltage regulation module; Vcc is the full-scale output voltage of the digital-to-analog converter; a is the voltage regulation value of the software voltage regulation module; and K is the preset ratio.

10. A voltage regulating device, characterized in that, Includes the voltage regulation system according to any one of claims 1 to 9.

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