Host-Side Transceiver Device for I2C Clock-Stretching Elimination

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Solution Overview

Problem

The existing transceiver systems, such as those using I2C and SPI communication schemes, face challenges in completing communication quickly when an additional slave device is connected to the host device, and they are not compatible with host devices that do not support clock-stretching specifications, leading to prolonged communication standby states.

Innovation Solution

A host-side transceiver device that notifies the host device of an end notification signal upon completing access to a remote device, allowing for immediate recognition of communication completion and avoiding clock-stretching states, even with I2C compliant host devices that do not support clock-stretching, by using a different communication scheme for long-distance signal transfer between transceiver devices.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If clock-stretching is used to wait for remote device process completion, then communication reliability is improved, but communication time increases and other slave devices experience standby delays

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvecommunication reliabilityVSAvoidcommunication time
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The host-side transceiver device acts as an intermediary between the host device and remote device. It receives access request signals from the host device, forwards them to the remote-side transceiver device, and monitors process completion. Instead of using clock-stretching to make the host device wait, the host-side transceiver device independently tracks process completion and notifies the host device when ready, eliminating the time loss while maintaining reliability.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

2Manufacturing precision

If clock-stretching is used to ensure process completion, then data accuracy is improved, but compatibility with host devices decreases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvedata accuracyVSAvoidhost device compatibility
Core Design Contradiction:
Manufacturing precisionVSAdaptability or versatility

Solution Approach 1:

The host-side transceiver device creates a local copy or representation of the remote device's process status. Instead of relying on clock-stretching to synchronize timing, it independently tracks whether the remote device has completed its process and holds the data ready for retrieval, ensuring data accuracy without requiring host device compatibility with clock-stretching specifications.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #26Copying

3Stability of the object's composition

If clock-stretching is implemented to coordinate communication, then communication coordination is improved, but system complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvecommunication coordinationVSAvoidsystem complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
Stability of the object's compositionVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The invention extracts the clock-stretching function from the host device and relocates it to the host-side transceiver device. The host device simply sends access request signals and receives results without implementing clock-stretching logic. The host-side transceiver device independently manages the timing coordination with the remote device, reducing system complexity while maintaining communication coordination.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

Data Source

PatentEP3316523B1Host-side transceiver device and transceiver system
Publication Date: 2022.03.09 THINE ELECTRONICS
  • EP3316523B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP3316523B1 patent drawingFigure 2

AI summary

A first communication unit 21 of a host-side transceiver device 20 performs communication based on an I2C communication scheme with a host device 10 and receives an access request signal sent from the host device 10. A second communication unit 22 performs communication based on a communication scheme different from the I2C communication scheme with a remote-side transceiver device 30 and sends the access request signal received by the first communication unit 21 to the remote-side transceiver device 30. The first communication unit 21 notifies the host device 10 that the first communication unit 21 has received the access request signal sent from the host device 10 before the access to the remote device 40 based on the access request signal sent from the second communication unit 22 ends.