Integrated Power Sensing Circuit with Internal ADC
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional power sensing techniques are characterized by complex circuitry, high power consumption, poor speed performance, and accuracy issues, making them inefficient for accurately measuring power consumption while managing power efficiency and avoiding overloading and overheating.
Innovation Solution
A power sensing circuit that uses an integrated circuit to sense load current and voltage, mirroring the sense voltage internally and regulating it with an ADC to output power in a binary format, integrating electrical and environmental parameters to determine a power margin, thereby simplifying circuitry and reducing power consumption while maintaining high accuracy.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If conventional power sensing circuitry uses multiple stages including operational amplifiers and microprocessors, then power multiplication and measurement can be achieved, but device complexity and power consumption increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines voltage sensing, current sensing, and power calculation functions into a single integrated circuit. The sense amplifier simultaneously processes both voltage and current signals, and the digital logic internally computes power consumption, eliminating the need for separate operational amplifiers and microprocessor post-processing stages.
Solution Approach 2:
The integrated circuit performs multiple functions: it senses voltage across the power source, senses current through the sense resistor, amplifies both signals, and calculates power consumption. This multi-functional approach replaces the conventional multi-stage specialized circuitry with a single universal power sensing device.
2Measurement precision
If conventional power sensing uses high precision discrete resistors and multiple amplification stages, then power measurement can be achieved, but power consumption increases while speed performance deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines voltage sensing, current sensing, and power calculation functions into a single integrated circuit. The sense amplifier simultaneously processes both voltage and current signals, and the digital logic internally computes power consumption, eliminating the need for separate operational amplifiers and microprocessor post-processing stages.
3Measurement precision
If conventional current sensing techniques use discrete resistors, then current measurement can be achieved, but accuracy and low power dissipation requirements conflict
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses an operational amplifier to create a virtual copy of the sense resistor voltage drop. The non-inverting input of the sense amplifier is connected to the sense resistor, and the inverting input is held at virtual ground, creating a current-to-voltage conversion without requiring a second physical resistor. This copying approach maintains measurement accuracy while eliminating the power dissipation of additional sensing components.
4Measurement precision
If conventional voltage sensing uses ADC conversion and microprocessor post-processing, then digital power values can be obtained, but processing time and system complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent performs power calculation in advance within the integrated circuit itself. The digital logic inside the power sensing device multiplies the digitized voltage and current values and computes power consumption before the data leaves the device. This preliminary action eliminates the need for time-consuming microprocessor post-processing and reduces system complexity.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution enables efficient power management by directly sensing power consumption in a binary format, optimizing power usage, preventing overloading, and ensuring safe operation, with reduced error sources and lower power consumption compared to conventional methods.
Implementation Method 1
Power may be determined using an operational amplifier that multiplies current through the sense resistor and the source voltage
Implementation Method 2
If an ADC is used for both current and source voltage sensing, such digital values may be post processed by a microprocessor to determine power consumed
Data Source
AI summary
Improved techniques for sensing and reporting consumed power are disclosed. The disclosed techniques comprise an integrated circuit solution for sensing power. In some embodiments, such an integrated circuit comprises a resistor on which a sense voltage sensed across an external resistor in response to a load current is mirrored and an analog-to-digital converter configured to regulate the voltage across the resistor and output a binary value representing power. The binary value representing power may integrate one or more electrical or environmental parameters such as current, voltage, temperature, battery voltage, etc.