Power Management Circuit for Fast Wake-Up Configuration Retention
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Solution Overview
Problem
Modern integrated circuits face challenges in efficiently managing power states and configuring themselves quickly upon wake-up events, leading to high power consumption and slow startup times due to the need to read configuration data from non-volatile memory during initialization.
Innovation Solution
The implementation of a power management circuit that includes a supply management system with a pre-regulator and main voltage regulator, configuration registers, and a finite state machine (FSM) to transition the IC into a low-power standby state, where configuration data is preserved, and rapidly reconfigured upon wake-up events by loading data from registers directly into volatile memory.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If configuration data is read from non-volatile memory during initialization, then the IC can be configured properly, but power consumption increases and startup time is extended
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by pre-loading configuration data from non-volatile memory into volatile memory during a brief initialization period when power is available. This allows the system to operate from volatile memory during normal operation, avoiding repeated reads from non-volatile memory and reducing power consumption during standby and operation.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses copying by creating a duplicate copy of configuration data in volatile memory (register file) from the original data stored in non-volatile memory (EEPROM). This copy mechanism allows the system to access configuration data rapidly from volatile memory without continuously accessing power-hungry non-volatile memory, thus reducing overall power consumption while maintaining configuration accuracy.
2Reliability
If configuration data is read from non-volatile memory during initialization, then the IC can be configured properly, but startup time is extended
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs the configuration data loading operation in advance during the initial power-up sequence, transferring data from non-volatile memory to volatile memory before the IC enters standby mode. This preliminary action ensures that all configuration data is ready and available immediately when the IC wakes up, minimizing startup time while maintaining proper configuration.
Solution Approach 2:
By copying configuration data to volatile memory during initialization, the system enables rapid access during wake-up events. The volatile memory provides fast read access compared to non-volatile memory, significantly reducing the time required to reconfigure the IC after waking from standby mode.
3Productivity
If the IC remains in active state to maintain configuration readiness, then configuration access is fast, but power consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements dynamic power management by transitioning the IC between active and standby states based on operational requirements. The system dynamically switches to standby mode when full functionality is not needed, preserving configuration data in volatile memory without requiring continuous active operation. This dynamic state management reduces power consumption while maintaining the ability to quickly resume operation.
Solution Approach 2:
The configuration data is copied to volatile memory (register file) during initialization and preserved there during standby mode. This copying approach allows the IC to maintain configuration readiness without remaining in the power-hungry active state, as the volatile memory retains data without requiring continuous power cycles or repeated non-volatile memory accesses.
Data Source
AI summary
In an embodiment, an electronic circuit includes: a supply management circuit for receiving an input supply voltage and providing a first supply voltage; and a main circuit configured to: when the input supply voltage becomes higher than a first threshold, cause the electronic circuit to transition into an initialization state in which an oscillator is enabled and configuration data is copied from an NVM to configuration registers, and then to transition into a standby state in which the oscillator is disabled and content of the configuration registers is preserved by the first supply voltage, and, upon reception of a wakeup event, cause the configuration data from the configuration registers to be applied to the first circuit, and cause the electronic circuit to transition into an active state in which the first oscillator is enabled and the first circuit is configured to operate based on the configuration data.