Semiconductor Device Monitoring Circuit with Shared Timer
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing semiconductor devices require dedicated monitoring circuits for each function circuit, leading to wasted resources and increased costs when not all functions are used, and inadequate monitoring if dedicated circuits are not mounted, resulting in missed failure notifications.
Innovation Solution
A semiconductor device design that uses a general-purpose timer shared among multiple function circuits, with a connection switching circuit that branches activation and completion signals to both the function circuits and the timer, allowing for flexible monitoring and reducing the number of dedicated monitoring circuits.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If dedicated monitoring circuits are mounted for each function circuit, then monitoring reliability is improved, but device complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies universality by designing a single timer circuit that can monitor multiple function circuits through signal branching. The timer receives activation signals and completion signals from different function circuits via the connection switching circuit, allowing one monitoring resource to serve multiple functions. This eliminates the need for dedicated timers for each function circuit while maintaining monitoring coverage.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent merges the monitoring function into a shared timer resource that handles multiple function circuits. By combining the timer functionality into a single unit that processes signals from various sources through branching, the system consolidates what would otherwise be separate monitoring circuits into one integrated solution, reducing overall device complexity.
2Reliability
If dedicated monitoring circuits are mounted for each function circuit, then monitoring coverage is improved, but manufacturing cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
The timer circuit is designed as a universal monitoring resource that can track multiple function circuits. Through the connection switching circuit and signal branching, a single timer instance monitors activation and completion signals from different function circuits, providing comprehensive monitoring coverage without requiring multiple timer instances, thereby reducing manufacturing cost.
3Device complexity
If dedicated monitoring circuits are not mounted, then device complexity is reduced, but monitoring capability deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The connection switching circuit acts as an intermediary that enables a single timer to access signals from multiple function circuits. By introducing this switching mechanism, the system achieves comprehensive monitoring capability without requiring dedicated timers for each function, thus maintaining low device complexity while ensuring monitoring coverage.
4Adaptability or versatility
If a shared timer is used for multiple function circuits, then resource utilization is improved, but signal routing complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The signal routing is segmented through the connection switching circuit, which separates the activation signal path and completion signal path to the timer. This segmentation allows the shared timer to receive organized, distinct signals from multiple function circuits, managing the complexity of signal routing while maintaining efficient resource utilization.
Data Source
AI summary
To provide a semiconductor device having a monitoring function with a higher degree of freedom. The semiconductor device includes: a function part that executes a predetermined process triggered according to an activation signal sent from an external device and outputs a completion signal after the predetermined process is completed; a first clocking part that monitors a first abnormality in the predetermined process based on the activation signal and the completion signal; and a branch part pair including a first branch part and a second branch part, wherein the first branch part branches the activation signal and then sends the branched activation signal to the function part and the first clocking part, and the second branch part branches the completion signal and then sends the branched completion signal to the first clocking part and the external device.