Semiconductor Power Supply Redundancy for Control Circuit Safety
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing semiconductor devices face issues with maintaining stable power supply to control circuits, leading to potential damage and malfunctions due to abnormal voltage conditions, particularly when a regular power supply fails to provide voltage, causing unintended signal transmission and system malfunctions.
Innovation Solution
A power-supply system that utilizes a second power supply, which is normally used for an analog circuit, as a redundant power source for the control circuit, with a switching mechanism that cuts off the regular power supply and switches to the second power supply when abnormalities occur, ensuring continuous operation and preventing overvoltage damage.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a spare power supply is provided in addition to a currently used power supply, then the reliability of power supply to control circuit is improved, but the area occupied increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent makes the second power supply (originally dedicated for analog circuit) serve dual purposes: powering the analog circuit during normal operation and serving as a redundant power supply for the control circuit when the first power supply fails. This eliminates the need for a dedicated third spare power supply, reducing chip area while maintaining reliability.
Solution Approach 2:
The system uses its own existing second power supply to back up the control circuit, rather than requiring an external or dedicated spare power supply. The second power supply serves itself and the control circuit during failure conditions, reducing overall system complexity and area.
2Area of stationary object
If the power supply voltage cannot be supplied from the regular power supply to the control circuit, then the area impact is reduced by not using a dedicated spare power supply, but the control circuit cannot execute the stop sequence leading to potential damage
Solution Approach 1:
The patent establishes a preliminary backup power arrangement where the second power supply is pre-configured to can immediately take over for the control circuit. The switching mechanism is prepared in advance, allowing the control circuit to execute stop sequences safely even when the first power supply fails, preventing damage before it occurs.
Solution Approach 2:
The system provides beforehand protection by having the second power supply ready to compensate for first power supply failures. This cushioning effect ensures the control circuit maintains adequate power for safety functions like stop sequences, preventing damage under failure conditions.
3Device complexity
If the first power supply is used exclusively for the control circuit, then the power supply configuration is simple, but the control circuit cannot operate during abnormal voltage conditions
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces dynamic switching capability between power supplies based on operational conditions. The second power supply can dynamically take over when the first power supply experiences abnormalities, allowing the control circuit to continue operating during voltage drop conditions while maintaining a relatively simple overall configuration.
Data Source
AI summary
To safely stop a system even when an abnormality occurs in a power supply for a control circuit, a semiconductor device includes a control circuit, a first power supply that outputs a first voltage to be supplied to the control circuit as a power-supply voltage, a first voltage monitoring circuit that determines whether the first voltage is abnormal, a first switch that is coupled to the first power supply and the control circuit, and cuts off supply of the first voltage to the control circuit when it is determined that the first voltage is abnormal, and a power-supply switching circuit that is coupled to the control circuit and a second power supply, which outputs a second voltage to be supplied to a circuit to which power supply is supplied other than the control circuit as a power-supply voltage, and supplies the second voltage to the control circuit in a state where the supply of the first voltage to the control circuit is cut off.