US Patent 7259687 System and method for distributing module phase information

Patent 7259687 was granted and assigned to Texas Instruments on August, 2007 by the United States Patent and Trademark Office.

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Is a

Patent

Patent attributes

Current Assignee

Texas Instruments

Patent Jurisdiction

United States Patent and Trademark Office

Patent Number

7259687

Date of Patent

August 21, 2007

Patent Application Number

11255312

Date Filed

October 21, 2005

Patent Primary Examiner

‌

Bao Q. Vu

Patent abstract

A multi-module DC-DC converter provides synchronization between modules based on identification of a module within a chain. A resistor network can be used for the chain so that each module obtains a particular voltage based on its position within the chain. A master module provides a source current to drive the chain so that each module can determine its relative position in the chain based on voltage readings. With this configuration, a master module can determine how many modules are in the chain, and each slave module can determine its relative position in the chain. The module information contributes to synchronization between the modules for use in current ripple cancellation, for example, in the multi-module DC-DC converter.