The present invention relates to a separate type converter, and more particular to a separate type converter having a power control module and a power stage module.
It is the trend of the power supply development to increase the power density, efficiency and reliability and to lower the cost. In order to increase the power density, the volume of the power supply is decreased by increasing the operation frequency of the power converter. The interior heat-dissipating condition of the power converter drops owing to the decreased volume, and the noise interference among the power converters are increased owing to the increased operation efficiency.
The cost to be lowered includes the fabrication cost and the design cost, so that the power development should be flexibly designed. In order to meet above-mentioned requirements, the internal arrangement of the power converter should be considered. For example, the internal arrangement of the point of load converter (POL) is illustrated as follows.
Please refer to
a) is a circuit diagram showing the conventional point of load converter 1 having the “slave” type single in-line package (SIP) according to the prior art. As shown in
Please refer to
In order to overcome the disadvantages of the prior art described above, the present invention provides a separate type converter.
It is an aspect of the present invention to provide a separate type converter having the better effectiveness in order to achieve higher power/current density per area, eliminate the noise from the switch to the motherboard, lower the heat conducted to the motherboard, be digital controlled and be compatible with the analog control.
The present invention provides a separate type converter, including a power control module having a power control circuit generating a first control signal, and a power stage module having a power stage circuit coupled to the power control circuit for receiving the first control signal and an input voltage, and generating an output voltage, in which the power control module and the power stage module are separate from each other in an assembling structure.
In accordance with the present invention, the power control module and the power stage module are separate from each other in the assembling structure by means of that the power control module and the power stage module are disposed in different carriers and/or packages.
In accordance with the present invention, the separate type converter is one of a DC/DC converter and an AC/DC converter.
In accordance with the present invention, the DC/DC converter is one selected from a group consisting of a boost converter, a buck converter, a buck-boost converter, a flyback converter and a point of load converter.
In accordance with the present invention, the DC/DC converter is a point of load converter, the first control signal is a pulse-width modulation signal, and the power control circuit further includes a digital controller having a PMBus element for receiving an input signal outputted from an external PMBus and generating a second control signal, and a pulse-width modulator coupled to the PMBus element for receiving the second control signal and generating the pulse-width modulation signal, in which the power stage circuit includes a driver coupled to the pulse-width modulator for receiving a supply voltage and the pulse-width modulation signal and generating a first and a second driving signals, and a power stage coupled to the driver for receiving the first and the second driving signals and generating the output voltage and having a first switch having a first terminal for receiving the input voltage, a second terminal and a control terminal coupled to the driver and receiving the first driving signal, a second switch having a first terminal coupled to the second terminal of the first switch, a second terminal coupled to the driver, the pulse-width modulator and a common ground, and a control terminal coupled to the driver and receiving the second driving signal, an inductor having a first terminal coupled to the first terminal of the second switch and a second terminal, and an output capacitor having a first terminal coupled to the second terminal of the inductor and a second terminal coupled to the common ground, and outputting the output voltage.
In accordance with the present invention, the first and the second switch are MOSFETs, and the first, the second and the control terminals of each of the first and the second switches are a drain, a source and a gate of the MOSFETs respectively.
In accordance with the present invention, the input voltage is provided by an intermediate bus converter.
In accordance with the present invention, the DC/DC converter is a point of load converter, the first control signal is a pulse-width modulation signal, and the power control circuit further includes an analog control circuit for generating a second control signal and a pulse-width modulator coupled to the analog control circuit for receiving the second control signal and generating the pulse-width modulation signal.
In accordance with the present invention, the input voltage is an AC input voltage, the output voltage is a DC output voltage, and the AC/DC converter further includes a PFC circuit for receiving the AC input voltage and generating the DC output voltage.
In accordance with the present invention, the input voltage is an AC input voltage, the output voltage is a DC output voltage, and the AC/DC converter further includes a dual PFC circuit for receiving the AC input voltage and generating the DC output voltage.
In accordance with the present invention, there are at least a first PCB and a second PCB in the different carriers, in which the power control module is installed on the first PCB, and the power stage module is installed on the second PCB.
In accordance with the present invention, the carrier is a PCB, the package is a system chip package, the power control module is installed on the PCB, and the power stage module is packaged into the system chip package to form a system chip.
It is another aspect of the present invention to provide a separate type converter including a power control module having a power control circuit for generating a first control signal having a control unit for generating a second control signal, and a pulse-width modulator coupled to the control unit for receiving the second control signal and generating the first control signal, and a power stage module for receiving the first control signal and an input voltage and generating an output voltage having a power stage circuit including a driver coupled to the power control circuit for receiving the first control signal and generating a first and a second driving signals, and a power stage coupled to the driver for receiving the first and the second driving signals and generating the output voltage, in which the power control module and the power stage module are separate from each other in an assembling structure.
In accordance with the present invention, the power control module and the power stage module are separate from each other in the assembling structure by means of that the power control module and the power stage module are installed in different carriers and/or packages, respectively.
In accordance with the present invention, the different carriers comprise a first PCB and a second PCB, the first PCB has a first surface, a second surface and a plurality of SMD pins, the power stage module is installed on the first surface of the first PCB, the second PCB has a first surface and a second surface, the plurality of SMD pins are installed between the second surface of the first PCB and the first surface of the second PCB to connect the first PCB and the second PCB, and the power control module is installed on the second surface of the second PCB.
It is another aspect of the present invention to provide a separate type converter, including a power stage module having a power stage circuit for receiving a control signal and an input voltage and generating an output voltage, in which the power stage module is separate from other circuits of the converter in an assembling structure.
In accordance with the present invention, the power stage module is separate from other circuits in the assembling structure by means of that the power stage module is installed on one of a carrier and a carrier including a package.
In accordance with the present invention, the converter further includes a power control circuit.
The above aspects and advantages of the present invention will become more readily apparent to those ordinarily skilled in the art after reviewing the following detailed description and accompanying drawings, in which:
a) is the circuit diagram showing the point of load converter having the “slave” type single in-line package in the prior art;
b) shows the structure of the point of load converter having the “slave” type single in-line package shown in
a) is the circuit diagram showing the point of load converter having the integrated silicon module and the choke module in the prior art;
b) shows the structure of the point of load converter having the integrated silicon module and the choke module shown in
a) is the circuit diagram showing the point of load converter having the power control module and the power stage module according to the first preferred embodiment of the present invention;
b) shows the structure of the point of load converter having the power control module and the power stage module shown in
a) is the circuit diagram showing the point of load converter having the power control module and the power stage module according to the second preferred embodiment of the present invention;
b) shows the structure of the point of load converter having the power control module and the power stage module shown in
The invention is described more specifically with reference to the following embodiments. It is to be noted that the following descriptions of preferred embodiments of this invention are presented herein for the purpose of illustration and description only, it is not intended to be exhaustive or to be limited to the precise form disclosed.
Please refer to
The power control module 31 and the power stage module 32 are respectively installed in difference carriers or in different packages. It means that the power control module 31 and the power stage module 32 are installed in difference carriers, installed in different packages, or installed in different carriers and packages, so as to separate the power control module 31 from the power stage module 32. The carriers are used for the circuit elements to be connected thereon such as a PCB or a substrate in the system in package or system on package. The package can be the system on chip package or the system package. Please refer to
Please refer to
Accordingly, the present invention provides a separate type converter having better performance and higher power/current density per area, and eliminating the noise and the heat entering into the motherboard.
While the invention has been described in terms of what is presently considered to be the most practical and preferred embodiments, it is to be understood that the invention needs not be limited to the disclosed embodiment. On the contrary, it is intended to cover various modifications and similar arrangements included within the spirit and scope of the appended claims which are to be accorded with the broadest interpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and similar structures.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
095142159 | Nov 2006 | TW | national |