U.S. patent application number 09/893679 was filed with the patent office on 2001-11-08 for semiconductor integrated circuit, operating state detector, and electronic equipment.
This patent application is currently assigned to Seiko Epson Corporation. Invention is credited to Hiratsuka, Akihiro.
Application Number | 20010038308 09/893679 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 18025431 |
Filed Date | 2001-11-08 |
United States Patent
Application |
20010038308 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Hiratsuka, Akihiro |
November 8, 2001 |
Semiconductor integrated circuit, operating state detector, and
electronic equipment
Abstract
The present invention relates to a semiconductor integrated
circuit having function blocks with differing operating frequencies
and to a semiconductor integrated circuit wherein the threshold
voltages of MOS transistors that configure these function blocks
are different for each function block. In first to Nth function
blocks (30-1 to 30-N), which are supplied with constant voltages
(V.sub.C1 to V.sub.CN) generated by a constant voltage generation
section (20) as power voltages, any variation in operating speed or
in the capability of the transistors is detected by an operating
state detector (40) as a voltage (V.sub.fre). Further, an operating
state encoding section (50) encodes the voltage (V.sub.fre), a
voltage output control section (60) modifies basic voltages
(V.sub.B1 to V.sub.BN) of the constant voltage generation section
(20), and constant voltages (V.sub.C1 to V.sub.CN) for the function
blocks (30-1 to 30-N) is modified.
Inventors: |
Hiratsuka, Akihiro; (Suwa,
JP) |
Correspondence
Address: |
OLIFF & BERRIDGE, PLC
277 S. WASHINGTON STREET, SUITE 500
ALEXANDRIA
VA
22314
US
|
Assignee: |
Seiko Epson Corporation
4-1, Nishi-shinjuku 2-chome, Shinjuku-ku
Tokyo
JP
|
Family ID: |
18025431 |
Appl. No.: |
09/893679 |
Filed: |
June 29, 2001 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
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09893679 |
Jun 29, 2001 |
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09341529 |
Sep 7, 1999 |
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6285248 |
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09341529 |
Sep 7, 1999 |
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PCT/JP98/05116 |
Nov 13, 1998 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
327/544 ;
257/E27.06 |
Current CPC
Class: |
H01L 27/088
20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
327/544 |
International
Class: |
G05F 001/10 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Nov 13, 1997 |
JP |
9-312115 |
Claims
What is claimed is:
1. A semiconductor integrated circuit comprising: at least one
constant voltage generation section for increasing or decreasing a
power voltage supplied from at least one external power source,
based on a basic voltage, to generate at least one constant
voltage; at least one function block to which is supplied said at
least one constant voltage generated by said at least one constant
voltage generation section; at least one operating state detection
section for generating a second signal indicating an operating
state of said at least one function block, based on a first signal
including operating speed information of said at least one function
block; at least one operating state encoding section for encoding
an operating state of said function block to generate operating
state date, based on said second signal; and at least one voltage
output control section for modifying said basic voltage of said at
least one constant voltage generation section, based on said
operating state data.
2. The semiconductor integrated circuit as defined in claim 1,
wherein: an operating-setting signal is input to said at least one
function block, and said at least one function block supplies said
first signal to said at least one operating state detection section
when said operating-setting signal is active.
3. The semiconductor integrated circuit as defined in claim 2;
wherein: one each of said at least one operating state detection
section, said at least one operating state encoding section, said
at least one voltage output control section, and said at least one
constant voltage generation section is provided in common for said
plurality of function blocks; and said operating-setting signal
becomes active at different timings along the time axis for each of
said plurality of function blocks.
4. The semiconductor integrated circuit as defined in claim 1,
wherein: said at least one voltage output control section
comprises: a digital-analog converter for performing a
digital-to-analog conversion on said operating state data; and a
sample-and-hold circuit for sampling an output of said
digital-analog converter based on said operating-setting signal,
and generating said basic voltage.
5. The semiconductor integrated circuit as defined in claim 1,
wherein: said at least one operating state detection section
comprises: an integrator for integrating said first signal; and a
peak detector for detecting a peak value of an output of said
integrator, and holding said peak value as said second signal.
6. The semiconductor integrated circuit as defined in claim 1,
wherein: said at least one operating state detection section
comprises: an integrator for integrating said first signal; and a
voltage amplitude detector for detecting a voltage amplitude of an
output of said integrator, and holding said voltage amplitude as
said second signal.
7. The semiconductor integrated circuit as defined in claim 1,
wherein: said at least one operating state encoding section
comprises: a plurality of comparators for comparing the voltage
level of said second signal with each of a plurality of reference
voltage levels; and an encoder for encoding outputs of said
plurality of comparators.
8. The semiconductor integrated circuit as defined in claim 7,
further comprising: a plurality of voltage-dividing resistors for
dividing said constant voltage from said at least one constant
voltage generation section, to create said plurality of reference
voltage levels.
9. A semiconductor integrated circuit comprising: at least one
constant voltage generation section for increasing or decreasing a
power voltage supplied from at least one external power source,
based on a basic voltage, to generate at least one constant
voltage; at least one function block to which is supplied said at
least one constant voltage generated by said at least one constant
voltage generation section; at least one frequency-voltage
converter for converting an actual operating frequency of said at
least one function block into a voltage level; at least one
operating state encoding section for encoding an operating state of
said function block to generate operating state data, based on the
output voltage of said frequency-voltage converter; and at least
one voltage output control section for modifying said basic voltage
of said at least one constant voltage generation section, based on
said operating state data.
10. The semiconductor integrated circuit as defined in claim 9,
wherein: said frequency-voltage converter converts a frequency of
an input signal that is input to said at least one function block
into a voltage level.
11. The semiconductor integrated circuit as defined in claim 10,
wherein: an operating-setting signal is input to said at least one
function block, and said at least one function block supplies said
input signal to said frequency-voltage converter when said
operating-setting signal is active.
12. The semiconductor integrated circuit as defined in claim 11,
wherein: one each of said at least one frequency-voltage converter,
said at least one operating state encoding section, said at least
one voltage output control section, and said at least one constant
voltage generation section is provided in common for said plurality
of function blocks; and said operating-setting signal becomes
active at different timings along the time axis for each of said
plurality of function blocks.
13. Electronic equipment comprising the semiconductor integrated
circuit as defined in claim 1.
Description
TECHNICAL FIELD
[0001] The present invention relates to an improvement in a
semiconductor integrated circuit and electronic equipment using the
same, comprising a constant voltage generation section that
increases or decreases a power voltage supplied from an external
power source to generate a constant voltage, and a function block
that uses the constant voltage generated from the constant voltage
generation section as a power source.
BACKGROUND OF ART
[0002] An example of this type of semiconductor integrated circuit
is shown in FIG. 11. In FIG. 11, a reference power voltage 2
obtained from an external power source 1 is supplied to a constant
voltage generation device 3. The constant voltage generation device
3 generates a fixed constant voltage 4, based on the reference
power voltage 2, and supplies it as a power voltage to first and
second function blocks 6A and 6B. The first and second function
blocks 6A and AB convert any input signals 5A and AB based on
corresponding specific functions, to generated output signals 7A
and AB having specific functions. When the first and second
function blocks 6A and AB are in a standby state, the operation of
the corresponding first and second function blocks 6A and 6B is
halted and the current supplied from the output constant voltage 4
is reduced by suppressing the signals 5A and AB by function stop
signals 8A and AB.
[0003] With a conventional semiconductor integrated circuit, the
constant voltage 4 is necessary for enabling response at the
highest operating speed for all operating states for converting any
input signals 5A and AB to specific functions.
[0004] However, when the constant voltage 4 is supplied at the
highest operating speed in all of the operating states of the first
and second function blocks 6A and AB, even if it is necessary for
one function block 5A to operate at the highest speed, it could
happen that such an operating speed is not required for the other
function block 5B. As a case in which the difference between the
highest operating speed and the lowest operating speed in operation
is extremely large, it is possible to consider that a data access
circuit and a frequency converter are used in common within the
semiconductor integrated circuit.
[0005] If prior-art techniques are used, a high power voltage
corresponding to the highest response speed will be necessary for
one function block 6A in such a case, and it is not possible to
control the power consumption.
[0006] With prior-art techniques, although it is possible to reduce
the operating current on standby, a large amount of operating
current is consumed during operation when the semiconductor
integrated circuit contains at least two circuits having different
operating speed respectively and there is an extremely large
difference between the highest operating speed and the lowest
operating speed while in the operating state, because the power
voltage while in the operating state is supplied as a voltage level
at a signal response that is enabled by the highest operating speed
of the function blocks. It is therefore difficult to guarantee the
circuit response speed at both the highest operating speed and the
lowest operating speed necessary for the function blocks, while
simultaneously implementing a reduction in power current.
[0007] The MOS transistors that configure the plurality of function
blocks often have different threshold voltages, due to unevenness
in the semiconductor wafer surface during the manufacturing
process. This raises a technical problem in that the frequency
response speeds will be different for each function block, even if
the same power voltage is supplied to all of the function blocks
operating at the same speed.
[0008] An objective of the present invention is to provide a
semiconductor integrated circuit and electronic equipment using the
same which solve the previously described technical problems and
make it possible to reduce the operating current flowing during
operation and thus reduce the power consumption, even if there are
at least two circuits, which have different operating speed
respectively, coexisting within the semiconductor integrated
circuit, and the difference between the highest operating speed and
the lowest operating speed is extremely large.
[0009] Another objective of the present invention is to provide a
semiconductor integrated circuit and electronic equipment using the
same which make it possible to reduce variations in the frequency
response speeds of a plurality of function blocks, even when the
manufacturing process has created differences in the threshold
voltages of MOS transistors configuring those function blocks and
the same power voltage is supplied to the function blocks operating
at the same operating speed.
DISCLOSURE OF INVENTION
[0010] A semiconductor integrated circuit in accordance with the
present invention comprises:
[0011] at least one constant voltage generation section for
increasing or decreasing a power voltage supplied from at least one
external power source, based on a basic voltage, to generate at
least one constant voltage;
[0012] at least one function block to which is supplied the at
least one constant voltage generated by the at least one constant
voltage generation section;
[0013] at least one operating state detection section for
generating a second signal indicating an operating state of the at
least one function block, based on a first signal including
operating speed information of the at least one function block;
[0014] at least one operating state encoding section for encoding
an operating state of the function block to generate operating
state data, based on the second signal; and
[0015] at least one voltage output control section for modifying
the basic voltage of the at least one constant voltage generation
section, based on the operating state data.
[0016] The semiconductor integrated circuit of this aspect of the
invention makes it possible to obtain the optimal power voltage
necessary for the operation of the function blocks, based on the
generation of a second signal indicating the operating state of
these function blocks, which in turn is based on a first signal
comprising operating speed information (the actual operating
frequency) of each function block. The semiconductor integrated
circuit of the present invention also makes it possible to
implement the supply of the optimal power voltage corresponding to
the operating speed of each function block, even when the threshold
voltages of the MOS transistors thereof vary from the design values
during the manufacturing process.
[0017] This aspect of the invention makes it possible to achieve
the effect of reducing the power consumption by setting power
voltages that are optimized for the operation of each of the
function blocks from a signal period in which rapid operation is
necessary to a signal period in which the response during low-speed
operation is sufficient.
[0018] With this aspect of the present invention, an
operating-setting signal is preferably input to each function
block, and that function block supplies the first signal to the at
least one operating state detection section when the
operating-setting signal is active.
[0019] In such a case, the operating-setting signal could be set in
such a manner that it becomes active at timings on the time axis
that differ for each of the plurality of function blocks.
[0020] This means that one each of the at least one operating state
detection section, at least one operating state encoding section,
at least one voltage output control section, and at least one
constant voltage generation section can be used in common for the
plurality of function blocks.
[0021] With this aspect of the present invention, the voltage
output control section may comprise a digital-analog converter for
performing a digital-to-analog conversion on the operating state
data; and a sample-and-hold circuit for sampling an output of the
digital-analog converter based on the operating-setting signal, and
generating the basic voltage. This configuration makes it possible
to continue to hold a proper basic voltage for each function block,
to ensure the optimal constant voltage for each function block.
[0022] With the present invention, the operating state detection
section may further comprise an integrator for integrating the
first signal; and a peak detector for detecting a peak value of an
output of the integrator, and holding the peak value as the second
signal.
[0023] Alternatively, in stead of the above described peak
detector, the operating state detection section of the present
invention may further comprise a peak-to-peak detector for
detecting a voltage amplitude of an output of the integrator, and
holding the voltage amplitude as the second signal.
[0024] This configuration makes it possible to apply negative
feedback accurately, even when the manufacturing process has
changed the threshold voltages of the P- and N-channel transistors
from their design values, and there are differences in the
amplitude between the rise and fall of the integrator output.
[0025] With the present invention, the operating state encoding
section may comprise a plurality of comparators for comparing the
voltage level of the second signal with each of a plurality of
reference voltage levels; and a decoder for encoding outputs of the
plurality of comparators. This makes it easy to use the second
signal for encoding, for providing negative feedback.
[0026] The operating state encoding section of the present
invention may further comprise a plurality of voltage-dividing
resistors for dividing the constant voltage from the constant
voltage generation section, to create the plurality of reference
voltage levels.
[0027] This configuration makes it easy to create a preliminary
signal when encoding is implemented based on the second signal.
[0028] In a semiconductor integrated circuit in accordance with
another aspect of the present invention, the at least one operating
state detection section is modified into at least one
frequency-voltage converter, and the at least one frequency-voltage
converter converts the actual operating frequency of the at least
one function block into a voltage level.
[0029] As described previously, a second signal that indicates the
operating state of each function block is generated based on a
first signal containing the actual operating frequency of that
function block, then the optimal power voltage necessary for the
operation of the function block is obtained therefrom.
[0030] This frequency-voltage converter preferably converts a
frequency of an input signal that is input to the function block
into a voltage level. This is because the input signal usually
contains the maximum frequency among the signals within the
function block, so it reflects the actual operating frequency of
the function block.
[0031] Since power consumption can be reduced in electronic
equipment in accordance with the present invention, which comprises
the above semiconductor integrated circuit, it can be applied as
appropriate to many different applications, particularly to
timepieces, mobile computers, and portable phones.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS
[0032] FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a first embodiment of the
present invention;
[0033] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing details of a configuration
in which a first function block of FIG. 1 is operating as a
frequency converter and negative feedback is used to modify the
constant voltage supplied to that frequency converter;
[0034] FIG. 3 is a timing chart showing signal waveforms during the
process of applying negative feedback in the configuration of FIG.
2;
[0035] FIG. 4 is a schematic view illustrating the operation of the
operating state encoding section of FIG. 2;
[0036] FIG. 5 is a timing chart showing signal waveforms during the
process of using negative feedback to modify the constant voltage
supplied to the second function block;
[0037] FIG. 6 is a timing chart showing signal waveforms during the
process of using negative feedback to modify the constant voltage
supplied to the Nth function block;
[0038] FIG. 7 is a timing chart of a second embodiment of the
present invention, showing the signal waveforms during the process
of using negative feedback to modify the constant voltages supplied
to function blocks to which the same input signal is input, when
the threshold voltages Vth of the MOS transistors configuring the
function blocks of FIG. 1 are different;
[0039] FIG. 8 is a block diagram of a device in accordance with a
third embodiment of the present invention;
[0040] FIG. 9 is a timing chart showing signal waveforms during the
process of using negative feedback to modify the constant voltage
supplied to the plurality of function blocks used in the circuit of
FIG. 8;
[0041] FIG. 10 is a block diagram of electronic equipment in
accordance with a fourth embodiment of the present invention;
and
[0042] FIG. 11 is a block diagram of a prior-art semiconductor
integrated circuit.
BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
[0043] First Embodiment
[0044] A first embodiment of the present invention is described
below with reference to FIGS. 1 to 6.
[0045] FIG. 1 is a block diagram of the overall structure of the
device in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.
In FIG. 1, the device of this embodiment comprises an external
power source 1 and a semiconductor integrated circuit 10. The
semiconductor integrated circuit 10 comprises a constant voltage
generation section 20, first to Nth function blocks 30-1 to 30-N,
an operating state detector 40, an operating state encoding section
50, and a voltage output control section 60.
[0046] The device of this embodiment is characterized in that
constant voltages V.sub.C (V.sub.C1 to V.sub.CN) that are supplied
to the first to Nth function blocks 30-1 to 30-N, respectively, can
be controlled by negative feedback based on the operating states of
the corresponding first to Nth function blocks 30-1 to 30-N, in
other words, their actual operating frequencies.
[0047] A power voltage VS that is output from the external power
source 1 is supplied to the constant voltage generation section 20,
where the constant voltages V.sub.C1 to V.sub.CN are generated with
reference to basic voltages V.sub.B1 to V.sub.BN. The constant
voltages V.sub.C1 to V.sub.CN generated by the constant voltage
generation section 20 are supplied as power voltages to the
corresponding first to Nth function blocks 30-1 to 30-N. The first
to Nth function blocks 30-1 to 30-N use their specific functions to
modify corresponding input signals V.sub.IN1 to V.sub.INN and
generate corresponding output signals V.sub.OUT1 to V.sub.OUTN.
When the operation stopping signals S.sub.STOP1 to S.sub.STOPN are
non-active (i.e., are at the 1-state) and the operation
determination setting signals S.sub.SET1 to S.sub.SETN are active
(i.e., are at the 1-state), the input signals V.sub.IN1 to
V.sub.INN that are input to the corresponding first to Nth function
blocks 30-1 to 30-N are output as the operation signal S1 without
change to the operating state detector 40.
[0048] When the operation determination setting signals S.sub.SET1
to S.sub.SETN are at the 0-state, the operation signal S1 is not
generated from the first to Nth function blocks 30-1 to 30-N. Note
that each of the operation determination setting signals S.sub.SET1
to S.sub.SETN becomes active at a different timing on the time
axis. Therefore, the operating states of the first to Nth function
blocks 30-1 to 30-N are detected by the operating state detector 40
at correspondingly different timings.
[0049] The operating state detector 40 outputs to the operating
state encoding section 50 an operating state signal S2 having a
voltage V.sub.fre corresponding to the operating states of the
first to Nth function blocks 30-1 to 30-N, in other words, their
actual operating frequencies, based on the operation signal S1.
This means that the operating state detector 40 functions as a
frequency-voltage converter.
[0050] The operating state encoding section 50 detects the voltage
V.sub.fre of the operating state signal S2 and generates n-bit
digitized operating state data D in accordance with voltage level
encoding information that has been set previously.
[0051] This operating state data D is input to the voltage output
control section 60. The voltage output control section 60 converts
the operating state data D into voltages in accordance with voltage
generation information that was set previously. These converted
voltages are supplied to the constant voltage generation section 20
as the basic voltages V.sub.B1 to V.sub.BN.
[0052] The constant voltage generation section 20 modifies the
levels of the constant voltages V.sub.C1 to V.sub.CN forming the
power voltages for the first to Nth function blocks 30-1 to 30-N,
based on the thus-supplied basic voltages V.sub.B1 to V.sub.BN.
[0053] The description now turns to the operation and a specific
configuration for modifying and controlling the constant voltage
V.sub.C1 of the first function block 30-1 of FIG. 1 by negative
feedback, with reference to FIGS. 2 to 4.
[0054] FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a specific configuration for
modifying and controlling the constant voltage V.sub.C1 of the
first function block 30-1 by negative feedback.
[0055] The power voltage VS that is output from the external power
source 1 is supplied to the constant voltage generation section 20,
which generates the constant voltage V.sub.C1 with reference to the
basic voltage V.sub.B1. This constant voltage generation section 20
comprises an operational amplifier 22, a transistor Q1, and two
resistors R1 and R2. The basic voltage V.sub.B1 from the voltage
output control section 60 is connected to an inverted-input pin of
the operational amplifier 22 and the connection point between the
resistors R1 and R2 is connected to a direct-input pin of the
operational amplifier 22. This configuration ensures that the
operational amplifier 22 and the other components form a negative
feedback amplification circuit, such that if the voltage at the
direct-input pin varies with respect to the basic voltage V.sub.B1
the output of the operational amplifier 22 is also changed,
ensuring that the output of the operational amplifier 22 is stable.
The voltage V.sub.C1 that is output from the constant voltage
generation section 20 during this stage is given by:
V.sub.C1=V.sub.B1.times.R1/(R1+R2)
[0056] It is clear that, if the basic voltage V.sub.B1 varies, the
constant voltage V.sub.C1 can also be varied in this manner.
[0057] Note that the constant voltage generation section 20 shown
in FIG. 2 does not include the circuitry for generating the
constant voltages VC.sub.2 to V.sub.CN to be supplied to the second
to Nth function blocks 30-2 to 30-N, based on the basic voltages
VB.sub.2 to V.sub.BN, but in actual practice there will be N
negative feedback amplification circuits, comprising the
operational amplifier 22, the transistor Q1, and the resistors R1
and R2 within the constant voltage generation section 20. In the
state before negative feedback is applied, the basic voltages
V.sub.B1 to V.sub.BN are set to initial voltages.
[0058] The constant voltage V.sub.C1 that is generated by the
constant voltage generation section 20 is applied as the power
voltage to the first function block 30-1. The first function block
30-1 modifies any input signal S.sub.IN1 into any frequency to
generate the output signal V.sub.OUT1, by using flip-flops D.sub.F0
to D.sub.Fm and frequency-switching signals F.sub.D0 to F.sub.Dm,
in accordance with setting signals F.sub.S0 to F.sub.Sm and
resetting signals F.sub.R0 to F.sub.Rm that are generated by a
frequency setting decoder 34.
[0059] The signal S.sub.IN1 that has been input to the first
function block 30-1 is input to a logical product gate AND together
with the function stop signal S.sub.STOP1 and the input signal
S.sub.IN1 is output without change in the function stop signal
S.sub.STOP1 is non-active, in other words, when it is at the
1-state. When the function stop signal S.sub.STOP1 is active, in
other words, at the 0-state, the logical product gate AND does not
transmit the input signal S.sub.IN1; it controls the input signal
S.sub.IN1 to be at the 0-state and stops the functioning of the
first function block 30-1.
[0060] The input signal S.sub.IN1 that is output when the function
stop signal S.sub.STOP1 is at the 1-state is output to the
operating state detector 40 (see FIG. 3) as the operation signal S1
through the operating state transmitter 32, when the operation
determination setting signal S.sub.SET1 is at the 1-state (period
T.sub.1 in FIG. 3). Note that when the operation determination
setting signal S.sub.SET1 is in the 0-state, the input signal
S.sub.IN1 is not transferred to the operating state transmitter 32
and the operation signal S1 remains at the 0-state.
[0061] The operating state detector 40 comprises an integrator 42
and a peak detector 42. The input operation signal S1 is integrated
by the integrator 42 to become an integration signal S.sub.INTE.
The peak value of this integration signal S.sub.INTE is held by the
peak detector 44 and the operating state signal S2 is generated
therefrom (see FIG. 3).
[0062] As described previously, the operating state detector 40
functions as a frequency-voltage converter for detecting a voltage
corresponding to the actual operating frequency of the first
function block 30-1, in order to detect the operating state of the
first function block 30-1. To ensure that the input signal
S.sub.IN1 contains the maximum frequency of all the signals that
are used by the first function block 30-1, the configuration is
generally such that the operating state detector 40 of this
embodiment integrates the input signal S.sub.IN1 and holds the peak
value thereof. Therefore, the voltage V.sub.fre of the operating
state signal S2, which is the output of the operating state
detector 40, is at a level corresponding to the actual operating
frequency of the first function block 30-1.
[0063] This operating state signal S2 is input to the operating
state encoding section 50. This operating state encoding section 50
comprises resistors r.sub.0 to r.sub.n, voltage comparators 52-1 to
52-n, and a decoder 54. The resistors r.sub.0 to r.sub.n are
connected in series and the constant voltage V.sub.C1 is applied to
the resistor r.sub.0. This constant voltage V.sub.C1 is divided by
the resistors r.sub.0 to r.sub.n to generate reference voltages
V.sub.ref to V.sub.refn at the connection points of respective
resistors.
[0064] The voltage V.sub.fre of the operating state signal S2 is
input in common to the direct-input pins of n voltage comparators
52-1 to 52-n, and the reference voltages V.sub.ref1 to V.sub.refn
are input individually to the corresponding inverted-input pins
thereof.
[0065] Thus the n voltage comparators 52-1 to 52-n compare the
corresponding reference voltages V.sub.ref1 to V.sub.refn with the
voltage of the operating state signal S2. This will be described
below with reference to FIG. 4. Voltage is plotted along the
vertical axis of FIG. 4 and if the resistances for the previously
described reference voltages V.sub.ref1 to V.sub.refn are all the
same, the relationships between the reference voltages V.sub.ref1
to V.sub.refn are as shown in FIG. 4. If the level of the voltage
V.sub.fre of the operating state signal S2 is V.sub.P1, as shown in
FIG. 4, the outputs of the nvoltage comparators 52-1 to 52-n is
expressed as (00001111) if represented in sequence by 1 or 0 for
n=8.
[0066] The outputs of these n voltage comparators 52-1 to 52-n are
input to the decoder 54 where they are encoded. The decoder 54
inverts the string of data (00001111) of the signals input from the
n voltage comparators 52-1 to 52-n, from the most significant bit
to the least significant bit, for the encoding. This means that the
output of the decoder 54 is (11110000) in the above-described
example. Otherwise, if the voltage V.sub.fre of the operating state
signal S2 is determined to be the maximum value V.sub.ref1 of the
comparison voltage, for example, the decoder 54 encodes the minimum
digital data (00000000); if it is determined to be the minimum
value V.sub.refn, for example, it encodes the maximum digital data
(11111111); to generate the n-bit operating state data D.
[0067] This operating state data D is input to the voltage output
control section 60 which is configured of a digital-analog
converter 62 and a sample-and-hold circuit 64. Thus input operating
state data D, which is n-bit digital data, is converted by the
digital-analog converter 62 to an analog voltage. Further, the
analog voltage is sampled by the operating-setting signal
S.sub.SET1 at the sample-and-hold circuit 64, and the level of the
analog voltage is held when the operating-setting period ends (when
the operating-setting signal S.sub.SET1 switches from 1 to 0), to
modify the basic voltage of the constant voltage generation section
20 from the initial voltage to V.sub.B1. The constant voltage
generation section modifies the level of the constant voltage
V.sub.C1 based on the modified basic voltage V.sub.B1, as described
previously. As a result, the first function block 30-1 is supplied
with the constant voltage V.sub.C1 fitting to the operating state
thereof, as the power voltage.
[0068] Signal waveforms used in the process of modifying the
constant voltages V.sub.C2 and V.sub.CN by negative feedback for
the second function block 30-2 and the Nth function block 30-N in
the circuit of FIG. 1 are shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, respectively, in
a similar manner to that of FIG. 3.
[0069] In this case, the periods T.sub.1, T.sub.2, and T.sub.N
during which the corresponding operation determination setting
signals S.sub.SET1, S.sub.SET2and S.sub.SETN are active in FIGS. 3,
5, and 6 are set to different timings on the time axis. This
ensures that a negative feedback amplification circuit comprising
the operating state detector 40, the operating state encoding
section 50, the voltage output control section 60, and the constant
voltage generation section 20 can be used in common by a plurality
of function blocks which are the first to Nth function blocks 30-1
to 30-N.
[0070] It is clear from a comparison of FIGS. 3, 5, and 6 in this
case that, if the frequencies of the input signals S.sub.IN1,
S.sub.IN2, and S.sub.INN that are input to the first, second, and
Nth function blocks 30-1, 30-2, and 30-N are S.sub.fre1,
S.sub.fre2, and S.sub.freN, respectively, their relationship is
such that: S.sub.fre2<S.sub.fre1&l- t;S.sub.freN. In
addition, the effective value (area under the rectangular waveform)
of the input signal increases as the operating frequency decreases,
so that the power consumed by the function block increases.
[0071] With this embodiment, if the power consumption of a function
block is increasing, the constant voltage that is supplied thereto
decreases, so that the power consumed thereby decreases.
[0072] The relationships between the peak voltage V.sub.P1 of the
operating state signal S2 of FIG. 3 and the peak voltages V.sub.P2
and V.sub.PN of the operating state signal S2 of FIGS. 4 and 6 are
such that: V.sub.PN<V.sub.P1<V.sub.P2. Thus the relationships
between the basic voltages V.sub.B1, V.sub.B2, and V.sub.BN
generates by the sample-and-hold circuit 64 are
V.sub.B2<V.sub.B1<V.sub.BN. This makes it possible to reduce
the constant voltage supplied to a function block in which the
operating frequency has dropped, enabling a reduction in power
consumption.
[0073] Second Embodiment
[0074] The timing chart of FIG. 7 shows the signal waveforms
obtained when the threshold voltages of MOS transistors that
configure the semiconductor integrated circuit 10 of FIG. 1 are
different for each function block, and the circuitry of FIGS. 1 and
2 is used to apply negative feedback, in a similar manner to that
of FIG. 3.
[0075] In this case, if the threshold voltage of the MOS transistor
of the first function block 30-1 is assumed to be V.sub.th1, the
threshold voltage of the MOS transistor of the second function
block 30-2 is assumed to be V.sub.th2, and the threshold voltage of
the MOS transistor of the Nth function block 30-N is assumed to be
V.sub.thN the relationships between these threshold voltages are:
V.sub.th2<V.sub.th1<V.sub.thN.
[0076] When the constant voltage V.sub.C1 of the first function
block 30-1 is modified by negative feedback, the threshold voltage
of the MOS transistor is V.sub.th1, and thus the peak value of an
integration signal S.sub.INTE1 from the integrator 42 is V.sub.P1.
Similarly, when the constant voltages VC.sub.2 and V.sub.CN of the
second and Nth function blocks 30-2 and 30-N are modified, the
threshold voltages of the MOS transistors in each block are
V.sub.th2 and V.sub.thN, and thus integration signals S.sub.INTE2
and S.sub.INTEN from the integrator 42 are at V.sub.P2 and
V.sub.PN, respectively.
[0077] With the previously described embodiment, the peak value of
the input signal S.sub.IN is different if the frequency thereof is
different, but with this embodiment, differences in the threshold
voltages of the MOS transistors configuring the function blocks
ensures that the peak values are still different, even if an input
signal S.sub.IN of the same frequency shown in FIG. 7 is input to
each of the function blocks 30-1, 30-2, and 30-N. It should be
noted that although only the operating-setting signal S.sub.SET1 is
shown to be active during the period T.sub.1 in FIG. 7, the peak
values V.sub.P2 and V.sub.PN described above are detected in
periods T.sub.2 and T.sub.N during which the operating-setting
signals S.sub.SET2 and S.sub.SETN are active, respectively. The
relationships between these peak values is, as shown in FIG. 7,
such that: V.sub.PN<V.sub.P1<V.sub.P2.
[0078] Since the threshold voltage of a MOS transistor changes
depending on factors present during the manufacturing process,
therefore, the relationship of the threshold voltage V.sub.th and
the voltage V.sub.IN of the input signal S.sub.IN with respect to
the on-resistance Ron of the MOS transistor when it is operating
is: Ron=1/(K.times.V.sub.IN-V.sub.th)- . This constant K is
determined by the manufacturing process of the semiconductor
integrated circuit and the physical form of the MOS transistor.
Thus, if the voltage VIN of the input signal S.sub.IN is the same
and the constant K is fixed, the on-resistance Ron of the MOS
transistor changes with variations in the threshold voltage
V.sub.th thereof. This means that the on-resistance Ron increases
when the threshold voltage V.sub.th increases, and the
on-resistance Ron decreases when the threshold voltage V.sub.th
decreases. Thus the voltage amplitude of the integration signal
S.sub.INTE changes as the output impedance of the signal that is
input to the integrator 42 changes.
[0079] The relationship between the on-resistance Ron and V.sub.th
of the MOS transistor ensures that the relationships between the
peak voltage V.sub.P1, the peak voltage V.sub.P2, and the peak
voltage V.sub.PN are, as mentioned previously:
V.sub.PN<V.sub.P1<V.sub.P2.
[0080] In this embodiment too, the constant voltages V.sub.C1,
V.sub.C2, and V.sub.CN supplied to the corresponding function
blocks 30-1, 30-2, and 30-N are modified by negative feedback based
on the basic voltages V.sub.B1, V.sub.B2, and V.sub.BN that are
modified in accordance with the peak voltages thereof, so that
there is no variation in frequency response speed between the first
to Nth function blocks 30-1 to 30-N, even when an input signal
S.sub.IN of the same frequency is input to the function blocks 30-1
to 30-N.
[0081] Third Embodiment
[0082] A block diagram of a circuit in accordance with a third
embodiment of the present invention is shown in FIG. 8. The circuit
of FIG. 8 differs from the circuit shown in FIG. 2 in that a
peak-to-peak detector 70 is used instead of the peak detector 44 of
FIG. 2.
[0083] This peak-to-peak detector 70 differs from the peak detector
44 in that it holds the voltage amplitude of the integration signal
S.sub.INTE1 in contrast to the peak detector 44 which detects and
hold the peak value of the integration signal S.sub.INTE1.
[0084] The timing chart of FIG. 9 shows the signal waveforms
obtained when the threshold voltages of MOS transistors that
configure the semiconductor integrated circuit 10 of FIG. 1 are
different for each function block, and the circuitry of FIGS. 1 and
8 is used to apply negative feedback.
[0085] The relationships between the threshold voltages of
P-channel MOS transistors configuring the first, second, and Nth
function blocks 30-1, 30-2, and 30-N are such that:
V.sub.thp2<V.sub.tbp1<V.sub.thpN.
[0086] In this case, the threshold voltage of the P-channel MOS
transistor of the first function block 30-1 is V.sub.thp1, the
threshold voltage of an N-channel MOS transistor is V.sub.thn1, and
the voltage amplitude of the integration signal S.sub.INTE1
generated by the integrator 44 is V.sub.pp1 (see FIG. 9).
[0087] The threshold voltage of the P-channel MOS transistor of the
second function block 30-2 is V.sub.thp2, the threshold voltage of
an N-channel MOS transistor is V.sub.thn2, and the voltage
amplitude of the integration signal S.sub.INTE2 generated by the
integrator 44 is V.sub.pp2 (see FIG. 9).
[0088] The threshold voltage of the P-channel MOS transistor of the
Nth function block 30-N is V.sub.thpN the threshold voltage of an
N-channel MOS transistor is V.sub.thnN and the voltage amplitude of
the integration signal S.sub.INTEN generated by the integrator 44
is V.sub.ppN (see FIG. 9).
[0089] When the relationships between these voltage amplitudes is,
as shown in FIG. 9, such that: V.sub.ppN<V.sub.pp2<V.sub.pp1;
the relationships between the basic voltages V.sub.B1, V.sub.B2,
and V.sub.BN that are each generated by the sample-and-hold circuit
64 is: V.sub.B2 <V.sub.B1<V.sub.BN; and the threshold
voltages of each of the P-channel MOS transistors and N-channel MOS
transistors are different for each function block; there is no
variation in frequency response speed between the function blocks,
even when an input signal S.sub.IN of the same frequency is input
to the function blocks, in a similar manner to that exhibited by
the second embodiment.
[0090] This embodiment is particularly superior to the use of the
peak detector 44 of FIG. 2 in that, even if there are differences
in amplitude between rise and fall of the initial integrated
waveform, the voltage amplitude of the integrated waveforms that
are used in common can be detected accurately, as shown in FIG. 9
for the integration signal S.sub.INTE2.
[0091] Fourth Embodiment
[0092] A block diagram of electronic equipment that uses a
semiconductor integrated circuit having the previously described
voltage control section is shown in FIG. 10.
[0093] This electronic equipment 310 is configured of a system
control section 312, a specific function generation section 313,
and a semiconductor integrated circuit 300 that are all driven by a
power source 311. The system control section 312 has the function
of controlling the entire system of the electronic equipment 310,
such as a microprocessor, bus control system, or memory control
system. The specific function generation section 313 functions to
provide specific control over a device such as a data transfer
device, an internal or external storage device, or a input-output
device. The system control section 312 and the specific function
generation section 313 are connected by input-output signals 315,
for inputting and outputting signals and data. The power source 311
supplies a power voltage 314 to all of structural elements of the
electronic equipment 310.
[0094] The semiconductor integrated circuit 300 provided within the
electronic equipment 310 uses an internal power voltage control
section 302 to raise or lower the voltage of an internal
constant-voltage source 303 and thus modify the power voltage
supplied to a group of function blocks 304, when there is a change
in the operating speed of an input signal 301 imparted thereto by
the system control section 312 and the specific function generation
section 313. When the voltage that is output by the internal
constant-voltage source 303 of the semiconductor integrated circuit
300 is modified, the semiconductor integrated circuit 300 generates
a detection signal 305 and supplies it to the system control
section 312 and the specific function generation section 313. This
detection signal 305 is used to convey to the system control
section 312 and the specific function generation section 313 the
instruction that the power consumption of the semiconductor
integrated circuit 300 is being controlled.
[0095] Note that the present invention is not limited to the
above-described embodiments and various other modifications thereof
are possible within the scope of the present invention. For
example, the embodiment shown in FIG. 1 uses the low voltage
generation section 20, the operating state detector 40, the
operating state encoding section 50, and the voltage output control
section 60 in common for the plurality of function blocks 30-1 to
30-N, but these components could be provided individually for each
of these function blocks. Similarly, the embodiment of FIG. 1 has a
configuration such that power is supplied from one external power
source 1 to the semiconductor integrated circuit 10, but the
present invention can also be applied to a semiconductor integrated
circuit in which different power voltages of, for example, 3 V, 5
V, and so on are supplied from a plurality of external power
sources. In such a case, it would be necessary to provide the same
number of constant voltage generation sections as external power
sources.
* * * * *