U.S. patent application number 14/293489 was filed with the patent office on 2015-12-03 for adaptive stability control for a driver circuit.
This patent application is currently assigned to QUALCOMM Incorporated. The applicant listed for this patent is QUALCOMM Incorporated. Invention is credited to Sandeep Chaman Dhar, Xinli Peng, Troy Stockstad.
Application Number | 20150349752 14/293489 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 53298606 |
Filed Date | 2015-12-03 |
United States Patent
Application |
20150349752 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Peng; Xinli ; et
al. |
December 3, 2015 |
ADAPTIVE STABILITY CONTROL FOR A DRIVER CIRCUIT
Abstract
A circuit for driving a load may include a control loop having a
response characteristic. A headroom signal indicative of the
headroom voltage of the circuit may set one or more parameters of
the response characteristic. A load sign indicative of electrical
loading on the circuit may further set the response
characteristic.
Inventors: |
Peng; Xinli; (Chandler,
AZ) ; Dhar; Sandeep Chaman; (San Diego, CA) ;
Stockstad; Troy; (Chandler, AZ) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
QUALCOMM Incorporated |
San Diego |
CA |
US |
|
|
Assignee: |
QUALCOMM Incorporated
San Diego
CA
|
Family ID: |
53298606 |
Appl. No.: |
14/293489 |
Filed: |
June 2, 2014 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
327/108 |
Current CPC
Class: |
H05B 45/10 20200101;
H03K 3/01 20130101; H05B 45/37 20200101; H05B 45/50 20200101 |
International
Class: |
H03K 3/01 20060101
H03K003/01 |
Claims
1. A circuit comprising: a driver stage having an input and further
having an output for a drive signal that can drive an external
load; a headroom sensing circuit having an output for a headroom
signal generated by the headroom sensing circuit, the headroom
signal representative of a headroom voltage of the circuit; and a
control circuit having a first input and an output for a control
signal generated by the control circuit, the control circuit and
the driver stage connected together to define a control loop,
wherein the output of the driver stage is connected to the first
input of the control circuit and the output of the control circuit
is connected to the input of the driver stage, the control circuit
having a second input connected to the output of the headroom
sensing circuit, wherein a response characteristic of the control
loop is set based on the headroom signal received from the headroom
sensing circuit.
2. The circuit of claim 1 wherein the received headroom signal sets
a gain of the response characteristic of the control loop.
3. The circuit of claim 1 wherein the received headroom signal sets
a bandwidth of the response characteristic.
4. The circuit of claim 1 wherein the received headroom signal sets
a pole position of a frequency response curve representative of the
response characteristic of the control loop.
5. The circuit of claim 4 wherein the received headroom signal sets
a dominant pole position of a frequency response curve
representative of the response characteristic of the control
loop.
6. The circuit of claim 1 wherein the control circuit comprises an
amplifier stage and a compensation stage, wherein circuit elements
comprising the compensation stage determine the response
characteristic of the control loop, wherein at least one of the
circuit elements of the compensation stage is selectable using the
headroom signal to vary a bandwidth of the control circuit.
7. The circuit of claim 6 wherein the amplifier stage includes a
gain control input, wherein the headroom signal is provided to the
gain control input to set a gain of the amplifier stage.
8. The circuit of claim 1 further comprising a load sensing circuit
having an output for a load signal representative of an electrical
loading on the circuit, the control circuit further having a third
input connected to the output of the load sensing circuit, wherein
the response characteristic of the control loop is further set
based on the load signal received from the load sensing
circuit.
9. The circuit of claim 8 wherein the received load signal sets a
zero position of a zero of a frequency response curve
representative of the response characteristic of the control
loop.
10. The circuit of claim 8 wherein the electrical loading is a
current flow from the output of the driver stage to a load
connected to the driver stage.
11. The circuit of claim 1 wherein the headroom sensing circuit is
connected to a voltage supply of the driver stage and the output of
the driver stage.
12. The circuit of claim 11 wherein the headroom sensing circuit
includes a threshold setting circuit.
13. A circuit comprising: first means for generating an electric
current to drive a load; second means for controlling the first
means, the first means and the second means configured as a control
loop; and third means for sensing a voltage headroom of the circuit
and generating a headroom signal representative of the voltage
headroom, wherein the third means is connected to the second means
to adjust a response characteristic of the control loop using the
headroom signal.
14. The circuit of claim 13 wherein the received headroom signal
sets a gain of the response characteristic of the control loop.
15. The circuit of claim 13 wherein the received headroom signal
sets a bandwidth of the response characteristic of the control
loop.
16. The circuit of claim 13 further comprising fourth means for
sensing a flow of the electric current from the first means and
generating a load signal representative of the flow of the electric
current from the first means, wherein the fourth means is connected
to the second means to further adjust the response characteristic
of the control loop using the load signal.
17. The circuit of claim 16 wherein the load signal sets a zero
position of a frequency response curve representative of the
response characteristic of the control loop.
18. A circuit comprising: a driver stage having an input and
further having an output for a drive signal that can drive an
external load; a load sensing circuit having an output for a load
signal generated by the load sensing circuit, the load signal
representative of electrical loading by the external load on the
circuit; and a control circuit having an input and an output for a
control signal generated by the control circuit, the control
circuit and the driver stage connected together to define a control
loop, wherein the output of the driver stage is connected to the
input of the control circuit and the output of the control circuit
is connected to the input of the driver stage, wherein the output
of the load sensing circuit is connected to a control input of the
control circuit, wherein a response characteristic of the control
loop is set based on the load signal received from the load sensing
circuit.
19. The circuit of claim 18 wherein the electrical loading is an
electric current load.
20. The circuit of claim 18 wherein the load signal sets a zero
position of a zero of a frequency response curve representative of
the response characteristic of the control loop.
21. The circuit of claim 18 further comprising a headroom sensing
circuit having an output for a headroom signal representative of a
headroom voltage of the circuit, the output of the headroom sensing
circuit connected to another control input of the control circuit,
wherein the response characteristic of the control loop is further
set based on the headroom signal received from the headroom sensing
circuit.
22. The circuit of claim 18 wherein the received headroom signal
sets either or both a gain of the response characteristic of the
control loop or a bandwidth of the response characteristic.
Description
BACKGROUND
[0001] Unless otherwise indicated, the foregoing is not admitted to
be prior art to the claims recited herein and should not be
construed as such.
[0002] With the integration of high resolution cameras into mobile
devices such as smart phones and computing tablets, high current
(e.g., >1 A) flash LEDs are typically required for high pixel
(e.g., >5M pixel) cameras. Thus, the power dissipation in power
management ICs (PMICs) that include flash LED drivers is elevated.
Since the flash LED driver is one of the higher power consumption
modules in a PMIC, minimizing the power dissipation from the flash
LED driver is an important consideration in a PMIC design to extend
battery life and reduce thermal risks.
[0003] Typically, a flash LED driver includes an output stage and a
current regulator that regulates the output current of the output
stage. The current regulator may include an error amplifier that is
connected to the output stage in a feedback loop.
[0004] Power dissipation can be reduced by reducing the headroom
voltage of the flash LED driver. Headroom voltage refers to the
voltage drop between the driver's voltage supply and the output
voltage of the driver. However, when the headroom voltage is
decreased, the feedback loop tends to drive the output stage into
the linear region, thus reducing the system loop gain. Conversely,
when the headroom voltage is increased, the output stage is driven
into the saturation region with much larger gain (e.g., 50-60 dB or
higher), which reduces phase margin and thus system stability.
[0005] Further exacerbating the problem is that conventional PMIC
designs cannot anticipate what devices (smart phones, computer
tablets, portable cameras, etc.) the PMICs will be used in, and how
such devices will be used by the end user. Accordingly, a given
PMIC can be exposed to a wide range of headroom voltage conditions
and load conditions and so its design is not likely to be adequate
for all use cases.
SUMMARY
[0006] In various embodiments, a circuit may include a driver stage
for driving an external load. The driver stage may be connected in
a control loop configuration with a control circuit. In some
embodiments, a headroom sensor may provide a headroom signal to
control a response characteristic of the control loop. In other
embodiments, a load sensor may provide a load signal to further
control the response characteristic of the control loop.
[0007] In some embodiments, the gain of the response characteristic
may be varied according to the headroom signal. In other
embodiments, a bandwidth of the response characteristic may be
varied according to the headroom signal. In a particular
embodiment, the headroom signal may vary the dominant pole location
of the response characteristic.
[0008] In some embodiments, an internal zero of the response
characteristic may be set by the load signal.
[0009] The following detailed description and accompanying drawings
provide a better understanding of the nature and advantages of the
present disclosure.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0010] With respect to the discussion to follow and in particular
to the drawings, it is stressed that the particulars shown
represent examples for purposes of illustrative discussion, and are
presented in the cause of providing a description of principles and
conceptual aspects of the present disclosure. In this regard, no
attempt is made to show implementation details beyond what is
needed for a fundamental understanding of the present disclosure.
The discussion to follow, in conjunction with the drawings, make
apparent to those of skill in the art how embodiments in accordance
with the present disclosure may be practiced. In the accompanying
drawings:
[0011] FIG. 1 shows an example of a high level block diagram of a
circuit in accordance with the present disclosure.
[0012] FIGS. 2, 2A, and 2B illustrate frequency response
curves.
[0013] FIG. 3 shows an illustrative embodiment in accordance with
the present disclosure.
[0014] FIG. 3A shows some details for a load sensor.
[0015] FIG. 4 shows some details for an illustrative embodiment of
OP amp 304.
[0016] FIG. 4A shows an alternative embodiment of FIG. 4.
[0017] FIGS. 5A-5D illustrate frequency response curves that
characterize aspects of the present disclosure.
[0018] FIGS. 6A-6D illustrate frequency response curves that
characterize further aspects of the present disclosure.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0019] In the following description, for purposes of explanation,
numerous examples and specific details are set forth in order to
provide a thorough understanding of the present disclosure. It will
be evident, however, to one skilled in the art that the present
disclosure as expressed in the claims may include some or all of
the features in these examples, alone or in combination with other
features described below, and may further include modifications and
equivalents of the features and concepts described herein.
[0020] FIG. 1 shows a circuit 100 in accordance with the present
disclosure. In some embodiments, the circuit 100 may comprise a
driver stage 112 having a drive output 112a that can be connected
to drive a load 10. In general, the load 10 may be any kind of a
load. In some embodiments, the load 10 may be an LED flash
component of a camera; e.g., a digital camera or a camera in a
portable computing device such as a computer tablet, a smartphone,
and so on.
[0021] A control circuit 114 may provide a control signal 114a that
can be used to control operation of the driver stage 112. In some
embodiments, the control circuit 114 may be configured with the
driver stage 112 as a feedback control loop 110, with the driver
output 112a feeding back to an input (e.g., 1.sup.st input) of the
control circuit.
[0022] In accordance with present disclosure, a response
characteristic of the control loop 110 may be set or otherwise
altered in accordance with a signal indicative of the headroom
voltage of the circuit 100 during operation when the circuit is
driving the load 10. Headroom voltage ("headroom") refers to the
voltage drop between the driver's voltage supply (e.g., V.sub.IN)
and the output voltage (e.g., V.sub.OUT) of the driver 112; e.g.,
V.sub.IN-V.sub.OUT. Accordingly, circuit 100 may include a headroom
sensing circuit 116 that senses a headroom of the circuit. The
headroom sensing circuit 116 may produce a headroom signal that is
indicative of or otherwise representative of the headroom voltage
of circuit 100. The headroom signal can be provided to another
input (e.g., 2.sup.nd input) of the control circuit 114 to affect
the response characteristic of the control loop 110. This aspect of
the present disclosure will be discussed in more detail below.
[0023] In some embodiments, the response characteristic of the
control loop 110 may be further set or otherwise altered in
accordance with a signal indicative of electrical loading on the
circuit 100 due to load 10 during operation; e.g., electrical
loading may be represented by the current flowing through the load.
Accordingly, circuit 100 may include a load sensing circuit 118
that can generate a load signal indicative of or otherwise
representative of the electrical loading on the circuit. The load
signal can be provided to another input (e.g., 3.sup.rd input) of
the control circuit 114 to affect the response characteristic of
the control loop 110. This aspect of the present disclosure will be
discussed in more detail below.
[0024] Referring to FIG. 2, the response characteristic of the
control loop 110 (FIG. 1) may be represented by a frequency
response curve 200 (e.g., a Bode plot). The response characteristic
of the control loop 110 may be characterized by a gain (sometimes
referred to as the closed loop gain) that varies with frequency, as
illustrated in the frequency response curve 200. The response
characteristic of the control loop 110 may be further characterized
by a bandwidth (f.sub.bandwidth), which is conventionally defined
as the frequency at which the closed loop gain falls by -3 dB. As
will be appreciated by those of ordinary skill, the plot shown in
FIG. 2 is a straight-line plot of the actual response
characteristic, which is continuous and has a 3 dB drop-off at the
pole position P.sub.D.
[0025] The frequency response curve 200 shown in FIG. 2 represents
poles P.sub.D, P.sub.L of the response characteristic of the
control loop 110. It will be appreciated, that in general, the
response characteristic of control loop 110 may include any number
and combination of poles and zeroes. For example, the response
characteristic of control loop 110 may be expressed as a transfer
function represented by the following Laplace transform:
H ( s ) = G ( s - x n ) a n ( s - y n ) b n , ##EQU00001##
where [0026] H(s) is the transfer function, [0027] G is the closed
loop gain, [0028] x.sub.n and y.sub.n are constants, [0029] s is
the complex frequency j.omega., and [0030] a.sub.n and b.sub.n are
>0. A pole exists for every value of s where .omega.=y.sub.n and
similarly a zero exists for every s where .omega.=x.sub.n. The
disclosed embodiments describe the behavior of the response
characteristic at poles P.sub.D and P.sub.L, and at a zero relating
to pole P.sub.L. However, it will be appreciated from the teachings
set forth in the present disclosure that embodiments in accordance
with the present disclosure need not be restricted to the poles and
zeroes specifically disclosed in the present disclosure, and that
other embodiments may involve other poles and/or zeroes of the
response characteristic of the control loop 110.
[0031] The lowest frequency pole P.sub.D is sometimes referred to
as the "dominant pole" because it dominates the effect of any
higher frequency poles. As noted above, the dominant pole typically
defines the bandwidth of the response characteristic of the control
loop 110.
[0032] The load 10 that is driven by the driver stage 112 (FIG. 1)
can affect the response characteristic of the control loop 110. The
load 10 introduces an external pole P.sub.L to the frequency
response curve of the control loop 110. The location or position of
external pole P.sub.L depends on the size of the load 10 (e.g.,
expressed as an impedance Z). This effect is illustrated in FIGS.
2, 2A, and 2B for different sized loads.
[0033] FIGS. 2, 2A, and 2B further illustrate that as the size of
the load 10 increases (e.g., increasing impedance Z), the external
pole P.sub.L moves closer to the dominant pole P.sub.D. Generally,
each non-dominant pole closer than a decade away from the unity
gain bandwidth of the feedback loop will reduce phase margin, which
can ultimately degrade the control loop stability. If the external
pole P.sub.L is sufficiently separated from the dominant pole
P.sub.D, the effect of the external pole on stable operation of the
control loop 110 can be small; e.g., the location of external pole
P.sub.L in FIG. 2 may be sufficiently far away from dominant pole
P.sub.D so that the control loop 110 will be stable. However, in
FIG. 2B, the external pole P.sub.Lb may be close enough to the
dominant pole P.sub.D that the phase margin is so small that
unstable operation can result.
[0034] Referring to FIG. 3, in a particular embodiment, the load
may be an LED flash unit 30, such as might be found in digital
cameras, portable computing devices, smart phones, etc. The driver
stage 112 may comprise a transistor F.sub.2, such as a power MOSFET
for example. The transistor P.sub.2 may provide a drive current
from the supply voltage V.sub.IN to the LED flash unit 30.
[0035] The control circuit 114 may comprise an OP amp 304 and a
constant current source I.sub.REF. The control circuit 114 may
further include a current mirror, comprising a transistor P.sub.1
and the driver stage transistor P.sub.2, that is driven by the
output V.sub.DRVR of OP amp 304.
[0036] The driver stage 112 and control circuit 114 may constitute
the control loop 110. The OP amp 304 in control circuit 114 may
control the driver stage transistor P.sub.2 in a feedback loop by
regulating the drive current (provided as feedback voltage
V.sub.FB) based on a reference provided by the constant current
source I.sub.REF (provided as V.sub.REF). In some embodiments, the
constant current source I.sub.REF may be a small current source
(e.g., 10 .mu.A). Accordingly, the device dimensions of P.sub.1 and
P.sub.2 in the current mirror may be designed to provide a suitable
P.sub.1/P.sub.2 current ratio in order to provide a suitable drive
current to operate the LED flash unit 30. In an embodiment, for
example, the P.sub.1/P.sub.2 current ratio may be 1:10,000, giving
a current gain of 10,000 at P.sub.2. It will be appreciated of
course that in other embodiments, P.sub.1 and P.sub.2 can be
designed to provide any suitable current gain.
[0037] As mentioned above, the headroom sensing circuit 116 may
generate a headroom signal indicative of or otherwise
representative of the headroom voltage of the circuit 100. In some
embodiments, the headroom sensing circuit 116 may comprise a
comparator 302 to compare the driver stage output voltage V.sub.OUT
provided to the load (e.g., LED flash unit 30) against the supply
voltage (e.g., V.sub.IN). The headroom signal HDRM_out produced by
the headroom sensing circuit 116 is thus representative of the
headroom voltage of the circuit 100 and may feed into the control
circuit 114. In some embodiments, HDRM_out feeds into a control
input IN.sub.1 of the OP amp 304 of control circuit 114.
[0038] In some embodiments, resistor divider networks may be used
to reduce the voltage levels that feed into comparator 302. For
example, the output voltage V.sub.OUT on the load 30 may be divided
down by the resistor divider comprising R.sub.4 and R.sub.5. The
supply voltage V.sub.IN can be divided down in similar fashion as
described below.
[0039] The headroom sensing circuit 116 may include a programmable
current source I.sub.BIAS. The headroom sensing circuit 116 may
include a resistor R.sub.1 to drop the supply voltage V.sub.IN by
an amount, V_hdrm, that is determined by the current source
I.sub.BIAS and resistor R.sub.1 (e.g.,
V_hdrm=I.sub.BIAS.times.R.sub.1). Headroom detection may then be
determined based on the reduced supply voltage level, namely
(V.sub.IN-V_hdrm). The voltage level V_hdrm can be viewed as
defining a headroom voltage threshold. Resistors R.sub.2 and
R.sub.3 then divide down the headroom voltage threshold. The inset
in FIG. 3 defines the constant K, which in a particular embodiment
also sets forth a relationship among the resistance values of
resistors R.sub.1-R.sub.5.
[0040] As noted above, the load that is being driven by the driver
stage 112 can change, depending what the load is, how it is being
used, etc.; for example, an LED flash device 30 can operate in
different modes; e.g., flash, strobe, etc. As will be explained
below, the size of the load can affect the response characteristic
of the control loop 110. In some embodiments, the load sensing
circuit 118 may produce a signal Ld_sns_out that represents the
drive current from the driver stage 112 that can feed into the
control circuit 114. In some embodiments, the Ld_sns_out signal
feeds into a control input IN.sub.2 of the OP amp 304 of control
circuit 114.
[0041] As an example, in some embodiments, the load sensing circuit
118 may comprise a current sensor. Referring to FIG. 3A, for
example, load sensing circuit 118' may comprise a mirrored sense
transistor P.sub.sense that mirrors the current flow through the
driver stage transistor P.sub.2. A comparator 306 may compare the
current flow through P.sub.sense against a reference and output a
signal Ld_sns_out that represents the level of the drive current
flowing into the load 30. In other embodiments, the load sensing
circuit 118 may be load current programming circuit (not shown)
that programs the load current, and the Ld_sns_out signal may be
based on a parameter (e.g., stored in a programming register) used
to program the load current.
[0042] In accordance with the present disclosure, the response
characteristic of the control loop 110 can be set based on the
headroom signal HDRM_out, or the load signal Ld_sns_out, or both.
For example, the HDRM_out signal may be used to set the gain of the
response characteristic, or the bandwidth of the response
characteristic, or both. Similarly, the Ld_sns_out signal may be
used to set the position of a zero of the response characteristic.
As will be discussed below, this can improve stability in the
control loop 110 as changes in the headroom voltage and loading
conditions (e.g., current load) occur during operation of circuit
100.
[0043] Referring now to FIG. 4, additional detail of OP amp 304
illustrates how the HDRM_out and Ld_sns_out signals may be used to
set the response characteristic of control loop 110. In some
embodiments, for example, the response characteristic of the
control loop 110 may be set by setting circuit elements in the OP
amp 304.
[0044] The OP amp 304 may comprise an opamp device 404 having an
inverting input and a non-inverting input. The reference voltage
V.sub.REF may be connected to the non-inverting input through
resistor R.sub.B. The feedback voltage V.sub.FB may be connected to
the inverting input through resistor R.sub.A. The opamp device 404
may include a gain control input G that varies the gain of the
opamp device. The HDRM_out signal may be coupled directly to or
otherwise connected to the gain control input G, thereby allowing
the HDRM_out signal to control the gain of the opamp device 404.
Accordingly, circuit element Z.sub.1 may represent a wire for a
direct connection of the HDRM_out signal to the gain control input
G, or Z.sub.1 may represent some intervening electronic circuitry
that can provide gain control as some function of the HDRM_out
signal. Similarly, circuit element Z.sub.2 may represent a wire or
some appropriate intervening electronic circuitry.
[0045] The OP amp 304 may include a compensation network 402 of any
suitable design. In some embodiments, the response characteristic
(e.g., transfer function H(s)) of the control loop 110 may be
expressed in terms of the circuit elements comprising the
compensation network. In accordance with the present disclosure,
the compensation network 402 may comprise one or more circuit
elements that can be adjusted or otherwise varied using the
HDRM_out signal and/or the Ld_sns_out signal in order to vary the
response characteristic of control loop 110.
[0046] Merely as an illustration of principles of the present
disclosure, consider the compensation network shown in FIG. 4. The
compensation network 402 may comprise a resistor element R.sub.C
connected in series with a capacitor element C.sub.C1, and a shunt
capacitor C.sub.C2 connected in parallel with the R.sub.C/C.sub.C1
pair. The resistor element R.sub.C may provide a selectable
resistance. Setting the resistance value of resistor R.sub.C can
set the position of a zero in the response characteristic of
control loop 110. Similarly, the capacitor C.sub.C2 may provide a
selectable capacitance. Setting the capacitance value of capacitor
C.sub.C2 can set the position of the dominant pole in the response
characteristic of control loop 110.
[0047] In accordance with the present disclosure, the HDRM_out
signal may be coupled directly to or otherwise connected to a
selector input of the variable capacitor C.sub.C2. As explained
above, circuit element Z.sub.1 may represent a wire or some
appropriate intervening electronic circuitry and likewise, circuit
element Z.sub.3 may represent a wire or some intervening electronic
circuitry. Accordingly, the HDRM_out signal may be used to set the
dominant pole position of the response characteristic of control
loop 110.
[0048] Further in accordance with the present disclosure,
Ld_sns_out signal may be coupled directly or otherwise connected to
a selector input of the variable resistor R.sub.C. Circuit element
Z.sub.4 may represent a wire for a direct connection of the
Ld_sns_out signal to the selector input of the variable resistor
R.sub.C, or Z.sub.4 may represent some intervening electronic
circuitry that can set resistor R.sub.C as some function of the
Ld_sns_out signal. Accordingly, the Ld_sns_out signal may be used
to set a zero position of the response characteristic of control
loop 110.
[0049] In some embodiments circuit elements Z.sub.1-Z.sub.4 are
wires representing straight through connections, such as
illustrated for example in FIG. 4A.
[0050] Referring to FIGS. 5A-5D, frequency response curves 502-508
can be used to illustrate the effects on the response
characteristic of control loop 110 when the headroom signal
HDRM_out is applied in accordance with the present disclosure.
Suppose the frequency response curve 502 in FIG. 5A represents a
response characteristic of control loop 110 having a gain G1 and
bandwidth f.sub.b as determined by the dominant pole P.sub.D. FIG.
5A illustrates that the headroom signal HDRM_out can vary the gain
and/or the dominant pole position (and hence the bandwidth) of the
response characteristic.
[0051] FIG. 5B, shows how the frequency response curve 504 changes
if just the gain is varied, for example, if the gain is reduced to
G.sub.2<G.sub.1. Thus, in accordance with some embodiments of
the present disclosure, when the headroom voltage exceeds a
threshold voltage (e.g., V_hdrm in FIG. 3), the HDRM_out signal can
be used to reduce the gain in order to improve stability in the
control loop 110. Referring for a moment to FIG. 4, the HDRM_out
signal can control the gain of the opamp device 404 to vary the
gain of the frequency response curve. Reducing the gain brings the
unity gain bandwidth of the control loop 110 back from frequency
f.sub.1 to frequency f.sub.2. This improves stability if
non-dominant poles exist within a decade or closer to f.sub.1.
[0052] FIG. 5C shows how the frequency response curve 506 changes
if just the dominant pole is varied, for example, from f.sub.b to
f.sub.b'<f.sub.b. Since the dominant pole determines the
bandwidth, varying the dominant pole (e.g., P.sub.D to P.sub.D')
has the effect of varying the bandwidth of the response
characteristic. Thus, in accordance with some embodiments of the
present disclosure, when the headroom voltage exceeds the threshold
voltage, the HDRM_out signal can be used to reduce the bandwidth in
order to improve stability in the control loop 110. Conversely,
when the headroom voltage falls below the threshold voltage, the
HDRM_out signal can be used to increase the bandwidth to improve
the response time of the control loop 110. Referring again to FIG.
4, the HDRM_out signal can control the value of the variable
capacitor C.sub.C2 to vary the dominant pole position of the
frequency response curve.
[0053] Referring to FIG. 5D, in some embodiments, the HDRM_out
signal may control both the gain and the dominant pole position
(i.e., bandwidth) of the response characteristic of control loop
110. The frequency response curve 508 shown in FIG. 5D illustrates
an example in which the gain and bandwidth are reduced. Thus, in
accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure, when
the headroom voltage exceeds the threshold voltage, the HDRM_out
signal can be used to reduce both the gain and the bandwidth of the
response characteristic in order to improve stability in the
control loop 110. Conversely, when the headroom voltage falls below
the threshold voltage, the HDRM_out signal can be used to increase
the gain and bandwidth to improve the response time of the control
loop 110.
[0054] In some embodiments, the gain and bandwidth may change
together, as HDRM_out changes. In other embodiments, the gain and
bandwidth may be varied independently of each other. For example,
circuit elements Z.sub.1-Z.sub.3 (FIG. 4) may be suitable control
circuitry to isolate the HDRM_out signal from the gain control
input and capacitor C.sub.C2 for independent operation.
[0055] Referring to FIGS. 6A and 6B, frequency response curves 602,
604 can be used to illustrate the effects on the response
characteristic of control loop 110 when the load signal Ld_sns_out
is applied in accordance with the present disclosure. As explained
above, the load 10 (e.g. LED flash unit 30, FIG. 3) introduces an
external pole that can affect the response characteristic of the
control loop 110. Consider the illustration in FIG. 6A, for
example. Suppose the response characteristic of the control loop
110 without a load is represented by the frequency response curve
602. When a load is added, an external pole P.sub.L due to the load
may be introduced, which may result in frequency response curve
604. The additional drop off occurring a frequency f.sub.L reduces
stability of the control loop 110 due to a decrease in phase
margin.
[0056] However, in accordance with the present disclosure, the
Ld_sns_out signal may be used to set a zero position of an internal
zero in the control loop 110 to compensate for the external pole
P.sub.L. Referring for a moment to FIG. 4, the Ld_sns_out signal
can control the value of variable resistor R.sub.C to vary an
internal zero of the response characteristic. This effect is
illustrated in FIG. 6B, where the Ld_sns_out signal can set the
zero position of an internal zero Z.sub.L to cancel the effect of
the external pole P.sub.L and eliminate the drop off at frequency
f.sub.L to improve stability.
[0057] As the load changes, so will the pole position of the
external pole, as illustrated in FIG. 6C. For example, in one
situation the load may be such as to introduce external pole
P.sub.a to the response characteristic; in another situation, the
load may be such as to introduce a different external pole, e.g.,
P.sub.b, to the response characteristic, and so on. Each time the
external pole changes, the response characteristic of the control
loop 110 changes. The stability of the control loop 110 can
therefore vary according to the load, as illustrated by the
frequency response curves, 612a, 612, b, 612c, 612d. As one can
appreciate, designing a control circuit 114 (FIG. 1) to maintain
stability under any load condition can be challenging, since the
designer has no control over what load the circuit 100 will be
connected to or how the load may change during operation.
[0058] In accordance with the present disclosure, the load sensor
118 can produce a Ld_sns_out signal that is representative of or
otherwise tracks the load. The Ld_sns_out signal can be used to
adjust an internal zero of the control loop 110 (e.g., via variable
resistor R.sub.C) to compensate for varying external poles
resulting from varying loads, and thus improve stability in the
control loop 110 as represented by the frequency response curve
612. This effect is illustrated in FIG. 6D, which illustrates that
the internal zero can vary to track the external pole as the load
varies.
Advantages and Technical Effect
[0059] Aspects of circuits in accordance with the present
disclosure allow for automatic adjustment of the loop gain and/or
dominant pole position of the control loop based on voltage
headroom during operation, when a load is being driven.
[0060] Another aspect of circuits in accordance with the present
disclosure allow for automatically varying the zero position of an
internal zero of the control loop based on load condition of the
load being driven by the circuit.
[0061] The above description illustrates various embodiments of the
present disclosure along with examples of how aspects of the
particular embodiments may be implemented. The above examples
should not be deemed to be the only embodiments, and are presented
to illustrate the flexibility and advantages of the particular
embodiments as defined by the following claims. Based on the above
disclosure and the following claims, other arrangements,
embodiments, implementations and equivalents may be employed
without departing from the scope of the present disclosure as
defined by the claims.
* * * * *