IP Library Granted Patent US 12665516
Granted Patent B2
US 12665516 · App. 18/559,581 · Granted Jun 23, 2026

Boost-type converter and driving circuit for driving high-side switching transistor thereof

Inventors: Haibo Zhang (Beijing, CN); Linghua Huang (Beijing, CN)
Assignee: SG MICRO CORP
H02M3/1588H02M3/158H02M1/0009H02M1/0016H02M1/08
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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 12665516
App. No.
18/559,581
Granted
Jun 23, 2026
Kind
B2
Abstract

A Boost-type converter and a driving circuit for driving a high-side switching transistor thereof includes an input voltage sensing unit, an oscillator, a logic unit, and a high-side driving unit. The logic unit receives an input voltage detection signal, a clock signal and a pulse width modulated signal, and generates a control signal according to the input voltage detection signal, the clock signal and the pulse width modulated signal. The high-side driving unit generates a driving signal of a high-side switching transistor for driving the high side switching transistor according to the control signal. When the input voltage is greater than a predetermined voltage, the high-side driving unit controls the high-side switching transistor to be in a weak-conduction state or off state for a time period of an inductor current discharge phase.

Claims (24)

1 . A driving circuit for driving a high-side switching transistor of a Boost-type converter, comprising:

an input voltage sensing unit for detecting an input voltage of the Boost-type converter and generating an input voltage detection signal;

an oscillator for generating a clock signal;

a logic unit for receiving the input voltage detection signal, the clock signal and a pulse width modulated signal, and for generating a control signal according to the input voltage detection signal, the clock signal and the pulse width modulated signal; and

a high-side driving unit for generating a driving signal of a high-side switching transistor for driving the high side switching transistor in a plurality of switching cycles according to the control signal,

wherein, when the input voltage is greater than a predetermined voltage, the high-side driving unit controls the high-side switching transistor to be in a weak-conduction state at least at a time period of an inductor current discharge phase,

wherein the oscillator gradually increases a high-level duration of the clock signal in a plurality of subsequent switching cycles to increase duration of the weak-conduction state when the input voltage is greater than the predetermined voltage.

2 . The driving circuit according to claim 1 , wherein when the input voltage is greater than the predetermined voltage, each of the plurality of switching cycles of the driving signal of the high-side switching transistor includes at least first to third time periods, so that the high-side switching transistor is in an off state in a first time period, in the weak-conduction state in a second time period, and in a strong-conduction state in a third time period.

3 . The driving circuit according to claim 2 , wherein, when the input voltage is greater than the predetermined voltage, the high-side driving unit provides a gate voltage to the high-side switching transistor in the second time period is slightly greater than a conduction threshold of the high-side switching transistor, so that the high-side switching transistor is in a weak-conduction state.

4 . The driving circuit according to claim 1 , wherein the oscillator gradually increases the high-level duration of the clock signal in the plurality of switching cycles while keeping the high-level duration of the clock signal unchanged in some of the plurality of switching cycles.

5 . The driving circuit according to claim 1 , wherein the logic unit comprises:

an AND gate having a first input terminal for receiving the input voltage detection signal, a second input terminal for receiving the clock signal, and an output terminal; and

an OR gate having a first input terminal being coupled to the output terminal of the AND gate, a second input terminal for receiving the pulse width modulated signal, and an output terminal for outputting the control signal.

6 . A Boost-type converter, comprising:

the high-side switching transistor and the driving circuit according to claim 1 , the driving circuit driving the high-side switching transistor according to the pulse width modulated signal;

a low-side switching transistor, wherein a source of the high-side switching transistor is coupled with an output voltage, a drain of the high-side switching transistor is coupled with a drain of the low-side switching transistor, a source of the low-side switching transistor is coupled to the ground, and an intermediate node between the high-side switching transistor and the low-side switching transistor is a switching node;

an inductor which has a first end being coupled with the input voltage, and a second end being coupled with the switching node;

an error amplifier which compares a feedback voltage of the output voltage with a reference voltage to obtain an error voltage between the feedback voltage and the reference voltage; and

a control circuit which generates a pulse width modulated signal according to the error signal to control on and off states of the high-side switching transistor and the low-side transistor.

7 . The Boost-type converter according to claim 6 , further comprising:

a substrate control circuit for comparing the input voltage with the output voltage and controlling a substrate bias of the high-side switching transistor according to the comparison result.

8 . The Boost-type converter according to claim 7 , wherein the substrate control circuit controls the high-side switching transistor to couple its substrate with its source when the input voltage is less than or equal to the output voltage,

the substrate control circuit controls the high-side switching transistor to couple its substrate with its drain when the input voltage is greater than the output voltage.

9 . The Boost-type converter according to claim 6 , wherein the driving circuit is further configured to detect an output current and control a gate voltage of the high-side switching transistor according to the output current to adjust a forward voltage drop of the high-side switching transistor.