IP Library Granted Patent US 12,596,396
Granted Patent B2
US 12,596,396 · App. 17/990,096 · Granted Apr 7, 2026

Autonomous adaptively reconfigurable system

Inventors: Eashwar Thiagarajan (Bothell, WA); Bert Sullam (Bellevue, WA); Nidhin Mulangattil Sudhakaran (Lynnwood, WA); Andrew Page (Kirkland, WA)
Assignee: Infineon Technologies Americas Corp.
G06F1/12G06F1/08
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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 12,596,396
App. No.
17/990,096
Granted
Apr 7, 2026
Kind
B2
Abstract

Implementations disclosed describe a programmable analog subsystem (PASS) having a plurality of reconfigurable analog circuits. The PASS may be coupled to an input/output device to receive an input signal and to an interface to communicate data with a central processing unit. A controller may be configured, based on a plurality of parameters stored at the controller, to configure the plurality of reconfigurable analog circuits into a first PASS state. The PASS may process the first input signal through the plurality of reconfigurable analog circuits in the first PASS state to generate a first output value based on the first input signal. Responsive to a trigger event, the controller may reconfigure the plurality of reconfigurable analog circuits into a second PASS state different from the first PASS state. The PASS may perform a function based on the first output value in the second PASS state.

Claims (72)

1 . An apparatus comprising:

an input/output (IO) device to receive a first input signal; and

a programmable analog subsystem (PASS) coupled to the IO device, wherein the PASS comprises:

a plurality of reconfigurable analog circuits;

an interface to communicate data with a central processing unit (CPU); and

an autonomous controller circuit to control the plurality of reconfigurable analog circuits, the autonomous controller comprising at least one timer circuit and at least one control circuit, wherein the autonomous controller circuit is configured, based on a plurality of parameters stored at the autonomous controller circuit, to:

select a predefined configuration from a set of configurations stored in a state table stored in the autonomous controller circuit, wherein the at least one timer circuit is configured to track time intervals for triggering reconfiguration of the plurality of reconfigurable analog circuits;

configure the plurality of reconfigurable analog circuits into a first active PASS state, wherein the PASS is to process the first input signal through the plurality of reconfigurable analog circuits in the first active PASS state to generate a first output value based on the first input signal;

determine, by a sequencer circuit of the autonomous controller, a reconfiguration of the plurality of reconfigurable analog circuits from the first active PASS state to a second active PASS state different from the first active PASS state based on the one or more parameters stored at the state table; and

responsive to a trigger event, autonomously output instructions to at least one of the plurality of reconfigurable analog circuits, the instructions to reconfigure the plurality of reconfigurable analog circuits into the second active PASS state, wherein the PASS is to receive a second input signal or output an output signal via one or more of the plurality of reconfigurable analog circuits in the second active PASS state based on the first output value.

2 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of reconfigurable analog circuits have a higher operating power in the second active PASS state than in the first active PASS state.

3 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the autonomous controller circuit comprises:

the state table configured to store the one or more parameters of a plurality of predefined active PASS states; and

the sequencer circuit, wherein the sequencer circuit is configured to determine instructions based on at least one of the timer or the parameters stored at the state table.

4 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the autonomous controller circuit is further configured to:

receive plain text instructions input by a user, wherein the plain text instructions are indicative of one or more of the first active PASS state or the second active PASS state; and

configure the plurality of reconfigurable analog circuits into one or more of the first active PASS state or the second active PASS state based on the plain text instructions.

5 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the trigger event comprises at least one of:

an expiration of a set amount of time; or

the first output value achieving a predetermined threshold amount.

6 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the autonomous controller circuit is to selectively control one or more of the plurality of reconfigurable analog circuits in at least the first active PASS state or the second active PASS state via a corresponding standardized interface of each of the plurality of reconfigurable analog circuits.

7 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the reconfigurable analog circuits comprise one or more of:

a continuous time block (CTB) circuit for executing signal processing in a continuous time domain;

an analog-to-digital converter (ADC) circuit to process an output of the CTB; or

one or more multiplexers to selectively connect a plurality of pins of the IO device to a plurality of inputs of at least of one of the CTB or the ADC circuit.

8 . The apparatus of claim 7 , wherein the reconfigurable analog circuits further comprise at least one of:

an analog reference block to provide at least one of a voltage reference, a current reference, or a clock signal; or

a finite state machine having a plurality of states selectable according to an output of the autonomous controller circuit.

9 . A system comprising:

an input/output (IO) device to receive a first input signal from a signal source;

a digital subsystem comprising a memory and a central processing unit (CPU) coupled to the memory;

a programmable analog subsystem (PASS) coupled to the IO device and to the digital subsystem, wherein the PASS comprises:

a plurality of reconfigurable analog circuits; and

an interface to communicate data with the CPU; and

an autonomous controller circuit to control the plurality of reconfigurable analog circuits, the autonomous controller comprising at least one timer circuit and at least one control circuit, wherein the autonomous controller circuit is configured, based on a plurality of parameters stored at the autonomous controller circuit, to:

select a predefined configuration from a set of configurations stored in a state table stored in the autonomous controller circuit, wherein the at least one timer circuit is configured to track time intervals for triggering reconfiguration of the plurality of reconfigurable analog circuits;

configure the plurality of reconfigurable analog circuits into a first active PASS state, wherein the PASS is to process the first input signal through the plurality of reconfigurable analog circuits in the first active PASS state to generate a first output value based on the first input signal;

determine, by a sequencer circuit of the autonomous controller, a reconfiguration of the plurality of reconfigurable analog circuits from the first active PASS state to a second active PASS state different from the first active PASS state based on the one or more parameters stored at the state table; and

responsive to a trigger event, autonomously output instructions to at least one of the plurality of reconfigurable analog circuits, the instructions to reconfigure the plurality of reconfigurable analog circuits into the second active PASS state, wherein the PASS is to receive a second input signal or output an output signal via one or more of the plurality of reconfigurable analog circuits in the second active PASS state based on the first output value.

10 . The system of claim 9 , wherein the plurality of reconfigurable analog circuits have a higher operating power in the second active PASS state than in the first active PASS state.

11 . The system of claim 9 , wherein the autonomous controller circuit comprises:

state table configured to store the one or more parameters of a plurality of predefined active PASS states; and

the sequencer circuit, wherein the sequencer circuit is configured to determine instructions based on at least one of the timer or the parameters stored at the state table.

12 . The system of claim 9 , wherein the autonomous controller circuit is further configured to:

receive plain text instructions input by a user, wherein the plain text instructions are indicative of one or more of the first active PASS state or the second active PASS state; and

configure the plurality of reconfigurable analog circuits into one or more of the first active PASS state or the second active PASS state based on the plain text instructions.

13 . The system of claim 9 , wherein the trigger event comprises at least one of:

an expiration of a set amount of time; or

the first output value achieving a predetermined threshold amount.

14 . The system of claim 9 , wherein the autonomous controller circuit is to selectively control one or more of the plurality of reconfigurable analog circuits in at least the first active PASS state or the second active PASS state via a corresponding standardized interface of each of the plurality of reconfigurable analog circuits.

15 . The system of claim 9 , wherein the reconfigurable analog circuits comprise one or more of:

a continuous time block (CTB) circuit for executing signal processing in a continuous time domain;

an analog-to-digital converter (ADC) circuit to process an output of the CTB; or

one or more multiplexers to selectively connect a plurality of pins of the IO device to a plurality of inputs of at least of one of the CTB or the ADC circuit.

16 . The system of claim 15 , wherein the reconfigurable analog circuits further comprise at least one of:

an analog reference block to provide at least one of a voltage reference, a current reference, or a clock signal; or

a finite state machine having a plurality of states selectable according to an output of the autonomous controller circuit.

17 . A method comprising:

receiving a first input signal from an input/output (IO) device by a programmable analog subsystem (PASS) coupled to the IO device, the PASS comprising a plurality of reconfigurable analog circuits, an interface to communicate data with a central processing unit (CPU), and an autonomous controller circuit comprising at least one timer circuit and at least one control circuit, the autonomous controller to control the plurality of reconfigurable analog circuits based on a plurality of parameters stored at the autonomous controller circuit;

processing, with the PASS in a first active PASS state, the first input signal through the plurality of reconfigurable analog circuits;

generating a first output value based on the first input signal;

selecting a predefined configuration from a set of configurations stored in a state table stored in the autonomous controller circuit, wherein the at least one timer circuit is configured to track time intervals for triggering reconfiguration of the plurality of reconfigurable analog circuits;

determining, by a sequencer circuit of the autonomous controller, a reconfiguration of the plurality of reconfigurable analog circuits from the first active PASS state to a second active PASS state different from the first active PASS state based on the one or more parameters stored at the state table; and

responsive to a trigger event, reconfiguring functionality of the plurality of reconfigurable analog circuits into the second active PASS state based on instructions autonomously output from the autonomous controller circuit.

18 . The method of claim 17 , wherein the plurality of reconfigurable analog circuits have a higher operating power in the second active PASS state than in the first active PASS state.

19 . The method of claim 17 , wherein reconfiguring the plurality of reconfigurable analog circuits into the second active PASS state is responsive to the trigger event, wherein the trigger event comprises at least one of:

an expiration of a set amount of time; or

the first output value achieving a predetermined threshold amount.

20 . The method of claim 17 , further comprising:

processing, with the PASS in the second active PASS state, a second input signal through the plurality of reconfigurable analog circuits;

generating a second output value; and

responsive to the second output value, outputting, through the interface, a signal to the CPU.

Assignments (2)
MERGER AND CHANGE OF NAME Recorded Oct 21, 2025
From: CYPRESS SEMICONDUCTOR CORPORATION; INFINEON TECHNOLOGIES AMERICAS CORP.
To: INFINEON TECHNOLOGIES AMERICAS CORP.
Reel/Frame 073140/0554 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Dec 16, 2024
From: THIAGARAJAN, EASHWAR; SULLAM, BERT; MULANGATTIL SUDHAKARAN, NIDHIN; PAGE, ANDREW
To: CYPRESS SEMICONDUCTOR CORPORATION
Reel/Frame 069599/0230 →
Continuity (1)
Related Publication 20240168514A1 · May 23, 2024
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