Patent ID: 9293173
Filing Date: 2016-03-22
CPC Classification: G11C

Claim Text:
1. A memory device, comprising: a plurality of dice powered via a power bus, the power bus supplying power for the memory device having a predetermined power capacity, each die having an array of memory cells; a load signal bus connecting to said plurality of dice and carrying a load signal at one of first and second voltage ranges to indicate whether or not the predetermined power capacity has been exhausted by operations among said plurality of dice; said load signal bus having a set of one or more pull-up drivers with a total pull-up strength proportional to the predetermined power capacity; and a pull-down driver in each die connected to said load signal bus to assert a local pull-down on the load signal bus with a local pull-down strength proportional to an amount of power being requested by the respective die, wherein: the load signal is in the first voltage range when the total pull-up strength exceeds the local pull-down strengths of all dice combined, and the load signal is in the second voltage range when the total pull-up strength is less than the local pull-down strengths of all dice combined; and after the amount of power has been requested by a local die for a scheduled operation, the local die either proceeds or does not proceed with the scheduled operation depending on which of the first and second voltage ranges the load signal is in.