High response and low consumption voltage regulator, and corresponding method

Abstract: The invention relates to a voltage regulator connected between first (VS) and second (GND) voltage references and having an output terminal (O1) for delivering a regulated output voltage (Vout), which voltage regulator comprises at least one voltage divider (11), connected between the output terminal (O1) and the second voltage reference (GND), and a serial output element (18) connected between the output terminal (O1) and the first voltage reference (VS), the voltage divider (11) being connected to the serial output element (18) by a first conduction path which includes at least one error amplifier (EA) of the regulated output voltage (Vout) whose output is connected to at least one driver (DR) for turning off the serial output element (18), the voltage regulator comprising, between the voltage divider (11) and the serial output element (18), at least a second conduction path for turning off the serial output element (18) according to the value of the regulated output voltage (Vout), in advance of the action of the first conduction path. The invention also concerns a method of turning off a serial output element (18) as a regulated output voltage (Vout) from a voltage regulator (10) changes.

Description: Field of the Invention This invention relates to a high response and low consumption voltage regulator. Specifically, the invention concerns a voltage regulator connected between first and second voltage references and having an output terminal for delivering a regulated output voltage, which voltage regulator comprises at least one voltage divider, connected between the output terminal and the second voltage reference, and a serial output element connected between the output terminal and the first voltage reference, said voltage divider being connected to the serial output element by a first conduction path which includes at least one error amplifier of the regulated output voltage whose output is connected to at least one driver for turning off the serial output element. The invention also concerns a method of turning off a serial output element as a regulated output voltage from a voltage regulator changes, said voltage regulator including a first conduction path connected between a divider of said regulated output voltage and the serial output element to turn off said serial output element upon a change occurring in the regulated output voltage. The invention relates, particularly but not exclusively, a voltage regulator of the low-drop type having a limited internal voltage drop, and the description that follows will make reference to such an application for convenience of explanation. Background Art As it is well known, voltage regulators of the low-drop type are in growing demand for modern electronic devices. These regulators have in fact an internal voltage drop limited to a few hundreds of millivolts, which enhances their effectiveness for a number of applications. In fact, a critical parameter in the design of a voltage regulator is the current consumption of the regulator indeed. In particular, this parameter is of strategic importance to applications involving a limited load current, and especially wherever the regulator is expected to remain in a stand-by state for most of the time and the power supply is obtained by a set of batteries. A prior art voltage regulator 1 is shown schematically in Figure 1 as including a voltage divider 2 connected between an output terminal OUT and a voltage reference, such as a signal ground GND, in parallel with a regulation capacitance Co'. In the example of Figure 1, the divider 2 comprises first R'1 and second R'2 resistive elements, and it is connected to a first input terminal 3 of an error amplifier EA' having a second input terminal 4 to receive a reference voltage Vref and an output terminal 5 connected to an input terminal 6 of a driver DR'. Specifically, the first 3 and second 4 input terminals of the error amplifier EA' are of the inverting and noninverting type, respectively. The driver DR' is connected between a program voltage reference Vcp and the ground GND, and has an output terminal 7 connected to a terminal 8 of a serial output element 9 which is in turn connected between a supply voltage reference VS and the output terminal OUT of the regulator 1. Depending on applicational requirements, the supply voltage reference VS may be used as the program voltage reference Vcp. In order to lower the voltage regulator 1 consumption, a serial output element 9 of the MOS type, i.e. a MOS transistor of the P-channel or the N-channel type, is used which, being voltage driven, makes the internal consumption of the regulator 1 independent of the output current Io. Thus, the internal consumption of the regulator 1 of Figure 1 is limited to a few microamperes, and results from the following contributions: the consumption across the divider 2; the consumption of the error amplifier EA'; and the consumption of the driver DR'. In particular, the consumption of the driver DR' is of fundamental importance to the regulator 1 performance in that it determines the delay in the feedback loop, and therefore, the regulator 1 response to the transient. As shown in Figures 2a and 2b, the driver DR', comprising a MOS transistor M1 and a drive current generator G1 connected in series with each other between the program voltage reference Vcp and the ground GND, is basically an active load amplifier stage; this active load also includes a gate capacitance Cg of the serial element 9. The driver DR' is responsive to a load change, that is, a change in the current Io being flowed through the serial element 9, to cause a change in a gate voltage Vg applied to the serial element 9. While being in several ways advantageous, this first solution still has some drawbacks. In fact the change ΔVg in the gate voltage Vg across the gate capacitance Cg of the serial element 9 (whether the gate voltage Vg should increase, as shown in Figure 2a, or decrease, as shown in Figure 2b) occurs with a time delay T as follows: T = Δ Vg * Cg I I being the constant current from the drive current generator G1. During this time delay T, the serial element 9 delivers a different current from that required by the load, which causes an output voltage Vout' to change. This results in a reduced value of the current I from the drive current generator G1, which may cause a too large time delay T, and consequently, a response to the transient of the regulator 1 having very large changes (perhaps of several volts) in the output voltage Vout'. Thus, the application of such a prior regulator to logic circuits or microprocessors, which are highly responsive to changes in the output voltage Vout', generates serious problems. A second solution instead provides for the driver DR' to be in the AB class, thereby limiting the changes in the output voltage Vout'. Although achieving its objective, not even this solution is devoid of drawbacks. First, the internal consumption of the regulator 1 is increased. Secondly, for a serial element 9 comprising an N-channel MOS transistor, the added consumption of the AB class driver DR' should be supplied by a charge pump within the regulator 1 which would have to be proportioned in order to supply a larger current, and whose provision adds a low output impedance stage which alters the frequency performance of the regulator. A voltage regulator with low common current is known from the EP application No. 0 403 942 in the name of National Semiconductor Corp.. In particular, such known voltage regulator comprises an output stage that operates as a Darlington when the input-output differential exceed a threshold voltage value. Also known from the US Patent No. 4,906,913 in the name of Stanojevic is a low dropout voltage regulator with quiescent current reduction. The underlying technical problem of this invention is to provide a high response voltage regulator having construction and performance features as to limit the internal consumption of the regulator without altering its frequency performance, thereby overcoming the drawbacks with which prior art regulators are beset. Summary of the Invention The idea of solution on which this invention stands is one of connecting a switching circuit in parallel with a drive current generator for the driver of the serial output element, such that the switching circuit can control the gate capacitance of the serial output element at a high response speed. Based on this idea of solution, the technical problem is solved by a regulator as indicated hereinabove and defined in the characterizing portion of Claim 1. The problem is also solved by a method of turning-off as indicated hereinabove and defined in the characterizing portion of Claim 10. The features and advantages of a regulator according to the invention can be appreciated from the following detailed description of an embodiment thereof, given by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings. Brief Description of the Drawings In the drawings: Figure 1 shows diagramatically a prior art voltage regulator; Figures 2a and 2b illustrate respective modified embodiments of a detail of the regulator shown in Figure 1; Figure 3a shows diagramatically an embodiment of a regulator according to the invention; Figure 3b shows diagramatically a modified embodiment of a regulator according to the invention; Figure 4 shows in greater detail the structure of the regulator in Figure 3a; Figure 5 shows a detail of the regulator in Figure 4; and Figures 6 and 7 show the comparative results of simulations carried out on regulators according to the prior art and this invention. Detailed Description With reference to the examples illustrated by Figures 3a and 3b, shown generally at 10 is a voltage regulator according to this invention. The voltage regulator 10 has an output terminal O1 where an output voltage Vout is present, and a voltage divider 11 which is connected between the output terminal O1 and a voltage reference, such as a signal ground GND. A regulation capacitor Co is in parallel with the divider 11. The divider 11 may comprise first R1 and second R2 resistive elements, and is connected to a first input terminal 12 of an error amplifier EA. The error amplifier EA has a second input terminal 13 which receives a reference voltage Vref, and an output terminal 14 which is connected to an input terminal 15 of a driver DR. In particular, the first 12 and second 13 input terminals of the error amplifier EA are of the inverting and noninverting type, respectively. The driver DR is connected between a program voltage reference Vcp and the ground GND, and has an output terminal 16 connected to a terminal 17 of a serial output element 18. The serial output element 18 is connected between a supply voltage reference VS and the output terminal O1 of the regulator 10. The driver DR further comprises essentially a MOS transistor M2 and a drive current generator G2, connected in series with each other between the program voltage reference Vcp and the ground GND. Depending on applicational requirements, the supply voltage reference VS could be used as the program voltage reference Vcp. The serial output element 18 is of the MOS type, that is, a MOS transistor of the P-channel or N-channel type. The voltage divider 11 and the serial output element 18 are, therefore, connected together by a first conduction path which includes essentially an error amplifier EA and the driver DR. Advantageously, the regulator 10 of this invention has a second conduction path interconnecting the voltage divider 11 and the serial output element 18. This second conduction path includes a switch SW driven by a switching stage 19 which is connected in turn to a second output terminal 20 of the error amplifier EA. In the embodiment of Figure 3a, the regulator 10 comprises a serial element 18 of the P-channel MOS type, and said switch SW is connected between the terminal 17 of the serial output element 18 and the supply voltage reference VS. Figure 3b shows a modified embodiment of a regulator 21 according to the invention which comprises a serial element 18 of the N-channel MOS type, wherein said switch SW is connected between the terminal 17 of the serial output element 18 and the output terminal O1 of the regulator 21. Shown in greater detail in Figure 4 is a voltage regulator 10 which comprises a serial element 18 of the P-channel type, in accordance with a modified embodiment of this invention. In particular, the error amplifier EA comprises a differential stage SD connected to a voltage reference, such as the supply voltage reference VS, through a generator G3 of a bias current Ipol. The second output terminal 20 of the error amplifier EA, which delivers a first reference current Id1, is connected to the ground GND through a diode D1, while the output terminal 14, delivering a second reference current Id2 and being connected to the input terminal 15 of the driver DR, is similarly connected to the ground GND, through a generator G4 of the first reference current Id1. The switching stage 19 comprises first CG1 and second CG2 generators adapted to generate first Ir1 and second Ir2 regulation currents, respectively. These generators are connected in series with each other between the supply voltage reference VS and the ground GND, and are interconnected at an internal circuit node A, in turn connected to a switch SW2. In addition, the second regulation current generator CG2 is connected to the second output terminal 20 of the error amplifier EA. Accordingly, the switch SW of the serial output element 18 will be controlled directly from the error amplifier EA, via the switching stage 19, and be forced to switch when the amplifier is unbalanced. Thus, the switch SW can be closed within a very short time, and the switching stage can have a very low current draw in the static condition. In particular, for the regulator 10 to operate properly, the first generator CG1 will deliver the internal circuit node A the first regulation current Ir1, which is m times as large as the bias current Ipol to the differential stage SD of the error amplifier EA. On the other hand, the second generator CG2 will draw the second regulation current Ir2 from the internal circuit node A, which current is n times as large as the first reference current Ir1 to the differential stage SD of the error amplifier EA. In a regulated condition, i.e. in a condition of symmetry of the differential stage SD, the first reference current is given by the following relationship: Id 1 = 1 2 * Ipol Therefore, the second regulation current Ir2, derived from the node A by the second generator CG2, is given by the following relationship: Ir 2 = n 2 * Ipol Under this regulated condition, the switch SW is bound to be open, and the node A to have a voltage value corresponding to a high logic value. This means that the first generator CG1 must be saturated, i.e. that the following relationship should hold: m* Ipol > n 2 * Ipol ⇒ m > n 2 Advantageously according to this invention, as the first generator CG1 is saturated, only the second regulation current Ir2, as supplied by the second generator CG2 alone and obeying relationship (2), will be flowing through the switching stage_19. In the regulated condition, this second regulation current Ir2 is, therefore, the single item of additional consumption by the regulator 10. As the output voltage Vout of the regulator 10 rises above a regulation value, the first reference current Id1 of the differential stage SD of the error amplifier EA will tend to increase, thereby causing the current from the second generator CG2 to also increase. The switching stage 19 will switch as the second regulation current Ir2 from the second generator CG2 exceeds the first regulation current Ir1 from the first generator CG1, i.e. when, n* Id 1 ≥ m* Ipol ⇒ Id 1 ≥ m n * Ipol Under this condition, the voltage at the internal circuit node A will fall sharply, and the switch SW2 drive the switch SW to turn off the serial output element 18, thereby preventing it from delivering any more current Io to a load connected to the output terminal O1 and, consequently, from further increasing the output voltage Vout. A threshold value Vout-th can be obtained for the output voltage Vout of the regulator 10 as the switch SW of the serial output element 18 is closed, that is upon operation of the second conduction path, in view of that the differential stage SD of the error amplifier EA comprises, for example, first Q1 and second Q2 bipolar transistors, as shown in Figure 5. Specifically, these first Q1 and second Q2 bipolar transistors are PNP transistors connected between the supply voltage reference VS and the second output terminals 20 and 14, respectively. In addition, the first bipolar transistor Q1 has its base terminal connected to the second input terminal 13 of the differential stage SD and receives the reference voltage Vref, while the second bipolar transistor Q2 has its base terminal connected to the first input terminal 12 of the differential stage SD and receives a voltage Vfb being a proportion of the split output voltage Vout. Thus, the following relationships are arrived at: where, Vfb is the voltage at the first input terminal 12 of the differential stage SD; Vref is the voltage at the second input terminal 13 of the differential stage SD; Vbe1 is the base-emitter voltage of the first bipolar transistor Q1; Vbe2 is the base-emitter voltage of the second bipolar transistor Q2; Vt is the thermal voltage of the bipolar transistors Q1 and Q2 (as defined by the ratio kT/q, k being Boltzmann's constant, T the absolute temperature, and q the electron charge); Ipol is the bias current of the differential stage SD; and I S is the constant that describes the active forward transfer characteristics of the bipolar transistors Q1 and Q2. From relationship (5) the following conclusive relationship is obtained: From the last-mentioned mathematical relationship (6), a restriction is derived which should be imposed on the switching stage 19; in fact, it must be n-m>0, i.e. n>m. Since the first reference current Id1 of the differential stage SD attains a maximum value which is equal to the bias current Ipol of that stage SD, in order to provide for a switching of the switching stage 19, the first regulation current Ir1, equal to m*Ipol, must be lower than the second regulation current Ir2, which is equal to (n/2)*Ipol in the regulated condition. For proper operation of the regulator 10 according to the invention, the following restriction must be met: n 2 < m < n From the relationship: Vfb = Vout - th* R 2 R 1 + R 2 the threshold value Vout-th of the output voltage Vout is then obtained, as follows: Where the differential stage SD is implemented with MOS-type transistors, by similar steps to those just mentioned for the differential stage SD with bipolar transistors, the following relationship, similar to (9), would be obtained: where, K is the constant that describes the electrical characteristics of the MOS transistors employed (as defined by the product µ n *Cox, µ n being the average mobility of the carriers, and Cox the gate-oxide capacitance per area unit of the MOS transistors); and W/L is the dimensional ratio of the MOS transistors employed. Furthermore, similar considerations would apply to a regulator 21 comprising a serial output element 18 of the N-channel type, as shown in the modified embodiment of Figure 3b. Accordingly, this modified embodiment will not be described in detail. Shown in Figures 6 and 7 are the results of a simulation carried out by the Applicant on regulators of the low-drop type, comprising a serial output element 18 of the P-channel type and a resistive divider R1=374kOhm and R2=126kOhm. The results for conventional design regulators are shown in Figure 6; those for regulators according to this invention, in particular where n=2 and m=3/2, are shown in Figure 7. Both regulators were applied a change in the output load, with a change of 500mA in the output current Io. As shown in Figure 6, the output voltage Vout' of the prior art regulator 1 attains a maximum value of 10V before falling back to the regulated condition. The output voltage Vout of the regulator 10 according to this invention, as shown in Figure 7, on the contrary, has an overshoot of just 180mV. This simulated overshoot is larger than that of 113mV to be obtained from relationship (9); the difference is due to that relationship (9) takes no account of the delay introduced by the closing of the switch SW. These simulation results have been further confirmed experimentally by this Applicant using a low-drop regulator which comprised a serial output element 18 of the P-channel type; this regulator, made with mixed BCD60II technology, had an overall internal consumption of just 10µA. The first conduction path of a voltage regulator according to the invention is active in the regulated condition, that is a closed loop condition. It allows the regulation of the output voltage Vout to be effected for small signal changes, i.e. for infinitesimal shifts in the voltage Vout. With large changes in the output voltage Vout, on the other hand, the first conduction path would be off, and the regulator have to operate under an open loop condition. Thus, an unbalance is established within the regulator, specifically in the error amplifier EA. Under this condition, the circuitry present in the first conduction path will tend all the same to cause the regulator to turn off the output element 18; the delay involved in this turn-off is, however, unacceptable for many applications. Advantageously in this invention, the second conduction path of the regulator is able to operate under the unbalanced condition of the regulator, that is with large load changes. This second conduction path allows the serial output element 18 to be turned off rapidly, thus avoiding unnecessary overshooting of the output voltage Vout. In conclusion, the regulator of this invention affords the following advantages: The switching stage 19 is off in the regulated condition, and accordingly, will alter neither the loop gain nor the frequency performance of the regulator; the overshoot of the output voltage Vout from the regulator can be limited (maybe down to a few hundreds of millivolts) by suitably selecting the design parameters n and m for the switching stage 19; the switching stage 19 contributes to consumption with an amount equal to (n/2)*Ipol, that is a fraction of the bias current of the differential stage SD, this amount being a trivial one compared to the overall consumption of the regulator; and the regulator of this invention has a high response speed to changes in the load, and during the regulator on/off transients.

Claims: A voltage regulator connected between first (VS) and second (GND) voltage references and having an output terminal (O1) for delivering a regulated output voltage (Vout), which voltage regulator comprises at least one voltage divider (11), connected between the output terminal (O1) and the second voltage reference (GND), and a serial output element (18) connected between the output terminal (O1) and the first voltage reference (VS), said voltage divider (11) being connected to the serial output element (18) by a first conduction path which includes at least one error amplifier (EA) of the regulated output voltage (Vout) whose output is connected to at least one driver (DR) for turning off the serial output element (18), characterized in that it comprises, between the voltage divider (11) and the serial output element (18), at least a second conduction path for turning off the serial output element (18) according to the value of the regulated output voltage (Vout), in advance of the action of the first conduction path. A voltage regulator according to Claim 1, characterized in that said second conduction path lies between an output terminal (20) of the error amplifier (EA) and the serial output element (18). A voltage regulator according to Claim 2, characterized in that said second conduction path includes at least one switch (SW) connected between said output terminal (20) of the error amplifier (EA) and said serial output element (18). A voltage regulator according to Claim 3, characterized in that said second conduction path further includes a switching stage (19), being powered across the first (VS) and the second (GND) voltage reference and connected between the output terminal (20) of said error amplifier (EA) and the switch (SW). A voltage regulator according to Claim 4, characterized in that said switching stage (19) comprises first (CG1) and second (CG2) current generators, connected in series with each other between the first (VS) and second (GND) voltage references, and connected into an internal circuit node (A) which is connected to the switch (SW) through a switch (SW2), said second current generator (CG2) being connected to the output terminal (20) of the error amplifier (EA). A voltage regulator according to Claim 5, wherein said error amplifier (EA) includes a bias current (Ipo1) generator (G3) and delivers a reference current (Id1) on its output terminal (20), characterized in that the first current generator (CG1) of the switching stage (19) is suitable for delivering a first regulation current (Ir1) being a multiple (m) of the bias current (Ipol), and in that the second current generator (CG2) of the switching stage (19) is suitable for delivering a second regulation current (Ir2) being another multiple (n) of the reference current (Idl) for the error amplifier (EA). A voltage regulator according to Claim 6, characterized in that said multiple (m) of the bias current (Ipo1) is greater than one half said other multiple (n) of the reference current (Id1) and smaller than said other multiple (n) of the reference current (Id1). A method of turning off a serial output element (18) as a regulated output voltage (Vout) from a voltage regulator (10) changes, said voltage regulator (10) including a first conduction path lying between a divider (11) of said regulated output voltage (Vout) and the serial output element (18), for turning off said serial output element (18) on the occurrence of a change in the regulated output voltage (Vout), characterized in that it provides for at least a second conduction path lying between said voltage divider (11) and said serial output element (18), for turning off said serial output element (18) on the occurrence of a change in the regulated output voltage (Vout) in advance of the action of the first conduction path. A method of turning-off according to Claim 8, characterized in that said second conduction path turns off said serial output element (18) as a voltage at an internal circuit node (A) in said second conduction path falls quickly. A method of turning-off according to Claim 8, characterized in that it provides for said second conduction path to include at least one switch (SW) controlled by said voltage at an internal circuit node (A) to turn off the serial output element (18). A voltage regulator according to Claim 3, characterized in that said switch (SW) is connected between said first voltage reference (VS) and said serial output element (18). A voltage regulator according to Claim 3, characterized in that said switch (SW) is connected between said output terminal (O1) of the regulator (10) and said serial output element (18). A method of turning off according to Claim 10, characterized in that said switch (SW) is controlled by a switching stage (19), in turn comprising first (CG1) and second (CG2) current generators connected each other into the internal circuit node (A), the first current generator (CG1) of the switching stage (19) delivering a first regulation current (Ir1) being a multiple (m) of a bias current (Ipo1) of an error amplifier (EA) included in said first conduction path, and the second current generator (CG2) delivering a second regulation current (Ir2) being another multiple (n) of a reference current (Id1) of the error amplifier (EA), and that said voltage at the internal circuit node (A) falls quickly upon the second regulation current (Ir2) overtaking the first regulation current (Ir1). A method of turning off according to Claim 13, characterized in that said error amplifier (EA) comprises bipolar transistors (Q1, Q2), and said second conduction path turns off the serial output element (18) upon the regulated output voltage (Vout) from the voltage regulator (10) attaining a threshold value (Vout-th) given by, where: R1, R2 are characteristic values of the voltage divider (11); Vfb, Vref are reference voltages of the error amplifier (EA); Vbe1, Vbe2 are base-emitter voltages of the bipolar transistors (Q1,Q2) employed; and Vt is the thermal voltage of the bipolar transistors (Q1,Q2) employed. A method of turning off according to Claim 13, characterized in that said error amplifier (EA) comprises MOS transistors, and said second conduction path turns off the serial output element (18) upon the regulated output voltage (Vout) from the voltage regulator (10) attaining a threshold value (Vout-th) given by, where: R1, R2 are characteristic values of the voltage divider (11); Vref is a reference voltage of the error amplifier (EA) ; K is the constant that describes the electric characteristic of the MOS transistors employed; and W/L is the dimensional ratio of the MOS transistors employed.

Inventors: GARIBOLDI ROBERTO, URSINO RICCARDO, GARIBOLDI, ROBERTO, URSINO, RICCARDO
Applicants: CONS RIC MICROELETTRONICA, ST MICROELECTRONICS SRL, CO.RI.M.ME. CONSORZIO PER LA RICERCA SULLA MICROELETTRONICA NEL MEZZOGIORNO, STMICROELECTRONICS S.R.L.
Application year: 1996
Main classification: G05F1
IPC codes: G05F1