Patent ID: 6998825

Claim:
A DC-DC converter for boosting a voltage supplied from a power source, comprising: an inductor for receiving a power supply from the power source to accumulate an energy therein, producing an induced voltage higher than the supplied voltage, and releasing the accumulated energy; a main switch connected to one end of the inductor for selectively accumulating an energy in the inductor or releasing an energy from the inductor; a main switch control circuit for outputting a main switch control signal for switching the main switch between an ON state and an OFF state; an output terminal through which a current is passed when the inductor releases an energy to output a boosted voltage; a sub-switch for selectively passing a current through the output terminal when the inductor releases an energy; an error detection circuit for detecting a voltage difference between a voltage outputted from the output terminal and a target voltage; an error/pulse conversion circuit for outputting a PWM signal having a pulse width according to the voltage difference; a sub-switch control circuit for outputting a sub-switch control signal for switching the sub-switch between an ON state and an OFF state based on the PWM signal; and a voltage control circuit provided between the sub-switch control circuit and the sub-switch for controlling a potential applied to a control terminal of the sub-switch according to the sub-switch control signal.