Patent ID: 8072720

Claim:
An electrostatic protection circuit comprising: a first terminal for outputting a signal; a second terminal for receiving power or a ground potential; a first MOS (metal-oxide semiconductor) transistor including a drain and a source coupled to said first and second terminals, respectively; a first electrostatic protection element connecting said first and second terminals; and a second electrostatic protection element connecting a gate of said first MOS transistor and either of said first terminal and the drain of said first MOS transistor, wherein said first terminal comprises an output terminal, said second terminal comprises a power source terminal or ground terminal, and said electrostatic protection circuit further comprises an output driver circuit having said output terminal as its output, said first MOS transistor being included in said output driver circuit, wherein said output driver circuit includes a differential amplifier circuit for output purposes, and wherein said first MOS transistor comprises one transistor of a differential pair in said differential amplifier circuit.