Patent ID: 8049475

Claim:
A voltage regulator circuit, comprising: an error amplifier for generating an error signal responsive to a reference voltage and a feedback voltage signal; a feedback amplifier for providing the feedback voltage signal to the error amplifier; a driver circuit for providing a regulated output voltage responsive to an input voltage and the error signal; short circuit protection circuitry for selectively protecting transistors within the error amplifier, the feedback amplifier and the driver circuit from a short circuit voltage responsive to a short circuit protection enablement signal, the short circuit protection circuitry comprising: a first pair of transistors connected in series between system voltage and a first node interconnected with each of the error amplifier, the feedback amplifier and the driver circuit; a second pair of transistors connected in series between system voltage and the first node; and wherein the first and second pairs of transistors maintain the first node at a selected voltage responsive to the short circuit protection enablement signal.