Patent ID: 7173802

Claim:
A temperature protection device for a plurality of power devices, the plurality of power devices being housed within a single package, comprising: a temperature detection unit that detects respective temperatures of the plurality of the power devices; a determination unit that compares the respective temperatures, detected by the temperature detection unit, of the plurality of power devices and a threshold value, and determines whether any one of the respective temperatures of the power devices has increased to the threshold value; and an abnormal heat build-up response unit that, when it is determined by the determination unit that any one of the respective temperatures of the power devices has increased to the threshold value, interrupts the current carried by the power device whose temperature has increased, and changes the threshold value used by the determination unit for the temperature of the power devices amongst all the power devices that are disposed in positions that are thermally affected by the power device whose temperature has increased, to a threshold value that is set at a higher temperature than the previous threshold value.