Patent ID: 7843675

Claim:
An overcurrent protection circuit comprising: a sense resistor to generate a detection voltage corresponding to a current flowing through an object to be protected; a first comparator to compare the detection voltage with a first threshold voltage; a second comparator to compare the same detection voltage that is compared by the first comparator with a second threshold voltage that is higher than the first threshold voltage; and a timer circuit to generate an overcurrent protection signal according to comparison output signals of the first and second comparators, wherein the timer circuit is operable to: start to count a first threshold time when the detection voltage has reached the first threshold voltage, when the first threshold time has elapsed with the detection voltage kept above the first threshold voltage, change the overcurrent protection signal to a disabled state and start to count a second threshold time, when the second threshold time has elapsed, return the overcurrent protection signal to an enabled state, and after the detection voltage has reached the first threshold voltage and the first threshold time starts to be counted, when the detection voltage has reached the second threshold voltage, forcibly change the overcurrent protection signal to a disabled state without waiting for the first threshold time to elapse, and start to count the second threshold time.