Patent ID: 6859087

Claim:
A gate driver integrated circuit for switching a power transistor using an external supply voltage and an external controller, comprising: an output stage configured to be coupled to the power transistor and to detect a desaturation state of the power transistor and to execute a soft shutdown sequence to gradually shut down the power transistor, such that transient over-voltage of the power transistor is prevented during the soft shutdown sequence; an input stage coupled to the output stage and configured to be coupled to the external controller via an external control input, the input stage being configured to control the output stage as a function of the external control input during normal operation; and a fault control circuit coupled to the output stage and the input stage, the fault control circuit being operable to place the input stage in a hold state during the soft shutdown sequence, such that the input stage ignores the external control input during the soft shutdown sequence, wherein the fault control circuit, the input stage and the output stage are integrated in the integrated circuit.