Patent ID: 7369384

Claim:
A regulator producing a constant output voltage from an input voltage comprising: an input terminal receiving the input voltage; circuitry producing the constant output voltage from the input voltage; an output terminal to which the constant output voltage is applied; an on/off control circuit that turns the regulator on/off in response to an externally applied control signal; and an overvoltage protection circuit that stops output operation of the regulator when, while the constant output voltage is being produced from the input voltage, a voltage higher than a first threshold voltage appears in the output voltage, wherein the overvoltage protection circuit includes a comparator and a switch means, the comparator receives the first threshold voltage at a first input, the switch means is connected between the output terminal of the regulator and a second input of the comparator, the comparator compares an output of the switch means with the first threshold voltage, the switch means receives a predetermined control signal that turns on and off overvoltage protection operation of the overvoltage protection circuit, and the on/off control circuit produces the predetermined control signal for the switch means so that the overvoltage protection operation of the overvoltage protection circuit is turned on and off synchronously with timing with which the output operation of the regulator is turned on and off.