AI Patent Summary

Patent Document
#US5774733A
United States Patent 115
Abstract
Amicrocontroller for use in battery charging and monitoring applications is disclosed. The microcontroller includes a microprocessor and various front-end analog circuitry including a slope A/D converter and a multiplexer for allowing a plurality of analog input signals to be converted to corresponding digital counts indicative of signal level. The slope A/D converter includes a digital-to-analog con- verter (DAC) for providing a programmable charging cur- rent to generate a voltage across a capacitor, a precision comparator having inputs for receiving a selected analog input and the capacitor voltage, a counter and a capture register. After a reset is performed, the capacitor is charged while the counter begins counting such that when the capacitor voltage exceeds the selected analog input voltage, the comparator switches logic states thereby causing the obtained count of the counter to be stored in the register. This stored count represents the time that it took for the capacitor to charge up and exceed the selected analog input voltage and corresponds to voltage measurement of the selected analog input.
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Patent Classification & AI Product Mapping
Authoritative patent classification definitions mapped to real-world technology domains and commercial product categories.
CPC H03M1/00
Confidence: High
Official Definition
Analogue/digital conversion; Digital/analogue conversion
ELECTRICITY > ELECTRONIC CIRCUITRY > CODING; DECODING; CODE CONVERSION IN GENERAL
AI Technology & Product Mapping
Technology Domain:
Analog-to-Digital and Digital-to-Analog Conversion
Product Category:
Data Conversion Integrated Circuits
Plain-English Summary:
General systems and methods for converting continuous analog signals into discrete digital data, or vice versa.
Relation to Claims:
The patent discloses a front-end analog circuitry including a slope A/D converter that converts analog input signals into corresponding digital counts.
CPC H03M1/12
Confidence: High
Official Definition
Analogue/digital converters
ELECTRICITY > ELECTRONIC CIRCUITRY > CODING; DECODING; CODE CONVERSION IN GENERAL
AI Technology & Product Mapping
Technology Domain:
Analog-to-Digital Converters
Product Category:
Data Conversion Integrated Circuits
Plain-English Summary:
Specific circuitry and architectures designed to convert analog voltage or current signals into digital representations.
Relation to Claims:
The patent utilizes an A/D converter with a precision comparator, DAC, and counter to digitize analog sensor inputs for battery monitoring.
CPC H03M1/50
Confidence: High
Official Definition
Analogue/digital converters with intermediate conversion to time interval
ELECTRICITY > ELECTRONIC CIRCUITRY > CODING; DECODING; CODE CONVERSION IN GENERAL
AI Technology & Product Mapping
Technology Domain:
Time-based Analog-to-Digital Conversion
Product Category:
Precision Measurement ICs
Plain-English Summary:
Analog-to-digital conversion techniques where the analog signal value is first translated into a corresponding time duration before being quantified digitally.
Relation to Claims:
The abstract explicitly details converting the analog input into a time interval by measuring how long it takes a capacitor to charge up and match the input voltage.
CPC H03M1/56
Confidence: High
Official Definition
Input signal compared with linear ramp
ELECTRICITY > ELECTRONIC CIRCUITRY > CODING; DECODING; CODE CONVERSION IN GENERAL
AI Technology & Product Mapping
Technology Domain:
Slope / Ramp Analog-to-Digital Converters
Product Category:
Battery Management Integrated Circuits
Plain-English Summary:
An analog-to-digital conversion method where an input voltage is compared against a linearly changing reference voltage, such as a charging capacitor voltage.
Relation to Claims:
The invention relies on charging a capacitor with a programmable current to generate a voltage ramp, which is then compared against the selected analog input via a comparator.
CPC G06F1/00
Confidence: Medium
Official Definition
Details not covered by groups G06F3/00 - G06F13/00 and G06F21/00
PHYSICS > COMPUTING OR CALCULATING; COUNTING > ELECTRIC DIGITAL DATA PROCESSING
AI Technology & Product Mapping
Technology Domain:
Embedded Systems & Microcontrollers
Product Category:
Microcontrollers & SoCs
Plain-English Summary:
General architectural details and supporting hardware features of computing devices not classified in standard input/output, memory, or security categories.
Relation to Claims:
The patent describes a microcontroller architecture incorporating a microprocessor and peripheral monitoring hardware for battery charging and monitoring.