AI Patent Summary

Patent Document
#US5861861A
United States Patent 115
Abstract
Apparatus for providing multiple of discrete voltage levels to drive a liquid crystal display (LCD) from an LCD module on board a microcontroller chip includes a charge pump with a switched-capacitor that develops the discrete voltages as multiples of the value of a base voltage that remains sub- stantially without change irrespective of change in the supply voltage. A switched-capacitor charging circuit selec- tively charges a capacitor to produce successive additive charges individually retrievable from the capacitor. An LCD drive selectively transmits the discrete voltage levels to activate the LCD according to status of an external system under the control of the microcontroller. Voltage losses that may occur during the switched-capacitor charging are com- pensated to maintain the levels of the discrete voltages free of decay. Compensation is achieved by overcharging the capacitor by an amount substantially equivalent to the amount of voltage loss on the capacitor, using active feed- back obtained from monitoring the charge on the capacitor.
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Patent Classification & AI Product Mapping
Authoritative patent classification definitions mapped to real-world technology domains and commercial product categories.
CPC H02M3/00
Confidence: High
Official Definition
Conversion of DC power input into DC power output
ELECTRICITY > GENERATION; CONVERSION OR DISTRIBUTION OF ELECTRIC POWER > APPARATUS FOR CONVERSION BETWEEN AC AND AC, BETWEEN AC AND DC, OR BETWEEN DC AND DC, AND FOR USE WITH MAINS OR SIMILAR POWER SUPPLY SYSTEMS; CONVERSION OF DC OR AC INPUT POWER INTO SURGE OUTPUT POWER; CONTROL OR REGULATION THEREOF
AI Technology & Product Mapping
Technology Domain:
Power Electronics & Voltage Regulation
Product Category:
DC-DC Power Converters & Regulators
Plain-English Summary:
Systems and circuits that take a direct current (DC) electrical power input and convert it into a different direct current (DC) power output, typically changing voltage levels up or down.
Relation to Claims:
The patent describes an apparatus that generates multiple discrete voltage levels from a base voltage to drive an LCD, functioning as a DC power conversion system.
CPC H02M3/02
Confidence: High
Official Definition
Conversion of DC power input into DC power output without intermediate conversion into AC
ELECTRICITY > GENERATION; CONVERSION OR DISTRIBUTION OF ELECTRIC POWER > APPARATUS FOR CONVERSION BETWEEN AC AND AC, BETWEEN AC AND DC, OR BETWEEN DC AND DC, AND FOR USE WITH MAINS OR SIMILAR POWER SUPPLY SYSTEMS; CONVERSION OF DC OR AC INPUT POWER INTO SURGE OUTPUT POWER; CONTROL OR REGULATION THEREOF
AI Technology & Product Mapping
Technology Domain:
Power Electronics & Voltage Regulation
Product Category:
DC-DC Power Converters
Plain-English Summary:
Direct conversion of DC power to DC power without first turning it into alternating current (AC), typically achieved through switching circuits or voltage dividers.
Relation to Claims:
The invention directly steps up or modulates DC voltage levels using a switched-capacitor arrangement on a microcontroller chip without utilizing an intermediate AC conversion stage.
CPC H02M3/04
Confidence: High
Official Definition
Conversion of DC power input into DC power output without intermediate conversion into AC by static converters
ELECTRICITY > GENERATION; CONVERSION OR DISTRIBUTION OF ELECTRIC POWER > APPARATUS FOR CONVERSION BETWEEN AC AND AC, BETWEEN AC AND DC, OR BETWEEN DC AND DC, AND FOR USE WITH MAINS OR SIMILAR POWER SUPPLY SYSTEMS; CONVERSION OF DC OR AC INPUT POWER INTO SURGE OUTPUT POWER; CONTROL OR REGULATION THEREOF
AI Technology & Product Mapping
Technology Domain:
Power Electronics & Voltage Regulation
Product Category:
Solid-State DC-DC Regulators
Plain-English Summary:
Direct DC-to-DC power conversion performed by solid-state or static electronic converters that contain no moving mechanical parts.
Relation to Claims:
The apparatus relies on static semiconductor components and switched capacitors integrated onto a microcontroller chip to perform the voltage conversion.
CPC H02M3/06
Confidence: High
Official Definition
Conversion of DC power input into DC power output without intermediate conversion into AC by static converters using resistors or capacitors, e.g. potential divider
ELECTRICITY > GENERATION; CONVERSION OR DISTRIBUTION OF ELECTRIC POWER > APPARATUS FOR CONVERSION BETWEEN AC AND AC, BETWEEN AC AND DC, OR BETWEEN DC AND DC, AND FOR USE WITH MAINS OR SIMILAR POWER SUPPLY SYSTEMS; CONVERSION OF DC OR AC INPUT POWER INTO SURGE OUTPUT POWER; CONTROL OR REGULATION THEREOF
AI Technology & Product Mapping
Technology Domain:
Switched-Capacitor Circuits
Product Category:
Capacitive Voltage Regulators
Plain-English Summary:
DC-to-DC conversion using passive electronic components like resistors or capacitors to step voltages up or down, such as voltage divider networks.
Relation to Claims:
The abstract explicitly details the use of a switched-capacitor circuit to develop discrete voltages as multiples of a base voltage.
CPC H02M3/07
Confidence: High
Official Definition
Conversion of DC power input into DC power output without intermediate conversion into AC by static converters using resistors or capacitors, e.g. potential divider using capacitors charged and discharged alternately by semiconductor devices with control electrode, e.g. charge pumps
ELECTRICITY > GENERATION; CONVERSION OR DISTRIBUTION OF ELECTRIC POWER > APPARATUS FOR CONVERSION BETWEEN AC AND AC, BETWEEN AC AND DC, OR BETWEEN DC AND DC, AND FOR USE WITH MAINS OR SIMILAR POWER SUPPLY SYSTEMS; CONVERSION OF DC OR AC INPUT POWER INTO SURGE OUTPUT POWER; CONTROL OR REGULATION THEREOF
AI Technology & Product Mapping
Technology Domain:
Charge Pump Architectures & Power Management
Product Category:
On-Chip Charge Pumps & LCD Bias Generators
Plain-English Summary:
DC-to-DC power conversion using charge pump circuits, where capacitors are alternately charged and discharged using controlled semiconductor switches (like transistors) to generate boosted or varied voltage levels.
Relation to Claims:
This is the exact classification for the patent's core mechanism: a charge pump utilizing a switched-capacitor circuit with active feedback and semiconductor switches to overcharge and compensate for voltage losses.