CN113544956A - Redistributing regulator phases within a phase redundant voltage regulator device - Google Patents

Redistributing regulator phases within a phase redundant voltage regulator device Download PDF

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Publication number
CN113544956A
CN113544956A CN202080019165.7A CN202080019165A CN113544956A CN 113544956 A CN113544956 A CN 113544956A CN 202080019165 A CN202080019165 A CN 202080019165A CN 113544956 A CN113544956 A CN 113544956A
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China
Prior art keywords
phase
regulator
phases
voltage regulator
voltage
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CN202080019165.7A
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Chinese (zh)
Inventor
M·L·米勒
E·斯温森
P·伊根
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International Business Machines Corp
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International Business Machines Corp
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Priority claimed from US16/364,967 external-priority patent/US10739803B1/en
Priority claimed from US16/365,002 external-priority patent/US10615691B1/en
Application filed by International Business Machines Corp filed Critical International Business Machines Corp
Publication of CN113544956A publication Critical patent/CN113544956A/en
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    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H02—GENERATION; CONVERSION OR DISTRIBUTION OF ELECTRIC POWER
    • H02M—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
    • H02M1/00—Details of apparatus for conversion
    • H02M1/32—Means for protecting converters other than automatic disconnection
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H02—GENERATION; CONVERSION OR DISTRIBUTION OF ELECTRIC POWER
    • H02M—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
    • H02M3/00—Conversion of dc power input into dc power output
    • H02M3/02—Conversion of dc power input into dc power output without intermediate conversion into ac
    • H02M3/04—Conversion of dc power input into dc power output without intermediate conversion into ac by static converters
    • H02M3/10—Conversion of dc power input into dc power output without intermediate conversion into ac by static converters using discharge tubes with control electrode or semiconductor devices with control electrode
    • H02M3/145—Conversion of dc power input into dc power output without intermediate conversion into ac by static converters using discharge tubes with control electrode or semiconductor devices with control electrode using devices of a triode or transistor type requiring continuous application of a control signal
    • H02M3/155—Conversion of dc power input into dc power output without intermediate conversion into ac by static converters using discharge tubes with control electrode or semiconductor devices with control electrode using devices of a triode or transistor type requiring continuous application of a control signal using semiconductor devices only
    • H02M3/156—Conversion of dc power input into dc power output without intermediate conversion into ac by static converters using discharge tubes with control electrode or semiconductor devices with control electrode using devices of a triode or transistor type requiring continuous application of a control signal using semiconductor devices only with automatic control of output voltage or current, e.g. switching regulators
    • H02M3/158—Conversion of dc power input into dc power output without intermediate conversion into ac by static converters using discharge tubes with control electrode or semiconductor devices with control electrode using devices of a triode or transistor type requiring continuous application of a control signal using semiconductor devices only with automatic control of output voltage or current, e.g. switching regulators including plural semiconductor devices as final control devices for a single load
    • H02M3/1584—Conversion of dc power input into dc power output without intermediate conversion into ac by static converters using discharge tubes with control electrode or semiconductor devices with control electrode using devices of a triode or transistor type requiring continuous application of a control signal using semiconductor devices only with automatic control of output voltage or current, e.g. switching regulators including plural semiconductor devices as final control devices for a single load with a plurality of power processing stages connected in parallel
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H02—GENERATION; CONVERSION OR DISTRIBUTION OF ELECTRIC POWER
    • H02M—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
    • H02M1/00—Details of apparatus for conversion
    • H02M1/32—Means for protecting converters other than automatic disconnection
    • H02M1/325—Means for protecting converters other than automatic disconnection with means for allowing continuous operation despite a fault, i.e. fault tolerant converters
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H02—GENERATION; CONVERSION OR DISTRIBUTION OF ELECTRIC POWER
    • H02M—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
    • H02M3/00—Conversion of dc power input into dc power output
    • H02M3/02—Conversion of dc power input into dc power output without intermediate conversion into ac
    • H02M3/04—Conversion of dc power input into dc power output without intermediate conversion into ac by static converters
    • H02M3/10—Conversion of dc power input into dc power output without intermediate conversion into ac by static converters using discharge tubes with control electrode or semiconductor devices with control electrode
    • H02M3/145—Conversion of dc power input into dc power output without intermediate conversion into ac by static converters using discharge tubes with control electrode or semiconductor devices with control electrode using devices of a triode or transistor type requiring continuous application of a control signal
    • H02M3/155—Conversion of dc power input into dc power output without intermediate conversion into ac by static converters using discharge tubes with control electrode or semiconductor devices with control electrode using devices of a triode or transistor type requiring continuous application of a control signal using semiconductor devices only
    • H02M3/156—Conversion of dc power input into dc power output without intermediate conversion into ac by static converters using discharge tubes with control electrode or semiconductor devices with control electrode using devices of a triode or transistor type requiring continuous application of a control signal using semiconductor devices only with automatic control of output voltage or current, e.g. switching regulators
    • H02M3/158—Conversion of dc power input into dc power output without intermediate conversion into ac by static converters using discharge tubes with control electrode or semiconductor devices with control electrode using devices of a triode or transistor type requiring continuous application of a control signal using semiconductor devices only with automatic control of output voltage or current, e.g. switching regulators including plural semiconductor devices as final control devices for a single load
    • H02M3/1584—Conversion of dc power input into dc power output without intermediate conversion into ac by static converters using discharge tubes with control electrode or semiconductor devices with control electrode using devices of a triode or transistor type requiring continuous application of a control signal using semiconductor devices only with automatic control of output voltage or current, e.g. switching regulators including plural semiconductor devices as final control devices for a single load with a plurality of power processing stages connected in parallel
    • H02M3/1586—Conversion of dc power input into dc power output without intermediate conversion into ac by static converters using discharge tubes with control electrode or semiconductor devices with control electrode using devices of a triode or transistor type requiring continuous application of a control signal using semiconductor devices only with automatic control of output voltage or current, e.g. switching regulators including plural semiconductor devices as final control devices for a single load with a plurality of power processing stages connected in parallel switched with a phase shift, i.e. interleaved

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  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Power Engineering (AREA)
  • Dc-Dc Converters (AREA)

Abstract

A phase redundant voltage regulator apparatus includes a plurality of sets of regulator phases, each set of regulator phases having a multi-phase controller (MPC) connected to each regulator phase. The MPC communicates to the control logic a phase fault signal and a Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) or shared current (I) received from each dedicated regulator phase of the phase groupSHARE) A phase control signal. The standby regulator phase includes an output OR operator to limit current flow into the standby regulator phase output. The output switching device is configured to electrically couple the standby regulator phase output to the common regulator output. The control logic is connected to the phase group MPC,and asserts a phase enable signal to the standby regulator phase, transmits a phase control signal to the standby regulator phase, and receives a phase fault signal from the standby regulator phase. The control logic electrically interconnects the backup regulator phase to the phase group including the failed regulator phase in response to receiving the phase fault signal from the MPC.

Description

Redistributing regulator phases within a phase redundant voltage regulator device
Background
The present disclosure relates generally to voltage regulator circuits. In particular, the present disclosure relates to redistributing shared redundant regulator phases within a phase redundant voltage regulator circuit.
A voltage regulator is an electronic device or system designed to receive an input voltage and automatically maintain a constant voltage level on one or more output terminals. Depending on the design, a voltage regulator may be used to regulate one or more Alternating Current (AC) or Direct Current (DC) voltages. Voltage regulators may be included in electronic devices, such as computer power supplies, where the voltage regulator may be used to stabilize DC voltages used to power electronic components, such as processors, memory devices, and other types of Integrated Circuits (ICs). The voltage regulator circuit may receive a feedback voltage received from a sensing point located adjacent to an electronic component to which the voltage regulator supplies power. The feedback voltage may be used to modulate the output voltage of the voltage regulator. This modulated output voltage may cause the voltage received by the supplied electronic components to be maintained at a stable value regardless of the current draw of these components or the voltage drop across the conductors interconnecting the voltage regulator to these components.
A Field Effect Transistor (FET) is a transistor that uses an electric field to control the shape of, and thus the conductivity of, a channel of one type of carrier in a semiconductor material. The FETs may be unipolar transistors because they may involve single-carrier type operation. The FET may be a majority charge carrier device, in which current is carried primarily by majority carriers, or a minority charge carrier device, in which current is due primarily to the flow of minority carriers. A FET device may consist of an active channel through which charge carriers, electrons or holes flow from the source to the drain. The source and drain terminal conductors may be connected to the semiconductor through ohmic contacts. The conductivity of the channel may be a function of the potential applied across the gate and source terminals.
Disclosure of Invention
Embodiments may relate to phase redundant voltage regulator devices. The phase redundant voltage regulator device may include a plurality of regulator phases, each regulator phase including a regulator electrically coupled to receive an input voltage at a regulator input and to provide a respective output voltage at a regulator output. The phase redundant voltage regulator apparatus may include a set of phase groups of the plurality of regulator phases, the set of phase groups including a first phase group and a second phase group. Each phase group may include a common regulator output electrically interconnected with the regulator inputs of the regulators of the phase group, a common regulator output electrically interconnected with the regulator outputs of the regulators of the phase group and at least one redundant regulator. Each phase bank may also include at least one dedicated regulator phase of the plurality of regulator phases and at least one backup regulator phase of the set of backup regulator phases. Each phase group may further include one multi-phase controller (MPC) electrically coupled to each dedicated regulator phase of the phase group, the MPC configured to communicate a phase fault signal to the control logic and Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) and shared current (I) received from each dedicated regulator phase of the corresponding phase groupSHARE) One of the phase control signals. The phase redundant voltage regulator device may also include the set of backup regulator phases of the plurality of regulator phases, the set of backup regulator phases including a first backup regulator phase and a second backup regulator phase. Each backup regulator phase may include: a secondary output OR operation device electrically coupled and configured to limit current flow into the secondary output of the standby regulator phase; and a first output switching device configured to electrically couple the regulator outputs of the standby regulator phases to the first common regulator output in response to the first phase enable signal. Each of the backup regulator phases may include a second output switching device configured to switch the backup regulator phase in response to a second phase enable signalThe regulator outputs are electrically coupled to a second common regulator output and control logic. The control logic is electrically connected to the MPC for each phase group in the set of phase groups, the control logic configured to receive the phase control signals from the MPC and exchange phase fault signals with the MPC. The control logic is also electrically connected to a backup regulator phase of the set of backup regulator phases. The control logic is further configured to assert the phase enable signal to transmit the phase control signal to the backup regulator phase and to receive the phase fail signal from the backup regulator phase. The control logic is further configured to electrically interconnect the backup regulator phase to the phase group including the failed regulator phase in response to receiving the phase fault signal from the MPC.
Embodiments may also be directed to a method for reallocating a set of backup voltage regulator phases among a set of phases of a voltage regulator phase. The method includes using control logic responsive to a system control function and responsive to monitored phase fault signals received from the phase group. The method includes storing, using control logic, an association between a first portion of a set of standby voltage regulator phases and an "allocated" state into non-volatile memory within the control logic. The method also includes storing, with the control logic, an association between a second portion of the set of standby voltage regulator phases and the "unallocated" state into a non-volatile memory within the control logic using the control logic. The method also includes detecting, using the control logic, a phase fault signal from a first damaged one of the groups of phases using the control logic. The method also includes transferring, using the control logic, at least one backup voltage regulator phase of the second portion of the set of backup voltage regulator phases to the first damaged phase group in response to detecting the phase fault signal.
Embodiments may also relate to a method for reallocating a set of backup voltage regulator phases among a group of phases of a voltage regulator phase, the method comprising using control logic responsive to a system control function and responsive to monitored phase fault signals received from the group of phases. The method includes storing, using control logic, an association between a first portion of a set of standby voltage regulator phases and an "allocated" state into non-volatile memory within the control logic. The method includes storing, with the control logic, an association between a second portion of the set of standby voltage regulator phases and an "unallocated" state into a non-volatile memory within the control logic using the control logic. The method includes detecting a phase fault signal from a first damaged one of the groups of phases with the control logic using the control logic. The method includes transferring, using control logic, at least one backup voltage regulator phase of a second portion of the set of backup voltage regulator phases to the first damaged phase group in response to detecting the phase fault signal.
The above summary is not intended to describe each illustrated embodiment or every implementation of the present disclosure.
Drawings
The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and form a part of the specification, are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification. Which illustrate embodiments of the disclosure and, together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the disclosure. These drawings illustrate only certain embodiments and do not limit the disclosure.
Fig. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a phase redundant voltage regulator apparatus according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.
Fig. 2 includes two views depicting a voltage regulator phase and a standby voltage regulator phase according to embodiments consistent with the figures.
Fig. 3 is a block diagram depicting a phase redundant voltage regulator apparatus with shared assignable redundant spares in accordance with an embodiment consistent with the figures.
Fig. 4 is a flow diagram depicting a method for passing assignable backup regulator phases among groups of phases of a voltage regulator according to an embodiment consistent with the figures.
FIG. 5 is a flow chart depicting a method for reallocating regulator phases among a phase group of regulators according to an embodiment consistent with the accompanying figures.
FIG. 6 is a flow chart depicting a method for reallocating regulator phases among a phase group of regulators according to an embodiment consistent with the accompanying figures.
While the invention is amenable to various modifications and alternative forms, specifics thereof have been shown by way of example in the drawings and will be described in detail. It should be understood, however, that the intention is not to limit the invention to the particular embodiments described. On the contrary, the intention is to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the invention.
In the drawings and detailed description, like reference numerals generally refer to like parts, components, steps and processes.
Detailed Description
Certain embodiments of the present disclosure may be understood in the context of reallocating shared redundant regulator phases within a phase redundant voltage regulator circuit. Reallocating such shared regulator phases can help provide phase redundancy and robust power delivery at reduced cost and design complexity. Reallocating shared redundant regulator phases within a voltage regulator circuit may provide increased reliability power delivery to an electronic system.
Embodiments may provide for the reallocation of shared redundancy adjuster phases to an electronic device, such as a server, that may be used to provide data to clients attached to the server over a network. Such servers may include, but are not limited to, web servers, application servers, mail servers, and virtual servers. Although not necessarily limited thereto, the embodiments discussed in this context may facilitate an understanding of different aspects of the invention. Certain embodiments may also relate to other devices and associated applications, such as providing for reassignment of shared redundant regulator phases to electronic devices (such as computing systems) that may be used in a wide variety of computing and data processing applications. Such computing systems may include, but are not limited to, supercomputers, High Performance Computing (HPC) systems, and other types of special purpose computers. Embodiments may also be directed to the redistribution of shared redundant regulator phases for devices in, for example, telecommunications, airborne, and automotive applications.
The acronym "FET" is used herein with reference to field effect transistors that may be useful within voltage regulator designs to interconnect two circuit nodes by providing a relatively low impedance electrical connection between the nodes. It will be appreciated that in an embodiment, a voltage regulator designer may select different types of FETs to meet the electrical performance criteria of certain voltage regulator designs. Such FET types may include, but are not limited to, enhancement, depletion, N-channel field effect transistor (NFET) and P-channel field effect transistor (PFET) devices. Such FETs may also be referred to as "power FETs" and "power metal oxide semiconductor field effect transistors" (MOSFETs) without loss of meaning. It will also be appreciated that in some embodiments, different other types of electronic devices may be used in place of the FETs. Such electronic devices may include, but are not limited to, bipolar devices such as NPN and PNP transistors, as well as transistors fabricated in other semiconductor technologies.
For ease of discussion and illustration, the terms "OR operator" and "OR operator FET" may be used interchangeably without loss of meaning to refer to a semiconductor device configured to prevent current flow into the voltage regulator phase output. Although the FET symbol (e.g., 244) in fig. 2 is used to represent such a device, this should not be construed as limiting; as mentioned above, other types of devices may be used for similar purposes.
The descriptor "OR operation" used herein with reference to, for example, "OR operation means", "OR operation FET", and "OR operation regulator" may be understood to refer to a logical OR function and an output protection function of a device (e.g., FET OR voltage regulator). Such devices and voltage regulators are protected from reverse current flow into the device output by a FET configured to perform in a similar manner to an output protection diode.
The terms "phase" and "regulator phase" are used interchangeably herein with reference to redundant voltage regulators used within a voltage regulator device. Voltage regulator phases are typically activated by a multi-phase controller (MPC) at a time different from the activation times of other voltage regulators. This is often referred to as activation "out of phase" with other voltage regulators.
A wide range of electronic systems employ voltage regulators to provide power delivery at a stable voltage to electronic components within the system. Such electronic systems may include, but are not limited to, computers, computing devices, servers, and devices used in telecommunications, onboard and automotive applications. Components within the system may include, but are not limited to, Central Processing Units (CPUs), Graphics Processing Units (GPUs), other Integrated Circuit (IC) types, hard disk drives, Solid State Drives (SSDs), memory, and other types of electronic components and devices.
The voltage regulator may be electrically connected between the power source and a component designated to receive a voltage lower than the voltage provided by the power source. For example, the power supply may provide various voltages, such as 12V, 24V, or 48VDC, to the voltage regulator. The output voltage of the voltage regulator may include, for example, 3.3V, 2.5V, 1.8V, 1.0V, 0.7V, or any other voltage designated as appropriate for the electronic components and systems being powered.
Voltage regulators including phase redundant regulators connected in parallel may provide many benefits to different electronic systems to which they supply power. For example, such voltage regulators may provide increased system reliability and robustness due to the ability of the voltage regulator device to dynamically and automatically replace a failed or failed regulator phase with a redundant backup or "backup" phase. The regulator phase may fail due to a failure (e.g., a short circuit) of one or more components within the regulator phase, such as a capacitor, FET, amplifier, or driver circuit.
As a result of reducing the number of decoupling capacitors within the phase redundant voltage regulator design, electronic system reliability may also increase. This reduction in capacitor count may result in a reduction in the effective failure rate of the voltage regulator. Adding one or more redundant or standby phases to a voltage regulator design may also increase the reliability of the design by reducing the total current requirements imposed on each of the plurality of redundant phases included within the voltage regulator.
Using a phase redundant voltage regulator with phases activated at staggered times may also result in reduced output voltage ripple and enhanced transient response to changes in the current load placed on the phases. Multiple redundant regulator phases may be particularly useful in managing overall voltage regulator system cost. According to an embodiment, the cost of a voltage regulator using multiple smaller, redundant regulator phases may be significantly less than the cost of a regulator using fewer, larger regulator phases, each with a greater current output.
Certain types of electronic systems may use phase redundant voltage regulators to power certain subsystems and electronic components. To ensure reliable operation of the system in the event of failure of one or more voltage regulators, additional redundant voltage regulator phases may be added to each individual voltage domain or output level in order to restore regulator current supply capacity caused by failure of one or more voltage regulator phases. In addition to voltage regulator phase faults, the current supply requirements of a particular voltage domain may change over time due to changing system configurations and/or throttling load circuits (e.g., CPU, GPU, or memory circuits).
However, the approach of adding additional redundant voltage regulators to each voltage level may not be particularly effective or cost effective. Excessive and unnecessary cost, consumed power, system space/area, and design complexity may result from using this approach. A more efficient voltage regulator design approach is desirable; this approach reduces the number of components used, cost, power consumed, system area, and design complexity.
According to embodiments, redundant, backup voltage regulators may be added to the voltage regulator design (e.g., internal or external to the bank of phases) and may be distributed or shared between the various voltage domains on an "as needed" basis. Control logic may monitor the voltage supply circuit for voltage regulator faults and may supervise the redistribution of the standby voltage regulator phases on demand in response to regulator faults, system loads, and system configuration changes in order to provide robust, uninterrupted power delivery across all voltage levels/domains.
The figures herein depict certain example circuits, functions, electrical interconnections, and component interactions for implementing embodiments of the present disclosure. These are provided by way of example and should not be construed as limiting. Embodiments may also include circuits, functions, electrical interconnections, and component interactions not described or depicted herein within the spirit and scope of the present disclosure.
For ease of illustration and discussion, a limited number of regulator phases, regulator phase groups, and backup regulator phases are depicted and discussed herein. For example, two regulator phase groups (each comprising two regulator phases and one backup regulator phase) along with two backup regulator phases independent of the phase groups may be used to illustrate embodiments of the present invention. However, this should not be construed as limiting; any other number of regulator phases, groups of regulator phases, and alternate regulator phases may be used within the embodiments. Depending on the embodiment and design practice, the number of regulator phases "N" used to meet the current requirements of the voltage domain within the electronic system may be a relatively small number, such as 1 or 2, or it may be much larger, such as 20 or more. Any number of banks of regulator phases may be used within an electronic system to meet the needs of a particular, unique voltage domain. The power system designer may select the number of standby regulator phases based on the expected average failure rate of the regulator phases and other design criteria.
Embodiments of the present disclosure may be useful in reducing voltage regulator package size and cost relative to voltage regulators that do not use shared assignable redundant regulator phases to provide regulated voltage levels. Electronic systems configured in accordance with embodiments of the present disclosure may have increased reliability and reduced cost, complexity, part count, and package area of the included voltage regulator.
A phase redundant voltage regulator apparatus having a common, assignable redundant regulator phase designed according to certain embodiments may be compatible with existing and certified electronic systems and may be a useful and cost-effective way to add the common, assignable redundant regulator phase to a voltage source that powers the electronic system. Phase redundant voltage regulator devices constructed in accordance with embodiments of the present disclosure may be installed within existing electronic systems.
Embodiments of the present disclosure may implement a phase redundant voltage regulator with shared, assignable redundant regulator phases for use within an electronic system by using existing and proven IC and Printed Circuit Board (PCB) manufacturing techniques and material sets, electronic design methods, design tools, and manufacturing processes.
Fig. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a phase redundant voltage regulator apparatus 100 including a plurality of redundant voltage regulator phases 126A, 126B, and 126C. A plurality of redundant regulator phases 126A, 126B, and 126C are electrically connected in parallel at a common regulator input VINAnd a common regulator output VOUTEach regulator phase is at VINAn input voltage is received at input 136 and is at VOUTAn output voltage is provided on output 148.
Multiple "N + 1" or "N + 2" voltage regulator phases may be electrically connected in parallel, where "N" represents the minimum number of phases required to supply a specified current, and an additional one or two phases may be useful in replacing a voltage regulator in which one or two phases fail. In the event of a failure or "fault" of one or more redundant phases, the failed redundant phase may be disabled in order to share the current load between the remaining active phases and thus ensure uninterrupted power delivery. Redundant phases may also be used to implement "masked redundancy," meaning that when a phase fails, no fault is reported to the system control function 108. The redundant phase can then be used to create a high reliability regulator, rather than being used as a redundant phase. This exchange of regulator phases may be controlled by the MPC 122.
Each of the regulator phases 126A, 126B, and 126C includes a buck regulator 116, an input protection device 114, an OR operation device 118, and a phase redundancy controller 106. In conjunction with the input protection device 114, the phase redundancy controller 106 may be used to isolate the input of the failed buck regulator 116 from other phases in the apparatus 100. Phase redundancy controller 106 may monitor the input and output currents and output voltages of a regulator phase (e.g., 126A) and may control input protection device 114 in response to, for example, abnormal currents or voltages within that phase. Such abnormal current or voltage may be caused by a failure (e.g., a short circuit) of a component such as a capacitor or FET within the buck regulator 116.
The input protection device 114 may be used to provide input overcurrent protection and output overvoltage protection for a respective regulator phase (e.g., regulator phase 1126A). The input protection devices 114 may input the common regulator V by responding to signals generated by the phase redundancy controller 106INIs electrically isolated (i.e., disconnected) from buck regulator 116 to protect regulator phase 1126A. Each of the regulator phases 126A, 126B, and 126C also includes an OR operation 118, which may be used to limit OR prevent reverse current flow into V of the regulator phaseOUTIn output 148. Such reverse current may be caused by a short circuit or failure of the FET or capacitor within the regulator phase.
The MPC122 is electrically coupled to each of the regulator phases 126A, 126B, and 126C by the sensed current output 102 and the control signal 124. The master controller 112 of the MPC122 generates a control signal 124 to periodically and sequentially activate each of the regulator phases 126A, 126B, and 126C for a predetermined period of time. In some applications, such activation may be used, for example, to create controlled current sharing between multiple phases. The MPC122 may be used to maintain current sharing between active regulator phases after a failure or malfunction of one or more regulator phases, where one or more phases are provided for redundancy. Current sharing between multiple active regulator phases may also be achieved when none of the phases previously failed.
The redundant fault reporting circuit 104 of the MPC122 may collect and report phase faults/errors based on a plurality of detected current signals present on the detected current outputs 102A, 102B, and 102C from the respective regulator phases. The detected current signal may be used and interpreted to indicate a fault of one or more particular regulator phases. In some applications, MPC122 may be programmed by assigning a corresponding VOUTThe outputs 148 are interleaved out of phase with each other to provide reduced ripple and transient response time from the redundant regulator phases. The MPC122 is also configured to respond to an output V from the common regulator received at the feedback input 101OUTTo regulate the control signal 124.
A serial control bus 120 may be used to interconnect the regulator serial interface 110 of the MPC122 to the system control function 108. The regulator serial interface 110 may send and receive control and monitoring signals to the system control function 108, and the system control function 108 may exert control over one or more phase redundancy regulator devices 100 within the electronic system. In application, the system control function 108 may represent a hardware and/or software element that may be used in an electronic system, such as a computer or server, to monitor and control various aspects of the system hardware function. System control functions 108 may be used within an electronic system to monitor and control functions such as power supply and voltage regulator functions, system clock frequency, cooling, and the like.
In some applications, serial control bus 120 may be, for example, a Serial Peripheral Interface (SPI) bus, a power management bus (PMBus), or an inter-integrated circuit (I2C) interface. The serial control bus 120 may be used to send monitoring data to the system control function 108, for example, indicating which regulator phases have failed or are malfunctioning, and may also receive commands and control from the system control function 108.
Fig. 2 includes two block diagram views including a view depicting a voltage regulator phase 126 and a view depicting a standby voltage regulator phase 227 according to an embodiment consistent with the figures. The different circuits, functions and functional blocks depicted in fig. 2 are generally consistent with those depicted in fig. 1 and described with reference to fig. 1. Fig. 2 may be used to provide an expanded, more detailed description of these functions, as well as to describe the addition of switching devices 217 and 219 and OR arithmetic devices 118, 118A to a regulator phase (e.g., 126A in fig. 1) to form a standby voltage regulator phase 227. It is to be appreciated that view 126 corresponds to a single conditioner phase, such as conditioner phase 1126A in FIG. 1. The addition of multiple switching devices 217 and 219 and OR operation devices 118, 118A may be particularly useful in allowing the regulator output 242 of the buck regulator 116 to be selectively electrically connected to more than one output (e.g., the primary output 204 and the secondary output 206 of the standby regulator phase 227).
The voltage regulator phase 126 includes a buck regulator 116, the buck regulator 116 may receive an input voltage at a regulator input 240 and drive an output voltage onto a regulator output 242. Driver M1 is configured to enable and disable FETs within buck regulator 116 in response to a control signal (e.g., 124 in fig. 1) received at control input 250. According to an embodiment, the control signal 124 may be a digital signal having a logic "0" level and a logic "1" level of 0V and 3.3V, respectively. In some embodiments, other voltage levels may be used.
The voltage regulator phase 126 also includes an input protection device 114, an OR operator 118, and a phase redundancy controller 106. The phase redundancy controller 106 includes a current sense circuit 234, an output overvoltage protection circuit 232, and an input overcurrent protection circuit 230. The input overcurrent protection circuit 230 is electrically connected and configured to monitor at VINThe current received at input 136 and the output overvoltage protection circuit 232 may monitor the output voltage at the regulator output 242. The latch 228 is part of an input overcurrent protection circuit 230 that is electrically connected to an output overvoltage protection circuit 232. The current sense circuit 234 may be used to monitor the output current at the regulator output 242.
Phase redundancy controller 106 is operable to monitor input and output currents and output voltages of voltage regulator phase 126 and responsively control input protection device 114, which is operable to provide input overcurrent protection and output overvoltage protection for voltage regulator phase 126.
The phase redundancy controller 106 may control the input protection device 114 by asserting the Q output of the latch 228 of the input overcurrent protection circuit 230. The Q output of latch 228 is used to control the gate input G input of input protection FET 238. The input protection FET 238 has a coupling to VINDrain input D of input 136, source input S coupled to regulator input 240. A control signal applied to the gate input G of the input protection FET 238 may activate or deactivate the input protection FET 238, which respectively electrically connects or disconnects V of the buck regulator 116IN Input 136 and regulator input 240. Control of the input protection device 114 by the phase redundancy controller 106 upon failure or malfunction of the buck regulator 116 is to the voltage regulator phase by electrically isolating the regulator input 240 from other phases within the voltage regulator apparatus126 are useful in providing input overcurrent protection and output overvoltage protection.
In some applications, the current detection circuit 234 may provide a signal on the detected current output 202 having an analog voltage level between 0V and 3.3V, which is proportional to V from the voltage regulator phase 126OUTThe level of the sensed current flowing out of the output 148. In some applications, other analog voltage levels/ranges may be used. In an embodiment, the detected current signal may be useful in indicating a fault of a particular regulator phase.
OR operation device 118 may be used to limit OR prevent reverse current flow V into voltage regulator phase 126OUT Output 148 and therefore also regulates the reverse current flowing into regulator output 242. Such reverse current may be caused by a short circuit or failure of a FET or capacitor within buck regulator 116. The comparator 246 has input terminals electrically connected to the source terminal S and the drain terminal D of the output OR operation FET 244. The output of the comparator 246 is electrically connected to the gate terminal G of the output OR operation FET 244. Comparator 246 is configured and connected to output OR operation FET244, responsive to VOUTThe voltage at output 148 is greater than the voltage at regulator output 242, limiting current flow into regulator output 242. At VOUTWhere the voltage at the output 148 is greater than the voltage at the regulator output 242 (indicating reverse current flow), the comparator 246 outputs a low voltage to the gate G of the output OR operation FET244, thus disabling the output OR operation FET244 and preventing further reverse current flow.
The phase redundancy controller 106, the input protection 114, and the buck regulator 116 of the standby regulator phase 227 generally correspond to the voltage regulator phase 126 in terms of electrical interconnection and functionality. The standby voltage regulator phase 227 also includes output switching devices 217 and 219, depicted and referred to herein as "FET 217" and "FET 219" without the absence of a reference for ease of illustration and discussion. In embodiments, switching devices 217 and 219 may each also be an NFET, PFET, NPN transistor, PNP transistor, or other suitable type of transistor or semiconductor device.
FET217 and FET219 each have a gate input G that is electrically connected to enable input 216 and enable input 218, respectively. These interconnections allow FET217 and FET219 to be activated, i.e., enable a conductive path between the drain D terminal and the source S terminal, in response to phase enable signals received on respective enable inputs 216 and 218 of phase redundancy controller 106. This activation may be used to electrically connect the regulator output 242 of the buck regulator 116 to either the primary output 204 OR the secondary output 206 through the OR operation device 118 and the secondary OR operation device 118A, respectively. In an embodiment, primary output 204 and secondary output 206 may be electrically connected to a common regulator output of a phase bank (see fig. 3).
The electrical configuration and function of the OR operator 118 of the backup voltage regulator phase 227 and the secondary OR operator 118A are identical to the configuration and function of the OR operator 118 of the voltage regulator phase 126. Similar to the OR operator 118 of the voltage regulator phase 126, the OR operator 118 of the backup voltage regulator phase 227 and the secondary OR operator 118A may be used to limit OR prevent reverse current flow into the primary output 204 and the secondary output 206, respectively, regulating the reverse current flow into the backup voltage regulator phase 227, and thus also regulating the reverse current flow into the regulator output 242.
Fig. 3 is a block diagram depicting a phase redundant voltage regulator device having a shared redundant spare sector 300 according to an embodiment generally consistent with the figures. Fig. 3 is particularly useful in depicting a phase-redundant voltage regulator device consistent with fig. 1 and 2 that includes shared standby voltage regulator phases 227A, 227B, 227C, and 227D that may be electrically assigned to phase sets 374 and 376.
Many aspects of the embodiment depicted in fig. 3 are particularly consistent with those depicted in fig. 1 and 2, and are described in the associated text and will not be further described herein. These aspects include circuitry, logic and control functions, interaction between functions, electrical interconnections, signal usage, and signal voltage ranges.
The components of phase redundant voltage regulator device 300, including control logic 366, MPC122, voltage regulator phase (e.g., 126A), and backup voltage regulator phase (e.g., 227A), are electrically interconnected and thus communicate using different types of signals. These types include phase fault signals, phase enable signals, shared current (ISHARE), and PWM phase control signals. These signal types may be useful in enabling both monitoring of regulator phase function and faults, and control and redistribution of regulator phases by control logic 366.
In an embodiment, a phase fault signal is used to indicate a fault or failure of a particular regulator phase within voltage regulator device 300. The phase fault signal may be generated by the redundancy fault reporting circuit 104 in response to a detected current output 102 received from a separate Phase Redundancy Controller (PRC)106 of a voltage regulator phase (e.g., 126A). For example, a detected current output 102 that is significantly higher or lower than other detected current outputs 102 received by the redundant fault reporting circuit 104 may cause the redundant fault reporting circuit 104 to generate a respective phase fault signal for the respective phase. The phase fault signal may also be generated directly by the PRC 106 of the backup regulator phase (e.g., 227A, 227B, 227C, and 227D).
The phase fault signal includes V in signal 302A1Fault, V in signal 302B2Failure, V1N-1 Fault Signal 308A, V1N-2 Fault Signal 310A, V2N-1 Fault Signal 308B, V2The N-2 fault signal 310B, S1 fault signal 312A and the S2 fault signal 312B, S3 fault signal 312C and the S4 fault signal 312D.
The naming convention for phase fault signals as listed above includes an associated common regulator output voltage (e.g., "V1"or" V2"), spare regulator indicators (e.g.," S1 "," S2 "," S3 ", or" S4 ") corresponding to spare regulator phases 227A, 227B, 227C, and 227D, respectively, and a fault" level "indicator (e.g.," N-1 "or" N-2 "). The fault level indicator "N-1" indicates that the fault signal indicates a "single fault" type, i.e., that the particular phase group from which the fault signal originated has only one reported fault among the voltage regulators in the phase group. Similarly, the failure level of "N-2The indicator indicates that the fault signal indicates a "double fault" type, i.e., that the particular phase group from which the fault signal originated has two reported faults between the voltage regulators in the phase group. A "backup fault" signal (e.g., S1 fault signal 312A) may be used to indicate a fault of a backup regulator phase (e.g., 227A). The out-of-phase fault signals may be used to provide indications of faults that may be used by control logic 366 to determine how to reallocate the alternate voltage regulator phases to provide consistent, robust voltage regulator performance in the event of one or more phase faults.
In an embodiment, the phase enable signal is used to enable the outputs of the standby regulator phases (e.g., 227A) to selectively interconnect them to the common regulator output (e.g., V1). In an embodiment, the phase enable signal is generated by control logic 366. The phase enable signal comprises S1 enable V1Signal 316A, S1 Enable V2Signal 318A, S2 Enable V1Signal 316B, S2 Enable V2Signal 318B, S3 Enable V1Signal 316C, S3 Enable V2Signal 318C, S4 Enable V1Signals 316D and S4 enable V2Signal 318D. The naming convention for the phase fault signals as listed above includes the associated common regulator output voltage (e.g., "V1"or" V2") and an associated backup regulator indicator (e.g.," S1, "S2," "S3," or "S4").
The PWM phase control signal is a digital signal representing the duty cycle or activation time of at least one regulator phase by repeating a series of variable width pulses. The PWM phase control signal may be generated, for example, by the MPC122 of a phase group (e.g., 374) as an indicator of the relative activation times of the voltage regulators within that phase group. The relative duty cycle or activation time may be varied over time in order to modulate the output of the voltage regulator to supply a particular dynamic current load.
A PWM phase control signal may also be received and used to modulate the standby voltage regulator phase so that it performs a phase similar to the active voltage regulators within the phase group. Therefore, the PWM phase control signal is combined with the phase enable signalAnd is particularly useful for replacing a failed voltage regulator phase with an active standby voltage regulator phase. The PWM phase control signal includes V1PWMS1 Signal 304A, V1PWMS2 Signal 306A, V2PWMS1 Signal 304B, V2The PWMS2 signal 306B, S1PWM signal 314A and the S2PWM signal 314B, S3PWM signal 314C and the S4PWM signal 314D.
In the examples, ISHAREThe phase control signal is a signal representing the amount of current to be supplied by each regulator phase within the phase group by an analog voltage. In the examples, the current "ISHARE”＝ITOTALN, wherein ═ ITOTALIs the total current output of the phase group and "N" is the number of phases in the phase group. In some embodiments, ISHAREThe signal may be an analog voltage in a range between 0V and 3.3V, respectively. For example, I of 0VSHAREThe signal voltage may represent 0A of the phase current output of the regulator, and I of 3.3VSHAREThe signal voltage may represent a fully rated (e.g., maximum) regulator phase output current. I between OV and 3.3VSHAREThe voltage may accordingly represent the regulator phase output current between 0A and the fully rated regulator phase output current and corresponding ISHAREThe voltages are linearly proportional. In some embodiments, other scaling/control schemes and/or voltage ranges may be used. I isSHAREThe phase control signal may be generated, for example, by the MPC122 of a phase group (e.g., 374) as an indicator of the current output required from each voltage regulator within the phase group. I isSHAREThe phase control signal may vary over time so as to modulate the output of the voltage regulator to supply a particular dynamic current load.
ISHAREA phase control signal may also be received and used to modulate the standby voltage regulator phase so that the standby voltage regulator phase performs similarly to the active voltage regulator phase within the phase bank. Thus, ISHAREThe phase control signal, along with the phase enable signal, is particularly useful for replacing a failed voltage regulator phase with an active standby voltage regulator phase. I isSHAREThe phase control signal comprises V1 ISHARES1 Signal 304A, V1 ISHARES2 Signal 306A, V2 ISHARES1 Signal 304B, V2 ISHARES2 Signal 306B, S1ISHARESignals 314A and S2ISHARESignal 314B, S3ISHARESignals 314C and S4ISHARESignal 314D.
According to an embodiment, the phase failure signal, the phase enable signal, ISHAREAnd the PWM phase control signals may each be digital signals having logic "0" and logic "1" levels of 0V and 3.3V, respectively. In some embodiments, other voltage levels may be used. FIG. 3 depicts the above signals as lines with arrows; it will be appreciated that the ends of the signal lines with arrows indicate the destination of a particular signal, while the opposite ends indicate the source of the signal.
Phase redundant voltage regulator device 300 includes phase groups 374 and 376, each phase group including a plurality of voltage regulator phases and interconnected MPCs 122. Phase group 374 includes voltage regulator phases 126A and 126B and backup regulator phase 227C. Phase group 376 includes voltage regulator phases 126A and 126B and a backup regulator phase 227D. Voltage regulator device 300 also includes backup regulator phases 227A and 227B. Each of the backup regulator phases 227A, 227B, 227C, and 227D includes an output switching device 217 and 219, and an OR operation device 118 and 118A. Control logic 366, which includes non-volatile memory 368 and regulator serial interface 110, is electrically connected to each of the voltage regulator phase, the backup voltage regulator phase, and the MPC.
Consistent with fig. 1, each phase group 374 and 376 includes a plurality of redundant voltage regulator phases 126A, 126B and backup regulator phases 227C and 227D, respectively, which may be available for outputting V, respectively, to a common regulator output V1And V2Providing phase redundancy in power delivery. V of each voltage regulator phase within a phase groupOUTOutput 148 is connected to a common regulator output, e.g., V1. It will be appreciated that V for each phase group of regulator phases 126A, 126BOUTOutputs 148 are each wired to only one common regulator output; v1Or V2. Regulator phases 126A, 126BReferred to herein as a "dedicated" voltage regulator phase because VOUTOutput 148 cannot be reconfigured to connect to another common regulator output. In contrast, the standby regulator phases (e.g., 227A, 227B, 227C, and 227D) may be dynamically reconfigured or reassigned by control logic 366 to connect the regulator output 242 of the buck regulator 116 of any of the standby regulator phases to the common regulator output V1Or V2。
For ease of illustration and discussion, phase redundant voltage regulator device 300 includes two output voltage levels, i.e., a common regulator output V1And V2And four back-up regulator phases 227A, 227B, 227C, and 227D. However, in embodiments, any number of voltage levels and number of standby regulator phases may be specified for a particular electronic system.
The MPC122 for each phase group is electrically coupled to each dedicated regulator phase, e.g., 126A, 126B, of the phase group. MPC122 is configured to communicate to control logic 366 the phase failure signal and I received from each dedicated regulator phase of the corresponding phase groupSHAREOr a Pulse Width Modulated (PWM) phase control signal. The MPC122 is also configured to generate PWM control signals that may be used to sequentially activate each dedicated regulator phase of a phase group for a predetermined period of time, which may help manage controlled current sharing between phases within a phase group.
Each of the standby regulator phases 227A, 227B, 227C, and 227D includes an output switch means 217 and 219 and an OR operation means 118 and 118A for interconnecting the standby regulator phases 227A, 227B, 227C, and 227D to a common regulator output V1And/or V2May be particularly useful. According to an embodiment, the output switching devices 217 and 219 may be activated and, thus, may connect the regulator output 242 of the buck regulator 116 to either the primary output 204 or the secondary output 206 of the standby regulator phase (e.g., 227A). For example, such activation may be in response to receiving phase S1 enable V separately for backup regulator phase 227A1Signal 316A or S1 enable V2Signal 318A. The standby regulator phase 227B may be similarly activated by using the corresponding enable signal,227C and 227D. These phase enable signals are received by the phase redundancy controller 106 and provided to output switching devices 217 and 219, respectively. (see FIG. 2 for more details).
The control logic 366 is electrically connected to the MPCs 122 of each phase group 374 and 376. Control logic 366 is configured to receive I from MPC122SHAREOr PWM phase control signals and exchanges phase fault signals with the MPC 122. Control logic 366 is also electrically connected to standby regulator phases 227A, 227B, 227C, and 227D and is configured to assert a phase enable signal to PWM or ISHAREThe phase control signal is transmitted to the standby regulator phase and a phase failure signal is received from the standby regulator phase. For example, S1 enables V2Signal 318A may be asserted by control logic 366 to enable secondary output 206 (V) of standby regulator phase 227A2Output). Control logic 366 may also couple PWM phase or I via connection 380 or connection 382, respectivelySHAREControl signals (e.g. V)1PWMS1 or V1ISHARES1 Signal 304A, or V1PWMS2 or V1ISHARES2 Signal 306A) to the S1PWM or S1ISHARESignal 314A. Control logic 366 may also receive a phase fault signal, such as V, from a backup regulator phase1N-2 fault signal 310A.
Control logic 366 may be particularly useful for monitoring faults of a voltage regulator phase and, in response to detecting a faulty regulator phase, enabling and disabling the phases and supplying PWM or I to the activated phaseSHAREA control signal. According to an embodiment, control signals received from a phase group may be communicated by control logic 366 to a backup regulator phase, which may be used to cause the backup regulator phase to be driven at a level consistent with the active regulators of that phase group. Additional examples of functions performed by control logic 366 are detailed further in fig. 4 and related text.
In an embodiment, the control logic 366 may include a non-volatile memory 368, and the non-volatile memory 368 may be used to store associations between active standby regulator phases and phase groups having one or more failed regulator phases. According to an embodiment, the control logic 366 may be a microcontroller, a custom Integrated Circuit (IC), a Programmable Logic Device (PLD), an Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC), or the like. The non-volatile memory 368 may be a flash memory, an electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), or other type of memory device that does not lose data when a power supply voltage is removed.
Embodiments may be used to reduce voltage regulator package size and cost relative to voltage regulator apparatus that use regulator phases dedicated to particular voltage outputs while providing reliable, robust power delivery. These efficiencies are obtained by using shared standby voltage regulator phases instead of redundant voltage regulator phases dedicated to particular voltage levels.
In some embodiments, a common regulator input V as depicted in FIG. 3INV which can be connected to all phase groups 374 and 376INV for input 136, and all of the standby regulator phases 227A, 227B, 227C, and 227DINAnd (6) inputting 136. In some embodiments, different common regulator inputs may be connected to VINInput 136 is used to supply a unique voltage to each phase group and the alternate regulator phase. According to an embodiment, V of each of the adjuster phases 326A, 326B within a phase group (e.g., 374)OUT Outputs 148 are all connected to the same common regulator output (e.g., V)1). In an embodiment, the primary 204 and secondary 206, 227B, 227C, and 227D outputs of each of the backup regulator phases 227A may be selectively connected to the common regulator output V1Or sharing regulator output V2In response to the enable signal (e.g., S1 enables V1Signal 316A or S1 enable V2Signal 318A) asserted by control logic 366 on backup regulator phases 227A, 227B, 227C, and 227D.
According to an embodiment, an amount of "N + 1" or "N + 2" voltage regulator phases may be electrically connected in parallel, where "N" is the minimum number of phases required to supply a specified current, and an additional one or two phases may be available to replace a regulator phase that has failed one or two phases. In the event of a failure or "fault" of one or more redundant phases, the failed redundant phase may be disabled in order to share the current load and ensure uninterrupted power delivery.
Fig. 3 depicts a phase redundant voltage regulator without a current sharing circuit between voltage regulator phases 326A and 326B. However, embodiments are contemplated in which current sharing is maintained between voltage regulator phases 326A and 326B. In some such embodiments, independent current throttling points may be implemented within each regulator phase 326A and 326B to enable the voltage regulator phase to operate under its current output limit while one or more other voltage regulator phases provide the additional current needed to meet the total current load. This embodiment may enable simplified shunting, which may allow certain voltage regulator phases to operate at full current load, while additional voltage regulator phases may operate at lower current levels. In some embodiments, passive or "droop" sharing may be implemented, wherein current sharing may be caused by the phase redundant regulator output voltage dropping below a specified reference voltage, and in response, each regulator phase electrically connected to the output boosts its respective current output. This may result in load sharing between regulators. In some embodiments, active or "forced" current sharing may be achieved by using added current monitoring, control, and feedback loops.
Those skilled in the art of voltage regulator and electronic system design can appreciate that, according to some embodiments, the operations described with reference to fig. 4-6 may be performed in an order slightly different from that depicted in the figures and discussed in the associated text. For example, it is within the spirit and scope of the present disclosure that in some embodiments, the phase enable signal is asserted and the PWM or I is transmittedSHAREThe order of the phase control signals may be reversed from that depicted in fig. 5 and 6. It will also be appreciated that the operations described with reference to fig. 4-6 may be performed simultaneously or in a very rapid sequence in order to maintain stable power delivery and minimize voltage transients, such as spikes and ripples. For example, in the practice of the present disclosure, the time between completion of one operation and completion of the next operation may be 5ms or less.
Fig. 4 is a flow diagram depicting a process 400 for transmitting backup regulator phases between groups of phases of a regulator within a phase redundant voltage regulator device according to an embodiment consistent with the figures. The phase redundant voltage regulator device includes a plurality of standby regulator phases (e.g., 227A in fig. 3) and a plurality of dedicated regulator phases (e.g., 126A in fig. 3). The phase redundant voltage regulator apparatus is consistent with the phase redundant voltage regulator and apparatus depicted in fig. 1-3 and described with reference to fig. 1-3. Process 400 is generally performed using control logic 366 of fig. 3, with control logic 366 being electrically connected and configured to monitor phase fault signals received from phase groups (e.g., phase groups 374 and 376 of fig. 3).
Certain operations of process 400 performed by control logic 366 of fig. 3 may be initiated by system control function 108 of fig. 1 external to the voltage regulator device. For example, as detailed in fig. 5 and 6, initiating a phase transfer in operation 404 (fig. 4) or other "higher level" operations (e.g., monitoring current load, throttling system functions, etc.) may be initiated and/or performed entirely by the system control function 108 of fig. 1.
Fig. 4 may be particularly useful in depicting a process 400 of transferring alternate regulator phases between groups of phases. In fig. 5 and 6 and the associated description, this process 400 is further referenced as a single operation, thus simplifying the illustration and discussion of the methods depicted in both fig. 5 and 6. It should be appreciated that block 402 may represent an entry point or transition point from the methods depicted in fig. 5 and 6.
Execution of process 400 may provide enhanced reliability of power delivery to an electronic system by using shared redundant regulator phases that are controlled and assigned by control logic. When used in conjunction with a phase redundant voltage regulator device of an electronic system, process 400 can also provide substantial reductions in voltage regulator cost, package area, design complexity, and failure rate by using shared, assignable redundant regulator phases. Such improvements may result in a corresponding overall reduction in the cost, complexity, and failure rate of the electronic system. Execution of process 400 may also result in a quick, seamless transfer/redistribution of backup regulator phases from one phase bank to another. Such seamless transfer may result in consistent power delivery to the electronic system without interruptions and transients. The process depicted and described with respect to fig. 4 generally corresponds to the phase redundant voltage regulators and devices with shared redundant standby depicted in fig. 1-3 and described with respect to fig. 1-3. It will be appreciated that process 400 details a series of operations that, when executed, result in the electrical transfer of a voltage regulator phase from a first or "existing" group of phases to a second or "new" group of phases. The result of performing the completion of this process may be referred to herein in fig. 5 and 6 as a "phase shift".
It is to be appreciated that block 402 may represent an entry point or transition point from the methods depicted in fig. 5 and 6. Process 400 moves from start 402 to operation 404.
Operation 404 generally refers to the initiation of a phase transition. According to embodiments, the phase transfer may be initiated in response to various signals and/or conditions. For example, the fault signal generated by the fault/fault phase may be responded to by control logic 366 (FIG. 3) using PWM or ISHAREPhase control, phase enable, and phase fault signals. The phase transfer may also be initiated by a change in the system configuration (i.e., a number of phases required over a particular voltage domain), or a change in the current load due to throttling of at least one throttled electronic device in the voltage domain. Changes in system configuration or changes in current load may be detected by the system control function 108 or by the control logic 366 (fig. 3), which may initiate a phase shift. Once the phase transfer has been initiated, the process 400 moves to operation 406.
Operation 406 generally refers to asserting a phase enable signal that electrically couples the output of the available alternate regulator phase to the common regulator output of the "new" phase group. If the available backup regulator is currently coupled to the output of another "current" phase group, it is first disconnected or decoupled from the current phase group by deasserting the phase enable signal coupling it to the current phase group, according to an embodiment, before coupling the available backup regulator to the new phase group. After a possible disconnection, the available standby regulator is then coupled to the new phase group by assertion of the corresponding enable signal. This decoupling/coupling process results in the output of the available standby regulator being electrically connected at the common regulator output to the output of the active regulator in the new phase group. For example, if whenWith the previous phase group 374, the new phase group 376 and the available alternate regulator being the alternate regulator phase 227C, the corresponding enable signal is S3 enable V1Signals 316C and S3 enable V2Signal 318C. The corresponding common regulator output is V1And V2. Once the phase enable signal is asserted, process 400 moves to operation 408.
Operation 408 generally involves converting PWM or ISHAREThe phase control signal is transmitted from the new phase set to the available alternate modulator phases. After PWM or ISHAREIf the PWM or I from the current phase group is before the phase control signal is transmitted from the new phase group to the available standby regulator phaseSHAREThe phase control signal is being passed to the available backup regulator phases, the connection must first be disabled by control logic 366. Once the connection is disabled, PWM or I may be provided by control logic 366SHAREThe control signals establish a connection between the new phase group and the available alternate regulator phase. This disconnect/connect process results in the available standby regulator phase receiving PWM or I from the new phase set to which it is connectedSHAREA control signal that allows it to be driven similarly to the other active sources in the new phase set.
After the above example where the current phase group is 374, the new phase group is 376, and the available standby regulator is standby regulator phase 227C, then PWM or I from the current phase groupSHAREThe control signal being V1PWMS1 or V1ISHARES1 Signal 304A, PWM or I from New phase groupSHAREThe control signal is V2PWMS1 or V2ISHARES1 Signal 304B, and after removing any existing connection between Signal 304A and Signal 314C, control logic 366 PWM or I at 304B with S3SHAREA new connection is established between signals 314C. Once PWM or I is appliedSHAREThe phase control signal is transmitted from the new phase set to the available backup regulator phases and process 400 moves to operation 410.
Operation 410 generally involves the MPC electrically connecting a phase fault signal from the available backup regulator to the new phase group. In this example, the S3 fault signal 312C is electrically connected by the control logic 366 to the signal of the MPC122 of the phase group 376V in 302B2And (4) failure. The MPC122 may monitor the assigned backup voltage regulator phase 227C for faults and communicate the faults to the control logic 366. Once the phase fault signal is connected, process 400 moves to operation 412.
Operation 412 generally involves storing an association between the first used standby regulator phase and the common regulator output for the first phase group in a non-volatile memory (e.g., 368 in fig. 3) within the control logic. In this example, the association includes information re: phase groups, i.e. "phase group 374" or common regulator output V1And a standby, i.e., standby regulator phase 227A. This information is stored in non-volatile memory 368, which preserves the backup regulator phase 227A and common regulator output V in the event of a power failure1Is useful. Upon restarting the voltage regulator after a power failure, control logic 366 can reinitialize standby regulator phase 227A to common regulator output V1To be electrically connected. Once the association has been stored, the process 400 ends at block 414. It will be appreciated that block 414 may represent an exit point or transition point back to the method depicted in fig. 5 and 6.
Fig. 5 is a flow chart 500 depicting a process for reallocating regulator phases among a phase group of regulators according to an embodiment consistent with the figures. The phase redundant voltage regulator device includes a plurality of standby regulator phases (e.g., 227A in fig. 3) and a plurality of dedicated regulator phases (e.g., 126A in fig. 3) and a plurality of phase groups (e.g., 374 and 376 in fig. 3). The phase redundant voltage regulator apparatus is consistent with the phase redundant voltage regulator and apparatus depicted in fig. 1-3 and described with reference to fig. 1-3. Process 500 is generally performed using control logic 366 of fig. 3, control logic 366 being electrically connected and configured to monitor for a phase fault signal. Control logic 366 is responsive to system control function 108 of fig. 1 and is responsive to monitored phase fault signals received from phase groups (e.g., phase groups 374 and 376 of fig. 3).
Fig. 5 depicts a process 500 for redistributing regulator phases among groups of phases of a regulator. However, it is understood that the process depicted in FIG. 5 may be extended to include redistributing a plurality of regulator phases among a plurality of phase groups of regulators in accordance with the spirit and scope of the present disclosure.
The operating state at the system start 502 does not include a voltage regulator phase fault, and the two phase groups 374 and 376 of fig. 3 function normally, with "N" phases respectively used to output V to a common regulator attached to fig. 31And V2The load supplying current.
Process 500 moves from start 502 to decision 504. At operation 504, a determination is made by the system control function 108 as to whether less than the previously specified number "N" of voltage regulator phases are presently required to supply power within a particular "evaluated" phase group. This decision may be made, for example, by the system control function 108 comparing the number N with the number of phases currently required to meet the current load for the evaluated phase group, as calculated from the current load on the evaluated phase group. If fewer than N voltage regulator phases are currently needed to meet the current needs of the evaluated group of phases, the process moves to operation 510. If N or more voltage regulator phases are currently needed to meet the current needs of the evaluated group of phases, the process moves to operation 506.
At operation 506, a determination is made by the system control function 108 as to whether to throttle devices or subsystems within the electronic system in order to release one or more alternate phases that may then be communicated or reassigned to one or more phase groups other than the evaluated phase group.
"throttling" of an electronic system and/or system component may be understood to refer to a process of reducing the performance of the system or component to correspondingly reduce its power consumption. Throttling may be a particularly useful technique for overall electronic system power management. Throttling may be initiated or controlled by a system control function (e.g., 108 in fig. 1) that may actively monitor and manage/control power consumption of various components and subsystems of the electronic system.
For example, the system control function 108 may monitor the power consumption of one or more CPUs in a computer system or server, and then apply control to reduce the clock frequency of those CPUs, which may thereby limit their current consumption. Such clock frequency reduction may be performed, for example, when a processor or other system component is executing a relatively light and/or non-critical workload. The throttling action or process may also include selective and judicious powering down of currently unused system components. These components may include, but are not limited to, a network and wireless interfaces, I/O ports, and data storage devices.
In the context of the present disclosure, throttling may be applied to a component or subsystem, e.g., a processor, processor card or cluster of processors, in order to reduce the power demand of that component or subsystem on the evaluated group of voltage regulators supplying its power. This is useful in releasing an alternate voltage regulator phase that may be used immediately later in another phase group, or marked as "unassigned" for future allocation and use in another phase group when needed. According to various embodiments, the decision as to whether to throttle an electronic system may be encoded as program instructions executed by the system control function 108 and/or may be derived through interaction of the system control function 108 with a system user or administrator. If a decision is made to throttle some or all of the electronic system, the process moves to operation 508. If it is determined that part or all of the electronic system is not to be throttled, the process returns to operation 504.
Operation 508 generally refers to throttling a portion or all of the electronic system. As described above, throttling a portion or all of an electronic system may be initiated and managed by system control function 108. Once the association has been stored to non-volatile memory, process 500 returns to operation 504.
At operation 510, a decision is made by system control function 108 as to whether to assign available alternate phases to phase groups other than the evaluated phase group. According to embodiments, the decision as to whether to allocate an available idle phase may be encoded into program instructions executed by the system control function 108 and/or may be derived through interaction of the system control function 108 with a system user or administrator.
According to an embodiment, at least one standby voltage regulator phase may be reallocated in response to a command received from system control function 108. The set of backup voltage regulator phases may include a voltage regulator phase designated as a backup voltage regulator phase in response to system throttle operation. According to an embodiment, the set of standby voltage regulator phases may also include more voltage regulator phases than the number of voltage regulator phases specified according to the voltage regulator phase needs. If the decision is not to allocate an available idle phase, the process moves to operation 512. If the decision is to allocate an available idle phase, the process moves to operation 514.
Operation 512 generally refers to "marking" the alternate phase as "allocated" for use in the phase group being evaluated. It will be appreciated that such marking of the standby phase may include storing an association between the first portion of the standby voltage regulator phase set and the "assigned" state in non-volatile memory 368 within control logic 366. This marking of the alternate phase is particularly useful in retaining the regulator phases for use with the evaluated phase set. Once the association has been stored to non-volatile memory, process 500 returns to operation 504.
Operation 514 generally refers to "marking" the alternate phase as "unallocated" for use in the evaluated phase group. It will be appreciated that such marking of the standby phase may include storing an association between the second portion of the standby voltage regulator phase set and the "unassigned" state in non-volatile memory 368 within control logic 366. This marking of the alternate phases is particularly useful in allowing the regulator phases to be used with other phase groups after, for example, failure of one or more voltage regulator phases within that phase group. Once the association has been stored in non-volatile memory, process 500 moves to operation 516.
At operation 516, a detection and determination is made as to whether a fault/failure exists in a phase group other than the evaluation phase group. As described above with reference to fig. 3, control logic 366 may monitor and detect phase faults from the respective dedicated and standby phases within the voltage regulator device. According to an embodiment, the phase fault signal from the first damaged phase group (i.e., the phase group having the failed or failed voltage regulator phase) may be a phase single fault signal, a phase double fault signal, or a backup phase fault signal. If a phase failure signal is detected, the process moves to operation 400. If no phase failure signal is detected, the process returns to operation 516.
Operation 400 generally involves, in response to detecting the phase fault signal, transferring at least one backup voltage regulator phase of a second portion of the set of backup voltage regulator phases to the first damaged phase group. Details of operation 400 are further depicted in fig. 4 and discussed in associated text. In some embodiments, the transferring may further include transferring the at least one backup voltage regulator phase to a second damaged phase group. In embodiments, a transfer may include multiple independent phase transfers to individual phase groups within an electronic system. Once at least one standby voltage regulator phase is transmitted, process 500 returns to operation 502.
It will be appreciated that the above-described process is particularly useful for maintaining redundancy within a voltage regulator device having multiple phase groups without having to employ a dedicated set of backup voltage regulator phases or each phase group. Embodiments of the present disclosure may enable efficient use and redistribution of a standby regulator phase to multiple phase groups within a voltage regulator device. Other similar methods within the spirit and scope of the present disclosure may be used for voltage regulator devices having a different number of available backup voltage regulators.
Fig. 6 is a flow chart 600 depicting a process for reallocating regulator phases among a phase group of regulators consistent with the process depicted in fig. 5 and discussed in the associated text, according to an embodiment consistent with the figures. The phase redundant voltage regulator apparatus is consistent with the phase redundant voltage regulator and apparatus depicted in fig. 1-3 and described with reference to fig. 1-3. Process 600 is generally performed using control logic 366 of fig. 3, control logic 366 being electrically connected and configured to monitor for a phase fault signal.
Fig. 6 depicts a process 600 for redistributing regulator phases among groups of phases of a regulator. However, it is understood that the process depicted in FIG. 6 may be extended to include redistributing a plurality of regulator phases among a plurality of phase groups of regulators in accordance with the spirit and scope of the present disclosure.
The operating state at the start 602 of the system does not include a voltage regulator phase fault, and the two phase groups 374 and 376 of fig. 3 are operating normally, with "N" phases respectively used to output V to a common regulator attached to fig. 31And V2The load supplying current.
Process 600 moves from start 602 to decision 604. At operation 604, a determination is made by the system control function 108 as to whether less than the previously specified number "N" of voltage regulator phases are presently required to supply power within a particular "evaluated" phase group. This decision may be made, for example, by the system control function 108 comparing the number N with the number of phases currently required to meet the current load for the evaluated phase group, as calculated from the current load on the evaluated phase group. If fewer than N voltage regulator phases are currently needed to meet the current needs of the evaluated group of phases, the process moves to operation 610. If N or more voltage regulator phases are currently needed to meet the current needs of the evaluated group of phases, the process moves to operation 606.
At operation 606, a determination is made by the system control function 108 as to whether to throttle devices or subsystems within the electronic system in order to release one or more alternate phases that may subsequently be diverted or reassigned to one or more phase groups other than the evaluated phase group.
In the context of the present disclosure, throttling may be applied to a component or subsystem, e.g., a processor, processor card or cluster of processors, in order to reduce the power demand of that component or subsystem on the evaluated group of voltage regulators supplying its power. This is useful in releasing an alternate voltage regulator phase that may be used immediately later in another phase group, or marked as "unassigned" for future allocation and use in another phase group when needed. According to various embodiments, the decision as to whether to throttle an electronic system may be encoded as program instructions executed by the system control function 108 and/or may be derived through interaction of the system control function 108 with a system user or administrator. If a decision is made to throttle some or all of the electronic system, the process moves to operation 608. If it is determined that part or all of the electronic system is not to be throttled, the process returns to operation 604.
Operation 608 generally refers to throttling a portion or all of the electronic system. As described above, throttling a portion or all of an electronic system may be initiated and managed by system control function 108. Once the association has been stored to non-volatile memory, process 600 returns to operation 604.
At operation 610, a decision is made by system control function 108 as to whether to assign available alternate phases to phase groups other than the evaluated phase group. According to embodiments, the decision as to whether to allocate an available idle phase may be encoded into program instructions executed by the system control function 108 and/or may be derived through interaction of the system control function 108 with a system user or administrator.
According to an embodiment, at least one standby voltage regulator phase may be reallocated in response to a command received from system control function 108. The set of backup voltage regulator phases may include a voltage regulator phase designated as a backup voltage regulator phase in response to system throttle operation. According to an embodiment, the set of standby voltage regulator phases may also include more voltage regulator phases than the number of voltage regulator phases specified according to the voltage regulator phase needs. If the decision is not to allocate an available idle phase, the process moves to operation 612. If the decision is to allocate an available idle phase, the process moves to operation 614.
Operation 612 generally refers to "marking" the alternate phase as "assigned" for use in the phase group being evaluated. It will be appreciated that such marking of the standby phase may include storing an association between the first portion of the standby voltage regulator phase set and the "assigned" state in non-volatile memory 368 within control logic 366. This marking of the alternate phase is particularly useful in retaining the regulator phases for use with the evaluated phase set. Once the association has been stored to non-volatile memory, process 600 returns to operation 604.
Operation 614 generally refers to "marking" the alternate phase as "unallocated" for use in the evaluated phase group. It will be appreciated that such marking of the standby phase may include storing an association between the second portion of the standby voltage regulator phase set and the "unassigned" state in non-volatile memory 368 within control logic 366. This marking of the alternate phases is particularly useful in allowing the regulator phases to be used with other phase groups after, for example, failure of one or more voltage regulator phases within that phase group. Once the association has been stored in non-volatile memory, process 600 moves to operation 616.
At operation 616, an analysis is performed by the system control function 108 that compares the voltage regulator load to the total current capacity of the voltage regulators within the various phase groups within the voltage regulator device. Based on the results of such comparisons, one or more phase groups may be identified as having relatively small differences in load versus capacity relative to other phase groups. In an embodiment, these phase groups may be designated as assigned phase groups for receiving one or more available backup regulator phases. Once these phase groups have been identified, process 600 moves to operation 400.
Operation 400 generally involves transferring at least one backup voltage regulator phase of the second portion of the set of backup voltage regulator phases to the respective group of phases specified in operation 616. Details of operation 400 are further depicted in fig. 4 and discussed in associated text. In some embodiments, the transferring may further include transferring the at least one backup voltage regulator phase to a second damaged phase group. In embodiments, a transfer may include multiple independent phase transfers to individual phase groups within an electronic system. Once at least one standby voltage regulator phase has been transferred, process 600 returns to operation 602.
It will be appreciated that the above-described process is particularly useful for maintaining redundancy within a voltage regulator device having multiple phase groups without having to employ a dedicated set of backup voltage regulator phases or each phase group. Embodiments of the present disclosure may enable efficient use and redistribution of a standby regulator phase to multiple phase groups within a voltage regulator device. Other similar methods within the spirit and scope of the present disclosure may be used for voltage regulator devices having a different number of available backup voltage regulators.
According to an embodiment, the current delivery capacity of each regulator phase within a phase group may be specified so as to result in delivery of a specified cumulative output current for the phase group after failure of one regulator phase within the phase group. In some embodiments, the per-phase current delivery capacity of each regulator phase within a phase group may allow for delivery of a specified cumulative output current of the phase group following a failure of at least two regulator phases within the phase group.
While descriptions of different embodiments of the present disclosure have been presented for purposes of illustration, it is not intended to be exhaustive or limited to the disclosed embodiments. Many modifications and variations will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art without departing from the scope and spirit of the described embodiments. The terminology used herein was chosen to explain the principles of the embodiments, the practical application, or technical improvements found in the marketplace, or to enable one of ordinary skill in the art to understand the embodiments disclosed herein.

Claims (20)

1. A phase redundant voltage regulator device, comprising:
a plurality of regulator phases, each regulator phase comprising a regulator electrically coupled to receive an input voltage at a regulator input and to provide a respective output voltage at a regulator output;
a set of phase groups of the plurality of regulator phases, including first and second phase groups, each phase group comprising:
a common regulator input electrically interconnected to the regulator inputs of the regulators of the phase groups;
a common regulator output electrically interconnected to the regulator outputs of the regulators of the phase groups;
at least one redundant regulator phase;
at least one dedicated regulator phase of the plurality of regulator phases;
at least one backup regulator phase of a set of backup regulator phases;
a multi-phase controller (MPC) electrically coupled to each dedicated regulator phase of the group of phases, the MPC configured to interface a phase fault signal and Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) and a shared current (I) received from each dedicated regulator phase of the corresponding group of phasesSHARE) One of the phase control signals is transmitted to the control logic; and is
The set of backup regulator phases of the plurality of regulator phases includes first and second backup regulator phases, each backup regulator phase including:
a secondary output OR operation device electrically coupled and configured to limit current flow into the secondary output of the standby regulator phase;
a first output switching device configured to electrically couple the regulator outputs of the standby regulator phases to the first common regulator output in response to a first phase enable signal; and is
A second output switching device configured to electrically couple the regulator outputs of the standby regulator phases to a second common regulator output in response to a second phase enable signal; and is
Control logic electrically connected to:
an MPC of each phase group of the set of phase groups, the control logic configured to receive the phase control signals from the MPC and to exchange phase fault signals with the MPC; and is
A backup regulator phase of the set of backup regulator phases, the control logic configured to assert a phase enable signal to transmit the phase control signal to the backup regulator phase and receive a phase fault signal from the backup regulator phase;
the control logic is configured to electrically interconnect the backup regulator phase to a phase group including a failed regulator phase in response to receiving a phase failure signal from the MPC.
2. The phase redundant voltage regulator device of claim 1, each dedicated regulator phase of the plurality of regulator phases further comprising:
a Phase Redundancy Controller (PRC) configured to monitor current at the regulator input and further configured to monitor current and voltage at the regulator output;
an output OR operation device configured to limit current flow into the main output of the corresponding dedicated regulator phase; and is
An input protection device configured to provide input over-current protection and output over-voltage protection to the respective dedicated regulator phase in response to a control signal from the PRC.
3. The phase redundant voltage regulator device of claim 1, wherein the MPC for each phase group is further configured to:
receiving a feedback output voltage and a corresponding sensed current signal from each dedicated regulator in the group of phases;
generating PWM or ISHAREControl signals to sequentially activate each dedicated regulator phase of said group of phases within a predetermined time period, said PWM or ISHAREControlling controlled current sharing between signal management phases; and is
Maintaining current sharing between all active regulator phases in the phase bank after failure of one or more regulator phases in the phase bank.
4. The phase redundant voltage regulator apparatus of claim 1, wherein each PWM or ISHAREThe control signal is a digital signal representing the duty cycle/activation time of at least one regulator phase by a series of pulse widths.
5. The phase redundant voltage regulator apparatus of claim 1, wherein said output OR operation device and said secondary output OR operation device are each selected from the group consisting of: n-channel field effect transistors (NFETs), P-channel field effect transistors (PFETs), NPN transistors, and PNP transistors.
6. The phase redundant voltage regulator device according to claim 1, wherein a regulator serial interface of the MPC is coupled to the system control function through a serial control bus selected from the group consisting of: serial Peripheral Interface (SPI) interface, power management bus (PMBus) interface and inter-integrated circuit (I)2C) An interface.
7. The phase redundant voltage regulator apparatus of claim 1, wherein the first phase group of the set of phase groups is configured to maintain current sharing.
8. A method for reallocating a set of backup voltage regulator phases among a bank of voltage regulator phases, the method comprising using control logic responsive to a system control function and responsive to monitored phase fault signals received from the bank to:
storing an association between a first portion of the set of standby voltage regulator phases and an "allocated" state into a non-volatile memory within the control logic;
storing, with the control logic, an association between a second portion of the set of standby voltage regulator phases and an "unallocated" state into the non-volatile memory within the control logic;
detecting a phase fault signal from a first damaged one of the groups of phases using the control logic; and is
Transferring at least one alternate voltage regulator phase of a second portion of the set of alternate voltage regulator phases to the first damaged phase group in response to detecting the phase fault signal.
9. The method of claim 8, wherein the phase fault signal is selected from the group consisting of: a phase single fault signal, a phase double fault signal and a standby phase fault signal.
10. The method of claim 8, wherein the at least one standby voltage regulator is reassigned in response to a command received from a system control function.
11. The method of claim 8, wherein phase transferring the at least one backup voltage regulator to the first damaged phase group comprises phase transferring at least one backup voltage regulator to a second damaged phase group.
12. The method of claim 8 wherein the set of backup voltage regulator phases comprises a voltage regulator phase designated as a backup voltage regulator phase in response to system throttle operation.
13. The method of claim 8 wherein the set of backup voltage regulator phases comprises a voltage regulator phase designated as a backup voltage regulator phase responsive to system throttle operation.
14. The method of claim 8, wherein the set of backup voltage regulator phases includes a number of voltage regulator phases exceeding a number of voltage regulator phases required by a voltage regulator phase.
15. A method for reallocating a set of backup voltage regulator phases among a bank of voltage regulator phases, the method comprising using control logic responsive to a system control function and responsive to monitored phase fault signals received from the bank to:
storing an association between a first portion of the set of standby voltage regulator phases and an "allocated" state into a non-volatile memory within the control logic;
storing, with the control logic, an association between a second portion of the set of standby voltage regulator phases and an "unallocated" state into the non-volatile memory within the control logic;
detecting a phase fault signal from a first damaged one of the groups of phases using the control logic; and is
Transferring at least one alternate voltage regulator phase of a second portion of the set of alternate voltage regulator phases to the first damaged phase group in response to detecting the phase fault signal.
16. The method of claim 15, wherein the phase fault signal is selected from the group consisting of: a phase single fault signal, a phase double fault signal and a standby phase fault signal.
17. The method of claim 15, wherein the at least one standby voltage regulator phase is reallocated in response to a command received from a system control function.
18. The method of claim 15, wherein phase transferring the at least one backup voltage regulator to the first damaged phase group comprises phase transferring at least one backup voltage regulator to a second damaged phase group.
19. The method of claim 15 wherein the set of backup voltage regulator phases comprises a voltage regulator phase designated as a backup voltage regulator phase in response to system throttle operation.
20. The method of claim 15 wherein the set of backup voltage regulator phases comprises a voltage regulator phase designated as a backup voltage regulator phase responsive to system throttle operation.
CN202080019165.7A 2019-03-26 2020-03-16 Redistributing regulator phases within a phase redundant voltage regulator device Pending CN113544956A (en)

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US16/365,002 US10615691B1 (en) 2019-03-26 2019-03-26 Reallocation of regulator phases within a phase-redundant voltage regulator apparatus
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