JPH01232756A - Semiconductor integrated circuit device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To fetch storage data according to a change of environmental conditions and to apply the data as display or correction data to practical use by a method wherein data in a storage part are retrieved on the basis of a signal value, which is obtained under unknown environmental conditions, from a sensor part and related known data is outputted. CONSTITUTION:A sensor part 2 comprises a circuit element having a prescribed dependence to the fluctuation of a temperature or a power-supply voltage and is constituted comprising a resistor R connected between a current source I and a ground along with the circuit element. A voltage iR, which is obtained from the resistor R, becomes one changed according to the temperature dependence of the resistor. A known temperature is given to the sensor part 2, a signal obtained at that time is related with the known temperature and is stored in a storage part 4, the storage part 4 is searched on the basis of a signal value led out when an unknown temperature is given to the sensor part 2 and the known temperature is taken out. Accordingly, even in case there is a variability in the individual temperature characteristic of the sensor part 2, a proper temperature can be detected without being affected by the variability and storage data are fetched according to a change of an environment in use and can be applied as display or correction data to practical use.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention (Table of Contents) Overview Industrial Applications Prior Art Problems to be Solved by the Invention Examples of Means for Solving the Problems First Embodiment of the Invention (1st to 10th Examples of the Invention) Figure) Second embodiment of the present invention (Figures 11 to 15) Third embodiment of the present invention (First embodiment)
(Figure 6) Fourth embodiment of the present invention (Figures 17 to 21) Effects of the invention [Summary] Regarding a semiconductor integrated circuit device, known data stored in advance is retrieved in response to changes in environmental conditions during use. In order to make this information available for display or as correction data, we have developed a sensor section that outputs a signal according to changes in the surrounding environment, and a signal value from the sensor section obtained under known environmental conditions. a storage unit that stores data in association with known data on environmental conditions;
The apparatus includes output means for searching data in the storage section based on signal values from the sensor section obtained under unknown environmental conditions and outputting related known data.

[Industrial application field]

The present invention relates to a semiconductor integrated circuit device, and more particularly to a device for measuring environmental conditions such as temperature and power supply voltage fluctuations of a chip on which an electronic circuit is formed.

Generally, electronic circuits are used under a variety of conditions, and are required to exhibit desired performance even under extremely adverse conditions.

[Conventional technology]

For example, in electronic circuits that are used in a wide temperature range from high to low temperatures, performance is stabilized by using circuit elements with less temperature dependence or by incorporating temperature compensation functions. .

[Problem to be solved by the invention]

However, even if this type of temperature control is implemented, some degree of variation in the temperature dependence of circuit elements cannot be avoided, so depending on the selection of circuit elements, the temperature characteristics of the circuit may change significantly, and the desired performance may not be achieved. There was a problem that it was not possible to stably demonstrate the performance.

The present invention was made in view of these problems, and
The purpose is to store the dependence of circuit elements on temperature or power supply fluctuations as data in advance so that the stored data can be retrieved in response to changes in environmental conditions during use and used for display or correction data. It is said that

[Means to solve the problem]

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention includes a sensor section that outputs a signal according to changes in the surrounding environment, and a signal value from the sensor section obtained under known environmental conditions, which is used as known data of the environmental condition. and an output unit that searches for data in the storage unit based on a signal value from the sensor unit obtained under unknown environmental conditions and outputs related known data. are doing.

[Effect]

In the present invention, the output signal from the sensor section placed under known environmental conditions in advance is stored in the storage section in association with the known data. Then, the storage unit is searched based on the output signal from the sensor unit placed under unknown environmental conditions,
Relevant known data is retrieved.

Therefore, known data can be extracted according to the environment dependence of the circuit elements that constitute the sensor section, and by utilizing this known data, for example, as correction data, other electronic circuits that operate in the same environment as the sensor section can be used. This makes it possible to stably demonstrate the performance of.

〔Example〕

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below based on the drawings.

1 to 10 are the first diagrams of the semiconductor integrated circuit device according to the present invention.
It is a figure showing an example.

In FIG. 1, 1 is a semiconductor integrated circuit device (hereinafter referred to as a measuring device), and the measuring device 1 includes a sensor section 2, an A/D
Conversion section 3, storage section 4, control section 5, interpolation circuit (output means)
6. It has a display section 7.

The sensor unit 2 includes a small number of circuit elements (both of which have a predetermined dependence on changes in temperature or power supply voltage, for example,
As shown in FIG. 2, the circuit includes a constant current source (2) and a resistor R connected between the ground. Generally, a resistor has temperature dependence such that its resistance value changes slightly depending on the temperature, so the voltage iR taken out from the resistor R changes according to the temperature dependence characteristics of the resistor. Further, although not shown, if another resistor R' is connected in place of the constant current source (2), the voltage taken out will also change due to fluctuations in the constant power source VIllD. Note that, as shown in FIG. 3, the sensor section 2 may be constructed by connecting a photodiode D that generates a current i according to the amount of light irradiation to a resistor R in parallel. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of temperature dependent characteristics of the sensor section 2. In FIG. In Figure 4), when the temperature around the sensor section 2 is To, the voltage taken out from the sensor section 2 is ■. Also, when the temperature is T1, the voltage vl and the temperature T! When , the voltage becomes Vt.

Referring again to FIG. 1, the A/D conversion section 3 converts the voltage (voltage that changes in an analog manner) taken out from the sensor section 2 into a digital voltage. Storage unit 4 is EEPROM
(Electrically Erasable P
The storage unit 4 is controlled by the control unit 5, and is configured to include a ROM (ROM), and the storage unit 4 is controlled by the control unit 5. For example, the ToVo
, TI V+ , and Tt VZ are stored. In addition, when remembering this, ■. ~■2 is used as EEPROM address data, T0~T! ■. ~v2 is stored at the location addressed by v2. For example, ■
. =X (V), To =y ('Cl T: If present, EEPROM (7) X address Gcoy is stored.

Since the data stored in the storage unit 4 is sampling data of a plurality of points, the interpolation circuit 6 is for interpolating between these sampling data, and will be described in detail later. Note that the display section 7 displays data from the storage section or interpolated data.

In such a configuration, writing of data to the storage unit 4 is performed as follows.

First, the sensor section 2 is heated or cooled to a known temperature. For example, when the sensor unit 2 is heated at a known temperature T0,
An analog voltage corresponding to vo is taken out as a signal from the sensor section 2, and this ■.

is digitally converted and used for address designation of the storage unit 4. In other words,■. The known temperature T0 at this time is stored in the address specified by . This operation is T I,
The address v in the storage unit 4 of the result of repeating Tz
0 has To, address ■1 has T, and address V
T2 is stored in t.

Next, when the sensor section 2 is placed under unknown temperature conditions,
For example, if a voltage signal value corresponding to vl is taken out from the sensor section 2, T1 stored at address vI is read out from the storage section 4 and displayed on the display section 7. That is, the unknown 'IAK is measured as T. Note that when the unknown temperature is between To and T or between T1 and T2, the interpolation circuit 6
o, T.

Alternatively, a temperature interpolation value is obtained based on T, , T, and this interpolation value is taken as the measured temperature.

According to such a configuration, the temperature-dependent characteristics of the circuit elements constituting the sensor section 2 are stored in the storage section 4, and the unknown temperature is measured based on this stored data. Therefore, even if there are variations in the temperature dependence characteristics of individual circuit elements, accurate temperature measurement can be performed without being affected by variations. or,
By including circuit elements in the sensor section 2 that have almost the same temperature dependence as circuit elements of other circuits that are used in the same environment, temperature data can be obtained for accurately performing temperature correction of other circuits. Can be done.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a specific configuration of the interpolation circuit 6. In FIG. 5, the interpolation circuit 6 includes an MPU 6as ROM 6
b, a RAM 6c, an address decoder 6d, and a tri-state buffer 6e. M.P.
U6as executes a predetermined program, controls the address decoder 6d, writes data to and reads data from the storage unit 4, and performs necessary interpolation processing. The ROM 6b stores the above-mentioned predetermined program, and the RAM 6C temporarily stores calculation results during interpolation processing. The address decoder 6d controls the tri-state buffer 6e, and takes in the output of 3 from the A/D converter ta section to the interpolation circuit 6 as necessary. Note that 6f is a data bus, 6g is a control bus, and 6h is an address bus. 8 is used to output interpolation processing results, read data from the storage unit 4, etc. to the display unit, or to output data from an external host computer. Interpolation circuit 6 for writing temperature information
This is an I10 buffer that is taken into the memory.

The interpolation circuit 6 operates as follows. FIG. 6 is a flowchart of a program for writing data into the storage unit 4. In FIG. 6, address decoder ADDR in MPU 5a is set to 0 in mass, vl'.
Set to . Next, from P2 to P, the entire IC chip including the sensor section 2 is heated to tl ('C), and then A
The output Vi of the /D conversion section 3 (that is, the voltage taken out from the sensor section 2) and the temperature t are written into the storage section 4.

Specifically, in P3, store ■1 in the address indicated by ADDR (ADDR=O at this time), and in P4, add +
1 and then P, the address indicated by ADDR (at this time ADD
t8 is stored in R=1). And ADD at P6
After increasing R by 1, the above P2 to P&
repeat. As a result, the storage unit 4 stores data of V,,t, for each measurement as shown in FIG. In addition, in FIG. 8, the n-1st v8 is shown as Vi-1, and the n-1st tl is similarly shown as 'i-1.

In addition, in this example, in address order, Vi-1%t+-+,
Although V,, t, are stored sequentially, the present invention is not limited to this, and for example, 1. may be stored.

However, from the point of view of effective use of memory space, the above example (
It is preferable to do as shown in Fig. 7.8).

FIG. 9 is a flowchart of a program for retrieving data from the storage unit 4. In Figure 9, first, A at pH
Set DDR to 0. Next, PI! ``'In P14, the V table in the storage unit 4 is searched, and the relationship between the current output VX of the A/D converter 3 and each V in the table is V, , <
Search for ■5 such that V, <V. At pts, the following equation (2) is executed based on the determined values (2), Vi-1, Li, and LL-1, and the interpolated temperature L8 is determined. however,
(Lt-+<t, <ti).

・・・・・・・・・■ □ As a result of such interpolation operation, the sampling data (vi, Vt-, ゛......V
, , ) and ■8 do not match, accurate t8 can be obtained as shown in FIG.

Note that the results of the above search are ■ and the predetermined ■.

If they match, there is no need for interpolation, so in this case, proceed to PI&, take out tl stored at the address next to the matched eg, and set it as t8.

In this way, in this embodiment, a known temperature is applied to the sensor section 2, the signal taken out from the sensor section 2 at that time is stored in the storage section 4 in association with the above-mentioned known temperature, and the unknown temperature is stored in the storage section 4. When the temperature is given to the sensor section 2, the storage section 4 is searched based on the signal value taken out from the sensor section 2 at that time, and the known temperature is taken out. Alternatively, if a matching known temperature is not stored, interpolation processing is performed to calculate the known temperature.

Therefore, even if there is variation in the temperature characteristics of each sensor section 2, the correct temperature can be detected without being affected by this variation. That is, variations among measuring devices 1 can be suppressed, and quality can be improved and made uniform. Furthermore, in order to improve the measurement accuracy, it is sufficient to simply increase the number of samplings (that is, the number of data stored in the storage unit 4), and the desired accuracy can be easily obtained. Note that it is also possible to perform temperature correction for other circuits operating under the same environment using the temperature data measured by such measurement device 1. In this way, the performance of other circuits can be adjusted to match the environment. This is preferable because it is stably exhibited regardless of changes in conditions.

Figure 11 shows an example in which interpolated data is written in the storage section 4 in advance at the manufacturing stage. In FIG. 11, the output of the A/D conversion section 3 is applied to the address terminal of the storage section 4 through a tristate buffer 6e. Additionally, signals can be applied to this address terminal from outside the chip. Furthermore, the data terminal of the storage section 4 is drawn out to the outside of the chip.

In such a configuration, writing of temperature information is performed as follows. In FIG. 12, the sensor section 2 is
When heated at 0°C, data r15 from the A/D converter 3
If 8J is retrieved, the addressing of the storage unit 4 is r158J. Then, data r20J (temperature 20° C.) is written to address r158J of the tα section 4. Repeat this operation for several other points of temperature. As a result, a vacant area is generated in the memory space of the storage unit 4 as shown in FIG. This empty area is sandwiched between measurement points on both sides, and the address of the empty area corresponds to an unmeasured temperature. Next, interpolated temperature data obtained separately by a host computer or the like is written into this empty area. During this writing, the interpolation circuit 6e is set to high impedance as shown in FIG.
Interpolation data is written while specifying the address from the outside. As a result, interpolated data is stored in the empty area of the table in the storage unit 4 as shown in FIG.

In FIG. 16, 10 is another circuit that operates in the same environment as the measuring device 1, that is, a circuit to be corrected that uses correction, and the output V1 of the circuit to be corrected 10 is under the environmental conditions (
For example, it shows a predetermined fluctuation tendency with changes in temperature (for example, temperature). Generally, such fluctuations are undesirable because they destabilize circuit performance.

Therefore, in the present embodiment, the correction means 11 corrects (2) and then outputs it as vt.

For example, a variable gain amplifier is used as the correction means 11, and the amplification degree of the variable gain amplifier is controlled by the temperature data D2 read from the storage section 4.

For example, if the environmental temperature rises and ① tends to increase, the correction means 11 operates to decrease vl in accordance with this temperature, corrects vl, and outputs the correct v2.

Note that the above-mentioned circuit to be corrected 10 and correction means 11 are configured such that, for example, the circuit to be corrected 10 is a reference voltage REF of an A/D converter.
A variable gain amplifier is used for a circuit that generates oscillation circuit or an oscillation circuit (amplitude correction of oscillation frequency). . Alternatively, the circuit to be corrected 1
If 0 is an amplifier or a filter, this circuit to be corrected 10
Unwanted offset voltage from v01. In order to correct
The correction means 11 is constituted by an adder and a D/A converter, and converts the temperature data D2 from the storage section 4 into analog to generate offset correction values -V, , ff. 11 and V+ from the circuit to be corrected 10 (includes Vott) to obtain ■. , t may be removed.

FIG. 17 shows an example in which fluctuations in the power supply voltage are added to the data stored in the storage unit 4. This example includes a power supply voltage sensor 20 that outputs a voltage according to fluctuations in the power supply voltage, and an A/D converter 21 that converts the output of the power supply voltage sensor 20 into a digital value D2. Note that specific examples of the sensor unit 2 and the power supply voltage sensor 20 are shown in the 18th to
It is shown in Figure 21.

Figure 18 shows the power supply voltage ■ due to resistances R+ and Rz with different temperature coefficients Kr. This is an example in which the voltage is divided, and it takes advantage of the fact that when the temperature changes, a difference occurs in the resistance changes of R+ and Rz. Figure 19 shows a case in which a constant power supply ■ is applied to a resistor R8 with a large temperature coefficient KT, and the resistance R
It utilizes the fact that the value of 1 changes and the output voltage v0 changes. Figure 20 shows the resistances R4 and R with the same temperature coefficient of 7.
5 is the power supply voltage V. . In this case, it is not affected by temperature and the power supply voltage ■. ■ Output voltage according to changes in. It takes advantage of the fact that changes in FIG. 21 shows a combination of a resistor R1 with a small temperature coefficient of 1 and a constant current Ib, and the fluctuation of the power supply voltage VDtl directly changes to the output voltage (2). It takes advantage of the fact that it appears as a change in

〔Effect of the invention〕

According to the present invention, since the dependence of circuit elements on temperature or power supply fluctuations is stored in advance as data, the stored data can be retrieved according to environmental changes during use and used as display or correction data. be able to.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

1 to 10 are diagrams showing a first embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 1 is an overall configuration diagram thereof, FIG. 2 is a circuit diagram of the sensor section, and FIG. 3 is another example of the sensor section. Fig. 4 is a characteristic diagram showing the temperature dependence of the sensor section, Fig. 5 is a diagram specifically showing the interpolation circuit, Fig. 6 is a flowchart of the writing program, Fig. 7.8 9 is a flowchart of the reading program, and FIG. 10 is a diagram for explaining the interpolation operation. 11 to 15 are diagrams showing a second embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 11 is a configuration diagram thereof, FIG. 12 is a diagram explaining writing of data in FIG. 11, and FIG. FIG. 14 is a diagram illustrating writing of the interpolation data in FIG. 11, and FIG. 15 is a diagram showing a table in the storage section in which the interpolation data in FIG. 11 is written. FIG. 16 is a block diagram showing a third embodiment of the present invention. Figures 17 to 21 are diagrams showing the fourth embodiment of the present invention, Figure 17 is its configuration diagram, Figures 18 and 19 are circuit diagrams showing its sensor section, and Figures 20 and 21 are its power supply. FIG. 3 is a circuit diagram showing each voltage sensor. 2...Sensor unit, 4...Storage unit, 6...Interpolation circuit (output means).

Claims (1)

[Claims] A sensor section that outputs a signal according to changes in the surrounding environment, and a signal value from the sensor section obtained under known environmental conditions,
a storage unit that stores the data in association with known data of the environmental condition; and an output unit that searches the data in the storage unit based on the signal value from the sensor unit obtained under the unknown environmental condition and outputs the related known data. A semiconductor integrated circuit device comprising: and.