The PMBus communication is an open-source protocol, so designers will have access to a variety of software tools directly from Astec and other sources. The open-source flexibility also will let designers use these tools with other PMBus devices as they're released and easily customize them to meet specific needs. Astec offers users a free executable file with a GUI that provides extensive management capabilities, including custom controls.
The DTX42K48 features a 36- to 75-V dc input range, programmable 0.96- to 1.44-V output, and 42-A output capability at 86% typical efficiency. It also provides programmable undervoltage lockout, overvoltage protection, overcurrent protection, and overtemperature protection.
DIGITAL POWER-SUPPLY CONTROL
Though it wasn't designed to comply with the PMBus specification, Linear Technology's LTC2970 is similar (Fig. 2). The IC, set for the first quarter of 2006, controls and monitors two power supplies.
Similar to the PMBus, digital communication with the LTC2970 is over an industry-standard I2C, SMBus-compatible serial bus. Two general-purpose I/O pins provide added fault information or designer-defined system control.
Tailored for high-availability systems, its 14-bit, delta-sigma analog-to-digital converter (ADC) and a highly accurate internal reference enable the IC to control power-supply output to better than 1% accuracy. And thanks to the ADC's seven-channel multiplexer, it can monitor current, temperature, and other analog parameters. The high-resolution ADC also lets it perform precision margining.
Its intelligent ADC architecture averages power-supply noise. A servo algorithm limits its IDAC (current output digital-to-analog converter) step size to 1 LSB per iteration, which minimizes power-supply transients. By selecting two resistor values, designers can choose the appropriate resolution while providing a hardware range limit that the supply will not be driven beyond.
The LTC2970 also can command each IDAC to connect to the power supply's feedback node. It would use the IDAC code that most closely approximates the feedback node's regulation voltage (Soft Connect) or a user-selected IDAC code (Hard Connect). It can change the code of a previously connected IDAC under processor control or automatically servo to a programmed voltage as measured by the ADC.
The PMBus communication is an open-source protocol, so designers will have access to a variety of software tools directly from Astec and other sources. The open-source flexibility also will let designers use these tools with other PMBus devices as they're released and easily customize them to meet specific needs. Astec offers users a free executable file with a GUI that provides extensive management capabilities, including custom controls.
The DTX42K48 features a 36- to 75-V dc input range, programmable 0.96- to 1.44-V output, and 42-A output capability at 86% typical efficiency. It also provides programmable undervoltage lockout, overvoltage protection, overcurrent protection, and overtemperature protection.
DIGITAL POWER-SUPPLY CONTROL
Though it wasn't designed to comply with the PMBus specification, Linear Technology's LTC2970 is similar (Fig. 2). The IC, set for the first quarter of 2006, controls and monitors two power supplies.
Similar to the PMBus, digital communication with the LTC2970 is over an industry-standard I2C, SMBus-compatible serial bus. Two general-purpose I/O pins provide added fault information or designer-defined system control.
Tailored for high-availability systems, its 14-bit, delta-sigma analog-to-digital converter (ADC) and a highly accurate internal reference enable the IC to control power-supply output to better than 1% accuracy. And thanks to the ADC's seven-channel multiplexer, it can monitor current, temperature, and other analog parameters. The high-resolution ADC also lets it perform precision margining.
Its intelligent ADC architecture averages power-supply noise. A servo algorithm limits its IDAC (current output digital-to-analog converter) step size to 1 LSB per iteration, which minimizes power-supply transients. By selecting two resistor values, designers can choose the appropriate resolution while providing a hardware range limit that the supply will not be driven beyond.
The LTC2970 also can command each IDAC to connect to the power supply's feedback node. It would use the IDAC code that most closely approximates the feedback node's regulation voltage (Soft Connect) or a user-selected IDAC code (Hard Connect). It can change the code of a previously connected IDAC under processor control or automatically servo to a programmed voltage as measured by the ADC.