US 12,003,089 B2
Short to ground protection and automatic recovery
Christopher Twigg, Endwell, NY (US); Zbigniew Lata, Plano, TX (US); and Fernando Gonzalez, Chandler, AZ (US)
Assigned to Microchip Technology Incorporated, Chandler, AZ (US)
Filed by Microchip Technology Incorporated, Chandler, AZ (US)
Filed on Nov. 3, 2021, as Appl. No. 17/517,782.
Claims priority of provisional application 63/110,239, filed on Nov. 5, 2020.
Prior Publication US 2022/0140595 A1, May 5, 2022
Int. Cl. H02H 9/00 (2006.01); H02H 1/00 (2006.01); H02H 3/06 (2006.01); H02H 3/08 (2006.01)
CPC H02H 3/08 (2013.01) [H02H 1/0007 (2013.01); H02H 3/06 (2013.01)] 17 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. An apparatus, comprising:
a single sense pin connected to a line of a device connected to the apparatus;
a gate pin to produce a gate signal to enable or disable a switch connected between the line of the device connected to the apparatus and a system ground; and
a control logic to:
enable a current source applied to the single sense pin to apply a first current to be received at the sense pin, the first current to cause a voltage drop across an offset resistor external to the apparatus on the line of the device connected to the apparatus, the switch, or a combination of the offset resistor and the switch, the voltage drop to indicate a short circuit when a magnitude of the voltage drop is above a threshold;
at the single sense pin, determine the short circuit between the device and the system ground; and
based upon the determination of the short, disable the switch.