| STMICROELECTRONICS S.R.L. Patent applications |
| Patent application number | Title | Published |
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| 20130151195 | SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR COMPENSATING ORIENTATION OF A PORTABLE DEVICE - A system for compensating orientation of a portable device is provided with a processing unit for: determining a roll rotation angle of the portable device in a mobile reference system associated thereto; and applying a rotation matrix, which is a function of the roll rotation angle, for transforming relative displacements of the mobile device in the mobile reference system into corresponding displacements in a fixed reference system, of an inertial type, thus compensating the orientation of the portable device. The processing unit determines the roll rotation angle, in the presence of dynamic acceleration, by means of: acquisition of a roll angular velocity of the portable device by a gyroscopic sensor fixed with respect thereto; and time integration of the same roll angular velocity. | 06-13-2013 |
| 20130149838 | PROCESS FOR FILLING DEEP TRENCHES IN A SEMICONDUCTOR MATERIAL BODY, AND SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICE RESULTING FROM THE SAME PROCESS - A process for manufacturing a semiconductor device envisages the steps of: providing a semiconductor material body having at least one deep trench that extends through said body of semiconductor material starting from a top surface thereof; and filling the deep trench via an epitaxial growth of semiconductor material, thereby forming a columnar structure within the body of semiconductor material. The manufacturing process further envisages the step of modulating the epitaxial growth by means of a concurrent chemical etching of the semiconductor material that is undergoing epitaxial growth so as to obtain a compact filling free from voids of the deep trench; in particular, a flow of etching gas is introduced into the same reaction environment as that of the epitaxial growth, wherein a flow of source gas is supplied for the same epitaxial growth. | 06-13-2013 |
| 20130148913 | METHOD AND SYSTEMS FOR THUMBNAIL GENERATION, AND CORRESPONDING COMPUTER PROGRAM PRODUCT - An embodiment of a consumer electronics product having a thumbnail display feature includes a system for generating and storing thumbnails having a given size from images, such as JPEG images, for which a spatial frequency domain representation is available. The system includes a zooming processor to reduce the size of the images by zooming. The zooming processor is configured to perform both spatial frequency domain zooming to approximate the desired thumbnail size and then image pixel domain zooming to fit the desired thumbnail size. The product includes cache storage configured to store a plurality of thumbnails in a file system as free blocks in the file system, so that file system data structures are left unchanged. | 06-13-2013 |
| 20130148906 | METHOD AND SYSTEMS FOR THUMBNAIL GENERATION, AND CORRESPONDING COMPUTER PROGRAM PRODUCT - An embodiment of a consumer electronics product having a thumbnail display feature includes a system for generating and storing thumbnails having a given size from images, such as JPEG images, for which a spatial frequency domain representation is available. The system includes a zooming processor to reduce the size of the images by zooming. The zooming processor is configured to perform both spatial frequency domain zooming to approximate the desired thumbnail size and then image pixel domain zooming to fit the desired thumbnail size. The product includes cache storage configured to store a plurality of thumbnails in a file system as free blocks in the file system, so that file system data structures are left unchanged. | 06-13-2013 |
| 20130146121 | SOLAR LIGHT CONCENTRATION PHOTOVOLTAIC CONVERSION SYSTEM USING A WAVELENGTH SPLITTER AND LAMBDA-SPECIFIC PHOTOVOLTAIC CELLS OPTICALLY COUPLED TO LAMBDA-DEDICATED FIBERS ILLUMINATED BY RESPECTIVE SPLIT BEAMS - A solar light concentration photovoltaic conversion system, uses a solar light collector to focus collected light onto a termination of at least one multi-fiber cable. A wavelength splitter is optically coupled to the other termination of the multi-fiber cable for producing light beams of different wavelengths, each illuminating the optical termination of one or more lambda-dedicated tap fibers or multi-fiber cables. From the wavelength splitter depart a number of lambda-dedicated groups of tap fibers adapted to convey the radiation to remotely arranged lambda-specific photovoltaic cells, configured for efficiently converting light energy of the specific wavelength spectrum carried along respective fiber or group of fibers into electrical energy. The lambda-specific photovoltaic cells are formed onto light spreading structures optically coupled to a respective tap fiber or multi-fiber cable, adapted to trap the injected light and convert it into electricity. | 06-13-2013 |
| 20130136352 | METHOD OF CHROMATIC CLASSIFICATION OF PIXELS AND METHOD OF ADAPTIVE ENHANCEMENT OF A COLOR IMAGE - A method of processing digital images by transforming a set of pixels from a three-dimensional space to a normalized two-dimensional space, determining a membership class and membership class level of each pixel in the set of pixels, and selectively modifying colors of pixels in the set of pixels based on the determined membership classes and membership class levels. | 05-30-2013 |
| 20130135056 | OSCILLATOR DEVICE AND MANUFACTURING PROCESS OF THE SAME - An oscillator device includes: a structural layer extending over a first side of a semiconductor substrate; a semiconductor cap set on the structural layer; a coupling region extending between and hermetically sealing the structural layer and the cap and forming a cavity within the oscillator device; first and second conductive paths extending between the substrate and the structural layer; first and second conductive pads housed in the cavity and electrically coupled to first terminal portions of the first and second conductive paths by first and second connection regions, respectively, which extend through and are insulated from the structural layer; a piezoelectric resonator having first and second ends electrically coupled, respectively, to the first and second conductive pads, and extending in the cavity; and third and fourth conductive pads positioned outside the cavity and electrically coupled to second terminal portions of the first and second conductive paths. | 05-30-2013 |
| 20130134131 | PROCESS FOR MANUFACTURING AN INTEGRATED MEMBRANE OF NOZZLES IN MEMS TECHNOLOGY FOR A SPRAY DEVICE AND SPRAY DEVICE USING SUCH MEMBRANE - A process for manufacturing a membrane of nozzles of a spray device, comprising the steps of laying a substrate, forming a membrane layer on the substrate, forming a plurality of nozzles in the membrane layer, forming a plurality of supply channels in the substrate, each supply channel being substantially aligned in a vertical direction to a respective nozzle of the plurality of nozzles and in direct communication with the respective nozzle. | 05-30-2013 |
| 20130128656 | SRAM MEMORY DEVICE AND TESTING METHOD THEREOF - A static random access memory (SRAM) device includes a memory array of a plurality of memory cells, a controller that receives an external clock signal formed by a succession of external pulses and generates an internal clock signal formed by a succession of internal pulses, and a driving circuit that receives the internal clock signal. The controller is operable in a first mode, wherein the controller generates, for each external pulse, a corresponding internal pulse and the controller controls the driving circuit so that the driving circuitry carries out one access to the memory array for each internal pulse. The controller is further operable in a second mode, wherein the controller generates, for each external pulse, a pair of internal pulses, and the controller controls the driving circuitry so that, for each pair of internal pulses, the driving circuitry writes a first data item in a set of memory cells, and then reads the set of memory cells, so as to acquire a second data item. | 05-23-2013 |
| 20130127536 | FULLY DIFFERENTIAL OPERATIONAL AMPLIFIER WITH COMMON-MODE FEEDBACK CIRCUIT - A fully differential operational amplifier includes a differential input stage, at least one output stage and a common-mode feedback circuit connected with the input stage. The differential input stage includes a differential pair of transistors and a bias circuit for the differential pair of transistors. A start-up circuit operates to detect an operating condition of the differential pair of transistors of the input stage and in response thereto turn on the bias circuit. | 05-23-2013 |
| 20130126590 | WAVE SOLDERING OF SURFACE-MOUNTING ELECTRONIC DEVICES ON PRINTED CIRCUIT BOARD - A system includes a device of the surface-mounting type having an insulating package provided with a mounting surface and a contact pin exposed on the mounting surface. The device is attached to an insulating board including a gluing surface and an opposite surface. The process for manufacturing the system includes forming through holes a contact region on the gluing surface. The mounting surface is glued to the gluing surface with the contact pin aligned with the contact region. Wave soldering is performed to electrically join the device to the board by hitting the opposite surface with a wave of soldering paste to form, by capillary action with the soldering paste ascending in the through holes up to the overflow on the gluing surface, a conductive contact electrically connecting the contact pin of the electronic device through a solder connection to the contact region of the electronic board. | 05-23-2013 |
| 20130125649 | MICROELECTROMECHANICAL DEVICE INCORPORATING A GYROSCOPE AND AN ACCELEROMETER - A microelectromechanical device includes: a supporting structure; two sensing masses, movable with respect to the supporting structure according to a first axis and a respective second axis; a driving device for maintaining the sensing masses in oscillation along the first axis in phase opposition; sensing units for supplying sensing signals indicative of displacements respectively of the sensing masses according to the respective second axis; processing components for combining the sensing signals so as to: in a first sensing mode, amplify effects on the sensing signals of concordant displacements and attenuate effects of discordant displacements of the sensing masses; and in a second sensing mode, amplify effects on the sensing signals of discordant displacements and attenuate effects of concordant displacements of the sensing masses. | 05-23-2013 |
| 20130120008 | METHOD OF DISCRIMINATION OF A DEVICE AS POWERABLE THROUGH A LAN LINE AND DEVICE FOR ESTIMATING ELECTRIC PARAMETERS OF A LAN LINE - PDs that can be supplied through the LAN line are discriminated from PDs that cannot be so supplied as a function of the resistance of the supply line and of the voltage drop caused by nonlinear elements in series therewith. The values of these two parameters are estimated by applying two distinct voltages to the supply terminals of the LAN line and sensing the relative steady-state currents absorbed by the power supply line, and by processing voltage and current values for estimating the resistance of the line and the voltage drop caused by nonlinear elements connected in series therewith. | 05-16-2013 |
| 20130118256 | MICROELECTROMECHANICAL DEVICE WITH POSITION CONTROL DRIVING AND METHOD FOR CONTROLLING A MICROELECTROMECHANICAL DEVICE - A MEMS gyroscope includes: a microstructure having a fixed structure, a driving mass, movable with respect to the fixed structure according to a driving axis, and a sensing mass, mechanically coupled to the driving mass so as to be drawn in motion according to the driving axis and movable with respect to the driving mass according to a sensing axis, in response to rotations of the microstructure; and a driving device, for keeping the driving mass in oscillation with a driving frequency. The driving device includes a discrete-time sensing interface, for detecting a position of the driving mass with respect to the driving axis and a control stage for controlling the driving frequency on the basis of the position of the driving mass. | 05-16-2013 |
| 20130114806 | METHOD FOR ENCRYPTING A MESSAGE THROUGH THE COMPUTATION OF MATHEMATICAL FUNCTIONS COMPRISING MODULAR MULTIPLICATIONS - An embodiment concerns a method for encrypting a message through a cryptographic algorithm including a computation of a mathematical function including the computation of one or more modular multiplications. Such a cryptographic algorithm has a respective module. The method, carried out with an electronic device, includes: | 05-09-2013 |
| 20130114360 | METHOD FOR DETECTING PERMANENT FAULTS OF AN ADDRESS DECODER OF AN ELECTRONIC MEMORY DEVICE - An embodiment of a method for detecting permanent faults of an address decoder of an electronic memory device including a memory block formed by a plurality of memory cells, including the steps of: selecting an address, which identifies a selected set of memory cells; writing at the selected address a code word generated on the basis of an information word, of the selected address, and of an error-correction code; and then detecting an error within a word stored at the selected address. The method moreover includes the steps of: selecting a set of excitation addresses; writing a test word at the selected address, and then writing an excitation word at each excitation address; and next comparing the test word with a new word stored at the selected address. | 05-09-2013 |
| 20130113562 | CURRENT REUSE ELECTRONIC DEVICE BASED ON MAGNETIC COUPLING COMPONENTS - A current reuse device including a first stage provided with a first input for a first input signal and a first output for a first output signal; a second stage comprising a second input for a second input signal and a direct current terminal operating as a ground terminal for alternate signals; a first inductor connected to a first output and to the direct current terminal so that the first and second stages share a direct current; a second inductor reciprocally coupled to the first inductor and connected to the second input in order to generate the second input signal as a function of the first output signal. | 05-09-2013 |
| 20130112995 | SEMICONDUCTOR WAFER AND METHOD FOR MANUFACTURING THE SAME - An embodiment of a method for manufacturing a semiconductor wafer includes providing a monocrystalline silicon wafer, epitaxially growing a first layer of a first material on the silicon wafer, and epitaxially growing a second layer of a second material on the first layer. For example, said first material may be monocrystalline silicon carbide, and said second material may be monocrystalline silicon. | 05-09-2013 |
| 20130102064 | RT-PCR CHIP WITH OPTICAL DETECTION - An apparatus ( | 04-25-2013 |
| 20130095624 | MANUFACTURING PROCESS OF A POWER ELECTRONIC DEVICE INTEGRATED IN A SEMICONDUCTOR SUBSTRATE WITH WIDE BAND GAP AND ELECTRONIC DEVICE THUS OBTAINED - An embodiment of a process for manufacturing an electronic device on a semiconductor body of a material with wide forbidden bandgap having a first conductivity type. The process comprises the steps of: forming, on the semiconductor body, a first mask having a first window and a second window above a first surface portion and a second surface portion of the semiconductor body; forming, within the first and second surface portions of the semiconductor body underneath the first and second windows, at least one first conductive region and one second conductive region having a second conductivity type, the first conductive region and the second conductive region facing one another; forming a second mask on the semiconductor body, the second mask having a plurality of windows above surface portions of the first conductive region and the second conductive region; forming, within the first conductive region and the second conductive region and underneath the plurality of windows, a plurality of third conductive regions having the first conductivity type; removing completely the first and second masks; performing an activation thermal process of the first, second, and third conductive regions at a high temperature; and forming body and source regions. | 04-18-2013 |
| 20130088897 | CONTROL INTEGRATED CIRCUIT FOR A POWER TRANSISTOR OF A SWITCHING CURRENT REGULATOR - An integrated circuit controls a switch of a switching current regulator. The current regulator comprises primary and secondary windings where a first and a second current flow, respectively. The switch is adapted to initiate or interrupt the circulation of the first current in the primary winding. The control integrated circuit comprises a comparator configured to compare a first signal representative of said first current to a second signal and a divider circuit configured to generate said second signal as a ratio of a third signal, proportional to a voltage on the primary winding, with a voltage on a capacitor. The capacitor is charged by a further current controlled by the third signal when the second current is different from zero. The capacitor is discharged through a parallel-connected resistor when the value of said second current is substantially zero. | 04-11-2013 |
| 20130088298 | HIGH PERFORMANCE CLASS AB OPERATIONAL AMPLIFIER - A class AB operational amplifier includes an input stage, an output stage and a level shifter stage to control the quiescent current of the output stage and to transfer the signal from the input stage to the output stage, and a control circuit of the level shifter stage. The control circuit includes a transistor differential pair having a differential input terminals and the differential voltage at the differential terminals of the differential pair controls the level shifter stage. | 04-11-2013 |
| 20130088272 | LOW CONSUMPTION FLIP-FLOP CIRCUIT WITH DATA RETENTION AND METHOD THEREOF - The present disclosure relates to a low consumption flip-flop circuit with data retention, comprising at least one flip-flop and at least one retention cell connected to the output of the flip-flop and configured so that during normal operation of the flip-flop circuit, the retention cell transmits the data or logic state present on the output terminal of the flip-flop to its own output terminal, while during low consumption operation of the flip-flop circuit a latch circuit of the retention cell suitable to memorize data or a logic state corresponding to the last data or logic state present on the output terminal of the flip-flop is activated. | 04-11-2013 |
| 20130083490 | ELECTRONIC SYSTEM FOR WAVE SOLDERING - An electronic board includes conducting traces having an upper surface at least partially sunken with respect to a gluing surface of the board. A surface mount technology electronic device for mounting to the board includes insulating windows that define gluing sites within one or more pins. An electronic system is formed by one or more of such surface mount technology electronic devices mounted to electronic board. The devices are attached using a wave soldering technique that flows through channels formed by the sunken conductive traces. | 04-04-2013 |
| 20130083489 | ELECTRONIC SYSTEM FOR REFLOW SOLDERING - An electronic system includes an insulating structural element with a coupling surface configured for coupling the electronic system with at least one further electronic system. The electronic system further includes at least one conducting contact element at least partially exposed on the coupling surface. Each conducting contact element has a soldering surface supporting reflow soldering of the conducting contact element with a corresponding further contact element of the further electronic system. In addition, each conducting contact element has at least one lateral surface protruding from the insulating structural element. The soldering surface of the conducting contact element includes at least one channel having an opened end at the protruding lateral surface, the channel configured to facilitate dispersion of waste gas produced during reflow soldering. | 04-04-2013 |
| 20130082258 | METHOD FOR STRIP TESTING OF MEMS DEVICES, TESTING STRIP OF MEMS DEVICES AND MEMS DEVICE THEREOF - A method for testing a strip of MEMS devices, the MEMS devices including at least a respective die of semiconductor material coupled to an internal surface of a common substrate and covered by a protection material; the method envisages: detecting electrical values generated by the MEMS devices in response to at least a testing stimulus; and, before the step of detecting, at least partially separating contiguous MEMS devices in the strip. The step of separating includes defining a separation trench between the contiguous MEMS devices, the separation trench extending through the whole thickness of the protection material and through a surface portion of the substrate, starting from the internal surface of the substrate. | 04-04-2013 |
| 20130081467 | INTEGRATED TORSIONAL-MICROBALANCE DEVICE IN MEMS TECHNOLOGY AND FABRICATION PROCESS THEREOF - A MEMS microbalance that includes a substrate made of semiconductor material with a cavity, and a resonator, which is suspended above the cavity of the substrate and is formed by a mobile body, by at least one first arm connected between the substrate and the mobile body, which has a first thickness and which enables oscillations of the mobile body with respect to the substrate, by an actuation transducer connected to the mobile body for generating the oscillations at a resonance frequency, and by a detection transducer for detecting a variation of the resonance frequency, wherein the mobile body possesses at least one thin portion having a second thickness smaller than the first thickness of the first arm. | 04-04-2013 |
| 20130081466 | MICROELECTROMECHANICAL SENSOR WITH NON-CONDUCTIVE SENSING MASS, AND METHOD OF SENSING THROUGH A MICROELECTROMECHANICAL SENSOR - A microelectromechanical sensor includes: a supporting structure, having at least one first electrode and one second electrode, which form a capacitor; and a sensing mass made of non-conductive material, which is arranged so as to interact with an electric field associated to the capacitor and is movable with respect to the supporting structure according to a degree of freedom so that a relative position of the sensing mass with respect to the first electrode and to the second electrode is variable in response to external stresses. The sensing mass is made of a material selected in the group consisting of: intrinsic semiconductor materials, oxides of semiconductor materials, and nitrides of semiconductor materials. | 04-04-2013 |
| 20130078643 | DEVICE AND METHOD OF DETECTING TSH - A device for detecting the concentration of biological materials, is formed in a body having a plurality of fluidic paths connectable to a multi-microbalance structure carrying a plurality of microbalances, each microbalance having a sensitive portion facing a reaction chamber. The body and the multi-microbalance structure are configured to be mechanically coupled together and each microbalance is configured to be coupled to a respective fluidic path. Each fluidic path includes an inlet, a duct and a liquid waste, each duct being configured to be coupled with a respective reaction chamber. The plurality of fluidic paths and microbalances form at least one first and one second reference cells and one first sample cell. | 03-28-2013 |
| 20130077421 | FAILURE DIAGNOSIS CIRCUIT - A failure diagnosis circuit includes a multiplexer and a controller. The multiplexer receives address signals, and selectively outputs one of the address signals to an addressable module in response to a selecting signal. The controller generates a first one of address signals and the selecting signal. A built-in self-test circuit generates the second address signal. The addressable module includes addressable components responsive to the address signal. The controller processes the output of the addressable module responsive to the address signal to make a failure diagnosis. The built-in self-test circuit performs signature analysis on the read out output of the addressable module. | 03-28-2013 |
| 20130073305 | MULTIMEDIA TAGGING SYSTEM AND METHOD, RELATED COMPUTER PROGRAM PRODUCT - An embodiment of a multimedia tagging system, includes a multimedia-content generator for producing multimedia content tagged with metadata, and a remote health-monitoring device for measuring and processing a set of biological and physiological signals of a user. The system is configured for tagging the multimedia content with tags extracted from a set of personal metadata obtained from the biological and physiological signals provided by the remote health-monitoring device and containing information relative to the emotional and health status of said user. | 03-21-2013 |
| 20130071611 | THREE-DIMENSIONAL INTEGRATED STRUCTURE HAVING A HIGH SHAPE FACTOR, AND RELATED FORMING METHOD - The disclosure relates to a three-dimensional integrated structure comprising a substrate and a plurality of projecting elements projecting from a flat surface thereof and obtained from a patterned and developed dry film photoresist. Advantageously, the three-dimensional integrated structure is highly defined, the projecting elements obtained by the patterned and developed dry film photoresist having a shape factor greater than 6. The three-dimensional integrated structure can be used to directly realize different type of electronic devices, such as microfluidic devices, microreactors or sensor devices. | 03-21-2013 |
| 20130070942 | ACOUSTIC TRANSDUCER, AND MICROPHONE USING THE ACOUSTIC TRANSDUCER - An acoustic sensor includes: a semiconductor substrate; a vibrating membrane, formed above the semiconductor substrate, which includes a vibrating electrode; and a fixed membrane, formed on an upper surface of the semiconductor substrate, which includes a fixed electrode, the acoustic sensor detecting an acoustic wave according to a change in capacitance between the vibrating electrode and the fixed electrode. The fixed membrane has a plurality of sound hole portions formed therein in order to allow the acoustic wave to reach the vibrating membrane from outside, and the fixed electrode is formed so that a boundary of an edge portion of the fixed electrode does not intersect the sound hole portions. | 03-21-2013 |
| 20130070861 | METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR THE TREATMENT OF MULTIPLE-DESCRIPTION SIGNALS, AND CORRESPONDING COMPUTER-PROGRAM PRODUCT - A processing system, such as typically a CPU, is used for converting a digital signal organized in pixels, such as a video signal, between a first format and a second multiple-description format. The system comprises at least one input register and at least one output register, and is configured via instructions, that can be constituted at least in part by instructions of a SIMD type, so as to: order the pixels of the signal to be converted in a set of input registers; and take selectively the pixels from the aforesaid set of input registers and place them in an orderly way in at least one output register. | 03-21-2013 |
| 20130069179 | ACOUSTIC SENSOR, ACOUSTIC TRANSDUCER, MICROPHONE USING THE ACOUSTIC TRANSDUCER, AND METHOD FOR MANUFACTURING THE ACOUSTIC TRANSDUCER - In an acoustic sensor, a conductive vibrating membrane and a fixed electrode plate are disposed above a silicon substrate with an air gap provided therebetween, and the substrate has an impurity added to a surface thereof. A microphone includes an acoustic transducer; and an acquiring section that acquires a change in pressure as detected by the acoustic transducer. A method for manufacturing an acoustic transducer including a semiconductor substrate, a vibrating membrane, which is conductive, and a fixed electrode plate and detecting a pressure according to a change in capacitance between the vibrating membrane and the fixed electrode plate, the method includes an impurity adding step of adding an impurity to a surface of the semiconductor substrate; and a forming step of forming the vibrating membrane and the fixed electrode plate above the semiconductor substrate to which the impurity has been added. | 03-21-2013 |
| 20130068204 | SOFT TURN-ON IN AN IGNITION SYSTEM OF A COMBUSTION ENGINE - A switching system for a combustion engine ignition system comprises a switching device switchable between an accumulation condition and a transfer condition to activate an ignition element. The switching system comprises control logic that provides a control signal for controlling the switching device, measures a progress indicator indicative of progress in switching the switching device from the transfer condition to the accumulation condition, and causes the control signal to vary with a first variation rate during a first stage until the progress indicator reaches a first progress condition. The control logic causes the control signal to vary with a second variation rate, lower than the first variation rate, during a second stage until the progress indicator reaches a second progress condition, and causes the control signal to vary with a third variation rate, higher than the second variation rate, during a third stage of the preliminary switching. | 03-21-2013 |
| 20130064313 | METHOD FOR CHANNEL ESTIMATION, RELATED CHANNEL ESTIMATOR, RECEIVER, AND COMPUTER PROGRAM PRODUCT - An embodiment of a method for channel estimation for an Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing communication system, including estimating a Time Domain Least Squares channel impulse response having a given maximum number of L taps based on a channel covariance matrix Q, and for each tap l=1, . . . , L a respective channel impulse response in the time-domain ĥ | 03-14-2013 |
| 20130062730 | ELECTRONIC SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICE WITH INTEGRATED INDUCTOR, AND MANUFACTURING METHOD - An embodiment of an electronic device includes first and second semiconductor bodies. The first semiconductor body houses a first conductive strip having a first end portion and a second end portion, and houses a first conduction terminal electrically coupled to the first end portion and facing a surface of the first semiconductor body. The second semiconductor body houses a second conductive strip having a third end portion and a fourth end portion, and houses a second conduction terminal electrically coupled to the third end portion and facing a surface of the second semiconductor body. The first and second semiconductor bodies are arranged relative to one another so that the respective surfaces face one another, and the first conduction terminal and the second conduction terminal are coupled to one another by means of a conductive element so as to form a loop of an inductor. | 03-14-2013 |
| 20130061672 | UNIAXIAL OR BIAXIAL MICROELECTROMECHANICAL GYROSCOPE WITH IMPROVED SENSITIVITY TO ANGULAR VELOCITY DETECTION - An integrated microelectromechanical structure is provided with: a driving mass, anchored to a substrate via elastic anchorage elements and moved in a plane with a driving movement; and a first sensing mass, suspended inside, and coupled to, the driving mass via elastic supporting elements so as to be fixed with respect to the driving mass in the driving movement and to perform a detection movement of rotation out of the plane in response to a first angular velocity; the elastic anchorage elements and the elastic supporting elements cause the detection movement to be decoupled from the driving movement. The elastic supporting elements are coupled to the first sensing mass at an end portion thereof, and the axis of rotation of the detection movement extends, within the first sensing mass, only through the end portion. | 03-14-2013 |
| 20130057312 | SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR ELECTRICAL TESTING OF THROUGH SILICON VIAS (TSVs) - An embodiment of a testing system for carrying out electrical testing of at least one first through via extending, at least in part, through a substrate of a first body of semiconductor material. The testing system has a first electrical test circuit integrated in the first body and electrically coupled to the first through via and to electrical-connection elements carried by the first body for electrical connection towards the outside; the first electrical test circuit enables detection of at least one electrical parameter of the first through via through the electrical-connection elements. | 03-07-2013 |
| 20130057242 | CONSTANT-ON-TIME MULTI-PHASE SWITCHING VOLTAGE REGULATOR AND RELATED METHOD OF GENERATING A REGULATED VOLTAGE - A switching voltage regulator including a comparison module configured to receive a reference voltage and a feedback voltage and to generate a comparison signal corresponding to a difference between the reference voltage and the feedback voltage, an offset module configured to generate an offset signal based on a number of active phases of the voltage regulator, an adder configured to generate a control signal based on the comparison signal and the offset signal, a plurality of pulse-width-modulated (PWM) power stages, and a control module configured to control the plurality of PWM power stages based at least in part on the control signal generated by the adder. | 03-07-2013 |
| 20130057240 | SWITCHING VOLTAGE REGULATOR - A switching voltage regulator includes a comparison module configured to receive a reference voltage and a feedback voltage and to generate a comparison signal based on a difference between the reference voltage and the feedback voltage, and a control module configured to generate a gain control threshold signal based on at least one of the reference voltage and the feedback voltage. The control module may be configured to control a duration of a PWM pulse based on the at least one of the reference voltage and the feedback voltage. The feedback voltage may a regulated output voltage of the switching voltage regulator. The switching voltage regulator may be implemented in an analog or a digital manner. | 03-07-2013 |
| 20130051577 | ARRAY MICROPHONE APPARATUS FOR GENERATING A BEAM FORMING SIGNAL AND BEAM FORMING METHOD THEREOF - Embodiments described in the present disclosure relate to an array microphone apparatus for generating a beam forming signal. The apparatus includes first, second, and third omni-directional microphones, each converting an audible signal into a corresponding electrical signal. The second omni-directional microphone is disposed between the other two omni-directional microphones. The apparatus includes a first directional microphone forming device to jointly output a first directional microphone signal with a first bi-directional pattern, and a magnitude and phase response handler device to output a second directional microphone signal with an omni-directional pattern shifted by a prefixed value with respect to first directional microphone signal. The apparatus further includes a combining device receiving the first and second directional microphone signals and outputting a combined directional microphone signal with a combined beam pattern correlated to the first bi-directional and second omni-directional patterns, the combined directional microphone signal being in a broadside configuration. | 02-28-2013 |
| 20130033323 | ELECTRONIC SYSTEM COMPRISING A SENSOR STRUCTURE AND AN ANALOG INTERFACE CONNECTED THERETO WITH SENSOR INDEPENDENT OPERATING RANGE - An electronic system comprises a resistive sensor structure and an electronic circuit portion whose design is selected such that different resistive sensor structures may be combined within the same electronic circuit. To this end, the resistive sensor structure is used as a voltage/current converter that provides input currents to a current amplifier, which in turn provides an amplified output voltage on the basis of a difference of the input currents. The operating range of the current amplifier is adjusted on the basis of a programmable current source irrespective of the configuration of the resistive sensor structure. | 02-07-2013 |
| 20130033274 | MICROELECTROMECHANICAL SENSOR WITH DIFFERENTIATED PERFORMANCES AND METHOD OF CONTROLLING A MICROELECTROMECHANICAL SENSOR - A microelectromechanical sensor includes a supporting structure and a sensing mass, which is elastically coupled to the supporting structure, is movable with respect thereto with one degree of freedom in response to movements according to an axis and is coupled to the supporting structure through a capacitive coupling. A sensing device senses, on terminals of the capacitive coupling, transduction signals indicative of displacements of the first sensing mass according to the degree of freedom. The sensing device includes at least one first reading chain, having first operative parameters, one second reading chain, having second operative parameters different from the first operative parameters, and one selective electrical connection structure that couples the first reading chain and the second reading chain to the first terminals. | 02-07-2013 |
| 20130031950 | MICROELECTROMECHANICAL GYROSCOPE WITH SELF-CALIBRATION FUNCTION AND METHOD OF CALIBRATING A MICROELECTROMECHANICAL GYROSCOPE - A microelectromechanical gyroscope having a supporting structure; a mass capacitively coupled to the supporting structure and movable with a first degree of freedom and a second degree of freedom, in response to rotations of the supporting structure about an axis; driving components, for keeping the mass in oscillation according to the first degree of freedom; a read interface for detecting transduction signals indicating the capacitive coupling between the mass and the supporting structure; and capacitive compensation modules for modifying the capacitive coupling between the mass and the supporting structure. Calibration components detect systematic errors from the transduction signals and modify the capacitive compensation modules as a function of the transduction signals so as to attenuate the systematic errors. | 02-07-2013 |
| 20130030763 | SPECTROMETER INCLUDING A GEIGER-MODE AVALANCHE PHOTODIODE - A spectrometer including: a photodiode having a depleted region and generating an electrical detection signal indicating instants of detection of optical pulses; a converter generating an electrical delay signal, indicating delays between the instants of detection and corresponding instants of emission of the optical pulses; a memory, storing a theoretical function corresponding to the probability of triggering an avalanche by a charge carrier generated in the depleted region; and a computing stage which determines a statistical distribution of the delays between the instants of detection and the corresponding instants of emission; selects a Gaussian portion of the statistical distribution; calculates the ratio between the sum of the number of delays of the Gaussian portion and the sum of the number of delays of the statistical distribution; and determines an estimate of the wavelength of the optical pulses on the basis of the theoretical function and of the sample value. | 01-31-2013 |
| 20130028450 | LID, FABRICATING METHOD THEREOF, AND MEMS PACKAGE MADE THEREBY - A lid for a MEMS device and the relative manufacturing method. The lid includes: a first board with opposite first and second surfaces having first and second metal layers disposed thereon, respectively, wherein a through cavity extends through the first board and the first and second metal layers; a second board with opposite third and fourth surfaces; an adhesive layer sandwiched between the second surface of the first board and the third surface of the second board to couple the first and second boards together such that the through cavity is closed by the second board, thereby forming a recess; and a first conductor layer coating the bottom and the side surfaces of the recess. | 01-31-2013 |
| 20130027310 | KEY ACTUATION DETECTION APPARATUS AND METHOD - A manual pointing device for a computer system, the device having at least one key that can be actuated manually by a user, a click-event detection module coupled to the key to detect actuation thereof on first, second, and third detection axes via an inertial sensing circuit elastically coupled to a casing with a board, the inertial-sensor circuit structured to be carried on the board so as to oscillate and to rotate about the second detection axis. | 01-31-2013 |
| 20130027283 | CHARGE-SHARING PATH CONTROL DEVICE FOR A SCAN DRIVER OF AN LCD PANEL - A bidirectional switch includes a pair of transistors, with each transistor including a source connected via a degeneration resistance to a common source control node, a gate connected to a common gate control node, a drain connected to a respective channel or gate line and to a charge storage node, respectively, and a clamp diode connected between the source and the gate. This forms a single charge transfer path between gate lines sequentially activated by a scan driver of an LCD panel, and implements a charge sharing technique for reducing power dissipation. | 01-31-2013 |
| 20130027073 | INTEGRATED CIRCUIT COMPRISING AT LEAST AN INTEGRATED ANTENNA - An integrated circuit on a substrate including at least one peripheral portion that surrounds an active area and is realized close to at least one scribe line providing separation with other integrated circuits realized on a same wafer. The integrated circuit includes at least one conductive structure that extends in its peripheral portion on different planes starting from the substrate and realizes an integrated antenna for the circuit. | 01-31-2013 |
| 20130026536 | INSULATED GATE SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICE WITH OPTIMIZED BREAKDOWN VOLTAGE, AND MANUFACTURING METHOD THEREOF - An insulated gate semiconductor device, comprising: a semiconductor body having a front side and a back side opposite to one another; a drift region, which extends in the semiconductor body and has a first type of conductivity and a first doping value; a body region having a second type of conductivity, which extends in the drift region facing the front side of the semiconductor body; a source region, which extends in the body region and has the first type of conductivity; and a buried region having the second type of conductivity, which extends in the drift region at a distance from the body region and at least partially aligned to the body region in a direction orthogonal to the front side and to the back side. | 01-31-2013 |
| 20130026466 | TESTING ARCHITECTURE OF CIRCUITS INTEGRATED ON A WAFER - An embodiment of a testing architecture of integrated circuits on a wafer is described of the type including at least one first circuit of a structure TEG realized in a scribe line providing separation between at least one first and one second integrated circuit. The architecture includes at least one pad shared by a second circuit inside at least one of these first and second integrated circuit and the first circuit, as well as a switching circuitry coupled to the at least one pad and to these first and second circuits. | 01-31-2013 |
| 20130025368 | MICROELECTROMECHANICAL GYROSCOPE WITH IMPROVED READING STAGE AND METHOD - A gyroscope, including: a body; a driving mass, mobile along a driving axis; a driving device that keeps the driving mass in oscillation according to the driving axis at a driving frequency; a sensing mass, coupled to the driving mass to move according to the driving axis and is mobile with respect to the driving mass along a sensing axis; and a reading device, which receives a sensing signal associated with the movement of the sensing mass and supplies an output signal indicating a position of the sensing mass. The reading device includes an analog-to-digital converter, which receives a voltage signal associated with the sensing signal. The voltage signal includes a useful signal component and a spurious signal component, phase-shifted with respect to one another by approximately 90°, and the analog-to-digital converter is configured for sampling the voltage signal at maximum values assumed by the useful signal component. | 01-31-2013 |
| 20130022130 | METHOD FOR THE FRAME-RATE CONVERSION OF A VIDEO SEQUENCE OF DIGITAL IMAGES, RELATED APPARATUS AND COMPUTER PROGRAM PRODUCT - In an embodiment, a method for converting an input video sequence, comprising digital images organized in frames and operating at a variable frame-rate, into an output video sequence, operating at a pre-set constant frame-rate, storing the input video sequence temporarily and controlling fetching of images of said temporarily stored input video sequence. The method further includes controlling fetching of images from the temporarily stored input video sequence by adjusting an emptying rate to form an intermediate video sequence; and carrying out an operation of motion-compensated interpolation on the intermediate video sequence to form the output video sequence operating at a pre-set constant frame-rate, the emptying rate being adjusted as a function of a number of images of the input video sequence with variable frame-rate temporarily stored. An application is in the reproduction of video sequences in mobile terminals, with the capacity of audio-video conversation, for example for videoconferences. | 01-24-2013 |
| 20130020714 | CONTACT PAD - A contact pad for an electronic device integrated in a semiconductor material chip is formed from a succession of protruding elements. Each protruding element extends transversally to a main surface of the chip and has a rounded terminal portion. Adjacent pairs protruding elements define an opening which is partially filled with a first conductive material to form a contact structure that is in electrical contact with an integrated electronic device formed in the chip. A layer of a second conductive material is deposited to cover said protruding elements and the contact structures so as to form the contact pad. | 01-24-2013 |
| 20130020491 | PHOTODETECTOR DEVICE WITH PROTECTIVE AND ANTIREFLECTIVE COVER, AND MANUFACTURING METHOD THEREOF - The photodetector device includes a semiconductor body having a front surface, and an active-area region that extends in the semiconductor body facing the front surface and is configured for receiving a light radiation and generating, in response to the light radiation received, electric charge carriers. A polydimethylsiloxane cover layer extends on the front surface in the active-area region so that the light radiation is received by the active-area region through the cover layer. | 01-24-2013 |
| 20130019677 | MICROELECTROMECHANICAL STRUCTURE WITH ENHANCED REJECTION OF ACCELERATION NOISE - An integrated MEMS structure includes a driving assembly anchored to a substrate and actuated with a driving movement. A pair of sensing masses suspended above the substrate and coupled to the driving assembly via elastic elements is fixed in the driving movement and performs a movement along a first direction of detection, in response to an external stress. A coupling assembly couples the pair of sensing masses mechanically to couple the vibration modes. The coupling assembly is formed by a rigid element, which connects the sensing masses and has a point of constraint in an intermediate position between the sensing masses, and elastic coupling elements for coupling the rigid element to the sensing masses to present a first stiffness to a movement in phase-opposition and a second stiffness, greater than the first, to a movement in phase, of the sensing masses along the direction of detection. | 01-24-2013 |
| 20130017676 | DEEP CONTACTS OF INTEGRATED ELECTRONIC DEVICES BASED ON REGIONS IMPLANTED THROUGH TRENCHES - An embodiment of an integrated circuit includes first and second semiconductor layers and a contact region disposed in the second layer. The first semiconductor layer is of a first conductivity, and the second semiconductor layer is disposed over the first layer and has a surface. The contact region is contiguous with the surface, contacts the first layer, includes a first inner conductive portion, and includes an outer conductive portion of the first conductivity. The contact region may extend deeper than conventional contact regions, because where the inner conductive portion is formed from a trench, doping the outer conductive portion via the trench may allow one to implant the dopants more deeply than conventional techniques allow. | 01-17-2013 |
| 20130015835 | RIPPLE FREE BAND-GAP VOLTAGE GENERATOR IMPLEMENTING A CHOPPING TECHNIQUE AND RELATIVE METHODAANM CORRADI; StefanoAACI SiracusaAACO ITAAGP CORRADI; Stefano Siracusa ITAANM CRISTAUDO; DomenicoAACI Tremestieri EtneoAACO ITAAGP CRISTAUDO; Domenico Tremestieri Etneo ITAANM BATTAGLIA; DanieleAACI San Gregorio di Catania (CT)AACO ITAAGP BATTAGLIA; Daniele San Gregorio di Catania (CT) IT - A band-gap reference voltage generator for generating a stable band-gap reference voltage including a chopped band-gap circuit, a first sample and hold circuit coupled to the chopped band-gap circuit, a second sample and hold circuit coupled to the chopped band-gap circuit, and an output circuit coupled to the first and second sample and hold circuits for generating the stable band-gap reference voltage. | 01-17-2013 |
| 20130008251 | MICROELECTROMECHANICAL GYROSCOPE WITH ENHANCED REJECTION OF ACCELERATION NOISES - An integrated microelectromechanical structure is provided with a driving mass, anchored to a substrate via elastic anchorage elements and designed to be actuated in a plane with a driving movement; and a first sensing mass and a second sensing mass, suspended within, and coupled to, the driving mass via respective elastic supporting elements so as to be fixed with respect thereto in said driving movement and to perform a respective detection movement in response to an angular velocity. In particular, the first and the second sensing masses are connected together via elastic coupling elements, configured to couple their modes of vibration. | 01-10-2013 |
| 20130000136 | MAGNETORESISTIVE SENSOR AND MANUFACTURING METHOD THEREOF - A magnetoresistive element formed by a strip of magnetoresistive material which extends on a substrate of semiconductor material having an upper surface. The strip comprises at least one planar portion which extends parallel to the upper surface, and at least one transverse portion which extends in a direction transverse to the upper surface. The transverse portion is formed on a transverse wall of a dig. By providing a number of magnetoresistive elements perpendicular to one another it is possible to obtain an electronic compass that is insensitive to oscillations with respect to the horizontal plane parallel to the surface of the Earth. | 01-03-2013 |
| 20120327692 | CONTROL DEVICE FOR A RESONANT CONVERTER - A control device for a resonant converter is described. The converter comprises a switching circuit adapted to drive a resonant circuit that includes at least one capacitor. The converter is adapted to convert an input signal into an output signal and the switching circuit includes at least a half bridge of first and second switches, the central point of said half bridge being connected to the resonant circuit. The control device comprises a controller adapted to generate at least a control signal of the switching circuit by comparing a signal representative of the energy of the resonant circuit with at least another signal. | 12-27-2012 |
| 20120326796 | OSCILLATOR CIRCUT AND ELECTRONIC CIRCUIT COMPRISING THE OSCILLATOR CIRCUIT - An oscillator circuit including a first capacitor provided with a first terminal; a resistor provided with a reference terminal; a first current generator provided with a connection terminal; a second current generator provided with a second connection terminal. Further, the circuit includes a switching matrix between the first and second generators and resistor and the at least one first capacitor. | 12-27-2012 |
| 20120326756 | ELECTRONIC CIRCUIT AND METHOD FOR TESTING AND KEEPING A MOS TRANSISTOR SWITCHED-OFF - The electronic circuit includes a transistor having a gate terminal, a source terminal and a drain terminal. A resistor has a first terminal connected to the gate terminal and has a second terminal connected to an auxiliary pad. When the electronic circuit is operating in a test phase and is configured for receiving a test signal for performing the test of the transistor, the auxiliary pad is electrically floating. When the electronic circuit is operating in a normal phase and is configured for receiving a supply voltage, the auxiliary pad is electrically connected to a voltage value smaller than the sum of the voltage value of the source terminal with the threshold voltage value of the transistor. | 12-27-2012 |
| 20120325639 | TOUCH SENSOR AND METHOD OF FORMING A TOUCH SENSOR - A touch sensor includes a substrate having a substrate surface and first electrode sets. Each first electrode set has a plurality of electrodes formed over the substrate surface and arranged in a row along a first direction, the electrodes being transparent and formed of a first material, the first material being electrically conductive and light transmissive. Each first electrode set also has connection elements. Each connection element provides an electrical connection between a pair of adjacent ones of the plurality of electrodes. The connection elements are formed of a second material having a smaller specific electric resistance than the first material. Each of the connection elements comprises a first portion, a second portion and a third portion. The third portion provides an electrical connection between the first portion and the second portion. | 12-27-2012 |
| 20120320545 | INTELLIGENT POWER MODULE AND RELATED ASSEMBLING METHOD - An intelligent power module includes a power circuit board having a plurality of power devices and fixed on a base plate of a case body able to be closed with a lid to form a protective case of the intelligent power module. The intelligent power module also includes a control circuit board suitable to drive the power devices of the power circuit board. The control circuit board is associated with the lid in such a way that the control circuit board is comprised within the case body. The control circuit board and the lid thus realizing an intelligent lid of the intelligent power module. | 12-20-2012 |
| 20120319191 | PROCESS FOR MANUFACTURING A SEMICONDUCTOR POWER DEVICE COMPRISING CHARGE-BALANCE COLUMN STRUCTURES AND RESPECTIVE DEVICE - Process for manufacturing a semiconductor power device, wherein a trench is formed in a semiconductor body having a first conductivity type; the trench is annealed for shaping purpose; and the trench is filled with semiconductor material via epitaxial growth so as to obtain a first column having a second conductivity type. The epitaxial growth is performed by supplying a gas containing silicon and a gas containing dopant ions of the second conductivity type in presence of a halogenide gas and occurs with uniform distribution of the dopant ions. The flow of the gas containing dopant ions is varied according to a linear ramp during the epitaxial growth; in particular, in the case of selective growth of the semiconductor material in the presence of a hard mask, the flow decreases; in the case of non-selective growth, in the absence of hard mask, the flow increases. | 12-20-2012 |
| 20120315966 | SCHEDULING METHOD AND SYSTEM, COMPUTING GRID, AND CORRESPONDING COMPUTER-PROGRAM PRODUCT - An embodiment of a method for scheduling execution of jobs with the resources of a Multi-Core system envisages producing a system model based upon agents representing the jobs, said agents being able to implement a strategy for scheduling execution of the jobs with the resources of the Multi-Core system via respective available moves corresponding to the choice of a given resource of the Multi-Core system for execution of a given job. The agents are configured for implementing said strategy as strategy that integrates MiniMax and Nash-equilibrium strategies, for example operating in an iterative way, identifying an optimal solution deriving from the iteration. The strategy can be implemented by maximizing the probability of optimizing the time of completion of a given job for one of the agents. | 12-13-2012 |
| 20120313689 | LOW VOLTAGE ISOLATION SWITCH, IN PARTICULAR FOR A TRANSMISSION CHANNEL FOR ULTRASOUND APPLICATIONS - A low voltage isolation circuit is coupled between an input terminal for receiving a high voltage signal and an output terminal for transmitting the high voltage signal to a load. The isolation circuit includes a driving block; having a first driving transistor coupled between a first voltage reference and an intermediate node and a second driving transistor coupled between the intermediate node and a second voltage reference; an isolation block connected between the input and output terminals and, through a protection block to the intermediate node. The protection block includes first and second protection transistors (MD | 12-13-2012 |
| 20120313605 | METHOD OF SWITCHING A PWM MULTI-PHASE VOLTAGE CONVERTER - A circuit may generate a clock signal with a variable period given by a ratio between an initial switching period and a number of phase circuits through which a current of a multi-phase PWM voltage converter flows. The circuit may include an adjustable current generator driven by a signal representing the number of phase circuits through which the current flows and configured to generate a current proportional to the number of phase circuits through which the current flows, and a tank capacitor charged by the adjustable current generator. The circuit may include a comparator of a voltage on the tank capacitor with a threshold value configured to generate a pulse of the clock signal when the threshold value is attained, and a discharge path of the tank capacitor, the discharge path being enabled during the pulses of the clock signal. | 12-13-2012 |
| 20120311276 | METHOD FOR CONTROLLING OPERATION OF A MEMORY, CORRESPONDING SYSTEM, AND COMPUTER PROGRAM PRODUCT - The operation of a FIFO buffer memory includes writing the data at input to the memory in a single write location, and making the single write location available for writing an input datum with a shift of the datum written in the single write location to another location of the memory. At each operation of writing of an input datum in the single write location, there is scheduled shifting of the datum written therein to another location, without waiting for a new write request, thus eliminating the combinational constraint between the two operations. | 12-06-2012 |
| 20120307538 | ENERGY SCAVENGING INTERFACE, METHOD FOR OPERATING THE ENERGY SCAVENGING INTERFACE, AND ENERGY HARVESTING SYSTEM COMPRISING THE ENERGY SCAVENGING INTERFACE - An energy scavenging interface has an input port receiving an electrical signal from a storage element of a transducer, and an output port supplying an output signal to an electrical load. The interface includes a first switch receiving the input signal; a second switch that supplying the output signal; and control logic configured to close the first switch and open the second switch for a first time interval having at least a first temporal duration and until current through the first switch reaches a threshold. A scaled copy of a peak value of current through the first switch is obtained during the first time interval. The control logic is further operable to open the first switch and close the second switch to supply current to the electrical load as long as the current of the output signal remains greater than the value of said scaled copy of the peak value. | 12-06-2012 |
| 20120307537 | RECTIFIER CIRCUIT, METHOD FOR OPERATING THE RECTIFIER CIRCUIT, AND ENERGY HARVESTING SYSTEM COMPRISING THE RECTIFIER CIRCUIT - The input terminals of an energy-scavenging interface are connectable to a transducer including a storage element, and output terminals of the interface are connectable to an electrical load. The interface includes a first switch that is closed to pass current and store electrical energy in the storage element for a first time interval. The first time interval is based on at least one of a first delay proportional to a time constant of the transducer and sensed current flowing through the first switch reaching a first threshold. The first switch is thereafter opened so to permit the stored electrical energy to be delivered through a first current-conduction element for a second time interval. The second time interval is based on sensed current flowing through the first current-conduction element reaching a second threshold. The first current-conduction element may comprise a second switch actuate out of phase with the first switch. | 12-06-2012 |
| 20120304000 | RESTORING STORAGE DEVICES BASED ON FLASH MEMORIES AND RELATED CIRCUIT, SYSTEM, AND METHOD - A restoring operation of a storage device based on a flash memory. In an embodiment, a storage device emulates a logical memory space (including a plurality of logical blocks each one having a plurality of logical sectors), which is mapped on a physical memory space of the flash memory (including a plurality of physical blocks each one having a plurality of physical sectors for storing different versions of the logical sectors). A method may detect a plurality of conflicting physical blocks for a corrupted logical block and determines a plurality of validity indexes. One or more of the conflicting physical blocks are selected according to the validity indexes. The selected conflicting physical blocks are then associated with the corrupted logical block. At the end, each one of the non-selected conflicting physical blocks is discarded. | 11-29-2012 |
| 20120301144 | SYSTEM-ON-CHIP HAVING OPTICAL INTERCONNECTIONS - A system for exchanging information in an on-chip communication network using optical flow information for communication between Intellectual Property cores. The information is exchanged between a plurality of initiators and targets in the Intellectual Property cores. The system includes a router for propagating optical flow information from the initiators to the targets. Each initiator includes an interface to convert the traffic generated by the initiator and transmit it in the form of an optical flow within the on-chip communication network, and each target includes an interface to convert information from the optical form into the electrical form. The system is organized as a parametric system and includes programming module to define a first set of high level parameters, a second set of initiator network interface parameters and a third set of target network interface parameters. | 11-29-2012 |
| 20120299759 | ANALOG TO DIGITAL CONVERSION APPARATUS - An analog to digital conversion includes a multiplexor circuit for receiving analog input signals and, responsive to a select input, an analog to digital converter circuit to convert a selected analog signal into a digital signal, a conversion starting device to send a conversion start signal on the basis of a trigger event, the conversion starting device being responsive to a select input, a sequencer to control the analog to digital converter circuitry to execute one sequence conversion on the basis of one conversion sequence instruction, and a FIFO register block to receive conversion sequence instructions and being able to queue each new received conversion sequence instruction if an actual conversion sequence is in progress and to control the sequencer to execute a new sequence conversion instruction after the conversion sequence is executed. | 11-29-2012 |
| 20120299643 | DRIVING CIRCUIT FOR A CIRCUIT GENERATING AN ULTRASONIC PULSE, IN PARTICULAR AN ULTRA-SONIC TRANSDUCER, AND CORRESPONDING DRIVING METHOD - A driving circuit has output terminal connected to an ultrasonic transducer and provides an output voltage. The driving circuit includes an output transistor coupled between a voltage reference and the output terminal, a high voltage comparator coupled to said output terminal and to a threshold voltage reference), a start-up circuit controlled by a setting signal; and a switching ON/OFF circuit having an input coupled to the start-up circuit an input coupled to the comparator, and an output coupled to a control terminal of the output transistor. The start-up circuit provides an ON signal to the switching on/off circuit and the comparator provides an OFF signal to the switching on/off circuit which switches off the output transistor. The high voltage comparator generates the switching off signal in response to the output voltage reaching a desired supply voltage value which depends on the value of the first threshold voltage reference. | 11-29-2012 |
| 20120293241 | ELECTRONIC TRIMMING CIRCUIT WITH REDUCED NUMBER OF DEDICATED TRIMMING PINS - An electronic trimming circuit carries out a trimming operation on portions of an integrated device. The circuit includes N trimmable interconnected resistances, each connected in parallel to a respective shunt fuse. N trimming transistors are each connected to a respective one of the shunt fuses to force therethrough substantially the whole current flowing in the respective trimming transistor. N bias networks are each functionally connected to a control terminal of a respective one of the trimming transistors to directly bias an active junction thereof. An externally driven heating device is thermally coupled with the active junctions of the trimming transistors adapted to raise the temperature thereof. | 11-22-2012 |
| 20120287237 | METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR PROCESSING VIDEO SIGNALS, RELATED COMPUTER PROGRAM PRODUCT, AND ENCODED SIGNAL - An embodiment of a method is disclosed for encoding a digital video signal including a first video sequence and a second video sequence jointly forming a stereo-view digital video signal. The method includes: subjecting the first video sequence to discrete cosine transform, quantization and run-length coding to produce a sequence of blocks of non-zero digital levels representative of the first video sequence, subjecting the second video sequence to discrete cosine transform, quantization, run-length coding and variable length coding to produce digital messages representative of the second video sequence, merging the bits of the digital messages into the sequence of blocks of digital levels by substituting the bits of the digital messages for respective Least Significant Bits of e.g. the last digital level in the blocks representative of the first video sequence to produce an encoded digital video signal representative of the first video sequence and the second video sequence. | 11-15-2012 |
| 20120286870 | INTEGRATED CIRCUIT OF AN INTEGRATOR WITH ENHANCED STABILITY AND RELATED STABILIZATION METHOD - An integrated circuit integrator includes a first transconductance amplifier having a gain adjustable based upon a first control signal, and receives, as an input, a signal to be filtered, and generates, as an output, a corresponding amplified signal. The first transconductance amplifier includes an R-C output circuit to filter components from the amplified signal, and an output resistance being adjustable based upon a second control signal. A second transconductance amplifier is matched with the first transconductance amplifier, and has a gain adjustable based upon the first control signal, and a matched output resistance adjustable based upon the second control signal. A circuit is configured to force a reference current through the matched output resistance. An error correction circuit is coupled to the second transconductance amplifier and is configured to generate the second control signal so as to keep constant a voltage on an output of the second transconductance amplifier. | 11-15-2012 |
| 20120286769 | CURRENT SENSING DEVICE FOR A MULTI-PHASE SWITCHED VOLTAGE REGULATOR - A current sensor includes input modules each including an amplifier having a first input coupled to a respective winding of a regulator; a transistor having a control input coupled to the amplifier output, a first terminal coupled to a second input of the operational amplifier, and a second terminal configured to provide a sense current representing an unbalance of a phase current with respect to an average current of a winding; a current generator configured to bias the transistor; and an output resistor coupling the first terminal to an intermediate node. An output stage includes an output amplifier having a first input coupled to the intermediate node, and an output transistor having a control terminal coupled to the output amplifier output, a first terminal coupled to a second input of the output amplifier, and a second terminal providing another sense current representing a total current of the regulator. | 11-15-2012 |
| 20120286381 | ELECTRONIC MEMS DEVICE COMPRISING A CHIP BONDED TO A SUBSTRATE AND HAVING CAVITIES AND MANUFACTURING PROCESS THEREOF - An electronic MEMS device is formed by a chip having with a main face and bonded to a support via an adhesive layer. A cavity extends inside the chip from its main face and is closed by a flexible film covering the main face of the chip at least in the area of the cavity. The support has a depressed portion facing the cavity and delimited by a protruding portion facing the main face of the chip. Inside the depressed portion, the adhesive layer has a greater thickness than the projecting portion so as to be able to absorb any swelling of the flexible film as a result of the expansion of the gas contained inside the cavity during thermal processes. | 11-15-2012 |
| 20120281713 | COMMUNICATION SYSTEM AND CORRESPONDING INTEGRATED CIRCUIT AND METHOD - A communication system transmits data from a first circuit over a communication channel to a second circuit, the data having a first priority and a second priority. The communication system includes a separation circuit, a first-in first-out (FIFO) memory, and a control circuit. | 11-08-2012 |
| 20120281244 | SCANNER APPARATUS, RELATED METHOD AND COMPUTER PROGRAM PRODUCT - An embodiment of an integrated scanner apparatus, includes a support surface for objects to be scanned, a scanner unit to perform a scanning movement relative to the support surface to capture images of portions of objects to be scanned, and a printer unit carried by a carriage mobile with respect to said support surface, wherein said scanner unit is carried by said carriage carrying said printer unit to be imparted said scanning movement by said carriage. | 11-08-2012 |
| 20120274382 | LEVEL-SHIFTER CIRCUIT USING LOW-VOLTAGE TRANSISTORS - A level-shifter circuit may include a pair of inputs which receive a first and a second low-voltage phase signal having a first voltage dynamic with a first maximum value. The level-shifter circuit may also include a pair of outputs which supply a first high-voltage phase signal and a second high-voltage phase signal, level-shifted with respect to the low-voltage signals and having a second voltage dynamic with a second maximum value, higher than the first maximum value. The level-shifter circuit may further include transfer transistors coupled between one of a first reference terminal and a second reference terminal, which are set at one of a first reference voltage and a second reference voltage, and the first output or second output. Protection elements may be coupled to a respective transfer transistor to protect from overvoltages between at least one of the corresponding conduction terminals and control terminals. | 11-01-2012 |
| 20120274144 | SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR EFFICIENTLY HARVESTING ENVIRONMENTAL ENERGY - A transducer converts energy coming from an energy source into an electrical signal for storage as electrical energy on a first storage element. A switch is selectively actuated to pass electrical energy from the first storage element to a second storage element. The selective actuation of the switch is driven by sensing electrical energy stored in the second storage element. The switch is closed when electrical energy in the second storage element is sensed to fall below a first threshold. The switch is opened when electrical energy in the second storage element is sensed to rise above a second threshold. | 11-01-2012 |
| 20120274134 | DC-DC CONVERTER, METHOD FOR OPERATING THE DC-DC CONVERTER, ENVIRONMENTAL ENERGY HARVESTING SYSTEM COMPRISING THE DC-DC CONVERTER, AND APPARATUS COMPRISING THE ENERGY HARVESTING SYSTEM - A DC-DC converter independently supplies electrical loads. The converter includes a charge switch and a discharge switch connected between an input supply and a reference. An inductor has a first terminal connected between the charge switch and the discharge switch and a second terminal. Coupling switches are provided between the inductor second terminal and the electrical loads. An adaptive-control circuit acquires, during supply of each electrical load, a signal indicating the voltage value across the inductor and generates a first time interval as a function of the signal indicating the voltage value detected. Each electrical load is supplied during the first time interval, and completely discharged during a second time interval subsequent to the first time interval. | 11-01-2012 |
| 20120274132 | RECTIFIER CIRCUIT, AND ENVIRONMENTAL ENERGY HARVESTING SYSTEM COMPRISING THE RECTIFIER CIRCUIT - A rectifier circuit includes a first, second, third and fourth parasitic diodes electrically connected to form a full-wave diode-bridge rectifier. A first switch and a second switch are connected in parallel, respectively, to the first and second parasitic diodes, and a third switch and a fourth switch connected in parallel, respectively, to the third and fourth parasitic diodes. A first biasing network is configured to drive in conduction the first and second switches, during turning-on of the rectifier circuit, using a first turning-on signal that is a function of the input signal. A second biasing network is configured to close the third and fourth switches, during turning-on of the rectifier circuit, using a second turning-on signal that is a function of the input signal. | 11-01-2012 |
| 20120270360 | MULTIPLEXED OUTPUT TWO TERMINAL PHOTODIODE ARRAY FOR IMAGING APPLICATIONS AND RELATED FABRICATION PROCESS - A detector array for an imaging system may exploit the different sensitivities of array pixels to an incident flux of low energy photons with a wavelength falling near the high end of the range of sensitivity of the semiconductor. The detector array may provide the de-multiplexable spatial information. The detector array may include a two-terminal multi-pixel array of Schottky photodiodes electrically connected in parallel. | 10-25-2012 |
| 20120269206 | HIGH SPEED AND HIGH JITTER TOLERANCE DISPATCHER - A deserializer circuit includes demultiplexer circuitry configured to receive serial data from an input and output a plurality of divided data outputs, and multiplexer circuitry configured to receive a first logic level at a first input of said multiplexer circuitry, and receive a second logic level at a second input of said multiplexer circuitry and receive one of said divided data outputs at a control input of said multiplexer circuitry. The outputs of the multiplexer circuitry produce the received serial data in a parallel form. | 10-25-2012 |
| 20120268200 | TRANSMISSION CHANNEL FOR ULTRASOUND APPLICATIONS - A transmission channel configured to transmit high-voltage pulses and to receive echoes of the high-voltage pulses includes a high voltage buffer, a voltage clamp and a switch. The voltage clamp may include clamping transistors and switching off transistors coupled together in series with body diodes in anti-series. The transmission channel may include a reset circuit configured to bias the transmission channel between pulses. The switch may include a bootstrap circuit. | 10-25-2012 |
| 20120268189 | LOW VOLTAGE ISOLATION SWITCH, IN PARTICULAR FOR A TRANSMISSION CHANNEL FOR ULTRASOUND APPLICATIONS - A switching circuit is electrically coupled between a connection terminal and an output terminal of a transmission channel and includes first and second switching transistors electrically coupled in series to each other and having respective body diodes in anti-series, between the connection terminal and the output terminal. The switching circuit comprises a bootstrap circuit connected to respective first and second control terminals of these first and one second switching transistors, as well as to respective first and second voltage references. The bootstrap circuit includes a first parasitic capacitance electrically coupled between the first control terminal and a first bootstrap node, and a second parasitic capacitance electrically coupled between the second control terminal and a second bootstrap node. The parasitic capacitances have value of at least one order of magnitude lower with respect to the gate-source capacitances of the first and second switching transistors. | 10-25-2012 |
| 20120268168 | CLOCK GATING CELL CIRCUIT - A clock gate includes a first Muller gate that receives at its inputs a clock signal and an enable signal. The output of the first Muller gate is applied, with a delayed version of the clock signal, to a second Muller gate. A logic circuit operates to logically combine the output of the second Muller gate with a delayed version of the clock signal. The output of the logic circuit provides a gated clock output. | 10-25-2012 |
| 20120268092 | CLAMPING CIRCUIT TO A REFERENCE VOLTAGE FOR ULTRASOUND APPLICATIONS - A clamping circuit includes a clamping core connected to an output terminal and having a central node connected to a voltage reference and at least one first and one second clamp transistor, connected to the central node and having respective control terminals, the clamping core being also connected at the input to a low voltage input driver block. The clamping core includes a first switching off transistor connected to the output terminal and to the first clamp transistor, as well as a second switching off transistor connected to the output terminal and to the second clamp transistor. | 10-25-2012 |
| 20120267746 | PHOTO DETECTOR ARRAY OF GEIGER MODE AVALANCHE PHOTODIODES FOR COMPUTED TOMOGRAPHY SYSTEMS - The photo detector array is configured to generate pulses with short rise and fall times because each Geiger mode avalanche photodiode includes an anode contact, a cathode contact, an output contact electrically insulated from the anode and cathode contacts, a semiconductor layer, and at least one shield or metal structure in the semiconductor layer capacitively coupled to the semiconductor layer and coupled to the output contact. The output contacts of all Geiger mode avalanche photodiodes are connected in common and are configured to provide for detection of spikes correlated to avalanche events on any avalanche photodiode of the array. | 10-25-2012 |
| 20120265493 | METHOD FOR TECHNOLOGY PORTING OF CAD DESIGNS, AND COMPUTER PROGRAM PRODUCT THEREFOR - An embodiment of a design of one or more devices such as e.g. integrated circuits is ported from a source design technology to a target design technology by:—producing a standardized set of porting rules which translate device information related to the device or devices from the source design technology to the target design technology, and—creating a migrated design for the device or devices resulting from porting the CAD design from the source design technology to the target design technology by applying the standardized set of rules to the device information related. | 10-18-2012 |
| 20120262240 | OSCILLATOR, TIME-DIGITAL CONVERTER CIRCUIT AND RELATING METHOD OF TIME-DIGITAL MEASURE - A ring oscillator has a plurality of elementary units connected in cascade and linked in order to make a chain with the respective output terminals connected to the input terminals of the successive elementary units of the chain, the elementary units being crossed by a cyclic signal during a time period of activation, each of said elementary units comprising an auxiliary recovery terminal for temporarily resetting each elementary unit during each loop of said cyclic signal, said auxiliary recovery terminal being connected to an output terminal of a successive elementary unit of the chain. | 10-18-2012 |
| 20120262231 | CONTACT AND CONTACTLESS DIFFERENTIAL I/O PADS FOR CHIP-TO-CHIP COMMUNICATION AND WIRELESS PROBING - Contactless differential coupling structures can be used to communicate signals between circuits located on separate chips or from one chip to a probing device. The contactless coupling structures avoid problems (breaks, erosion, corrosion) that can degrade the performance of ohmic-type contact pads. The contactless coupling structures comprise pairs of conductive pads placed in close proximity. Differential signals are applied across a first pair of differential pads, and the signals are coupled wirelessly to a mating pair of conductive pads. Circuitry for generating and receiving differential signals is described. | 10-18-2012 |
| 20120262221 | LOW VOLTAGE ISOLATION SWITCH, IN PARTICULAR FOR A TRANSMISSION CHANNEL FOR ULTRASOUND APPLICATIONS - A low voltage isolation switch is coupled between an input terminal suitable for receiving a high voltage signal and an output terminal suitable for transmitting this high voltage signal to a load. The isolation switch includes a first driving transistor coupled between a first reference terminal and an intermediate node, a second driving transistor coupled between the intermediate node and the second reference terminal, a control transistor connected across a diode block coupled between the input and output terminals. The control transistor has a control terminal connected to the intermediate node through a low voltage decoupling block that includes first and second substrate terminals, first and second parasitic capacitive element connected to these first and second substrate terminals, and first and second decoupling transistors coupled in parallel to each other and having control terminals connected to the first and second parasitic capacitive elements, respectively. | 10-18-2012 |
| 20120260950 | APPARATUS FOR PROCESSING SEMICONDUCTOR WAFERS, IN PARTICULAR FOR CARRYING OUT A POLYMERS REMOVAL PROCESS STEP - An apparatus for processing semiconductor wafers includes at least a wet bench and an automatic handling system of a wafer carrier removably connected thereto. The wet bench includes a first processing tank, a second processing tank and a third processing tank, separated from one another, each processing tank being dedicated to a different chemical, as well as a special cleaning and drying tank for processing the automatic handling system when the wafer carrier has been removed. | 10-18-2012 |
| 20120256290 | MICROSTRUCTURE DEVICE COMPRISING A FACE TO FACE ELECTROMAGNETIC NEAR FIELD COUPLING BETWEEN STACKED DEVICE PORTIONS AND METHOD OF FORMING THE DEVICE - A galvanic-isolated coupling of circuit portions is accomplished on the basis of a stacked chip configuration. The semiconductor chips thus can be fabricated on the basis of any appropriate process technology, thereby incorporating one or more coupling elements, such as primary or secondary coils of a micro transformer, wherein the final characteristics of the micro transformer are adjusted during the wafer bond process. | 10-11-2012 |
| 20120250421 | CHARGE PUMP CIRCUIT USING LOW VOLTAGE TRANSISTORS - The charge pump circuit has a plurality of cascaded charge pump stages, each provided with a first pump capacitor connected to a first internal node and receiving a first high voltage phase signal, and a second pump capacitor connected to a second internal node and receiving a second high voltage phase signal, complementary with respect to the first. A first transfer transistor is coupled between the first internal node and an intermediate node, and a second transfer transistor is coupled between the second internal node and the intermediate node. The first and second high voltage phase signals have a voltage dynamics higher than a maximum voltage sustainable by the first and second transfer transistors. A protection stage is set between the first internal node and second internal node and respectively, the first transfer transistor and second transfer transistor, for protecting the same transfer transistors from overvoltages. | 10-04-2012 |
| 20120250367 | CONTROL DEVICE OF THE SWITCHING FREQUENCY OF A QUASI-RESONANT SWITCHING CONVERTER AND RELATED CONTROL METHOD - A control device for a QR switching power converter is described; said power converter is adapted to convert an input signal to a DC output signal and comprises a power switch connected to said input signal and adapted to regulate said DC output signal and magnetic storage means. The control device is able to determine the switching frequency of the power switch and it is supplied by a feedback signal deriving from a feedback circuit coupled to the output signal of the power converter; said control device performs a control loop regulating the DC output signal by controlling a control variable. The control device comprises modulating means adapted to modulate said control variable as a function of at least one modulating signal having a frequency higher than the control loop bandwidth. | 10-04-2012 |
| 20120249276 | INTEGRATED INDUCTOR DEVICE WITH HIGH INDUCTANCE, FOR EXAMPLE FOR USE AS AN ANTENNA IN A RADIOFREQUENCY IDENTIFICATION SYSTEM - An embodiment of integrated inductor device, comprising a plurality of modules overlaid to each other, each module including at least one coil of conducting material. The directly overlaid pairs of coils are coiled in opposite directions. The directly overlaid modules are mechanically coupled through first adhesive conductive regions and the coils of the directly overlaid modules are electrically coupled to each other through second adhesive conductive regions. The first and the second adhesive conductive regions coupling directly overlaid modules are formed in the same step of the process, are of the same material and are arranged at a same level. | 10-04-2012 |
| 20120249216 | HIGH VOLTAGE SWITCH CONFIGURATION - A High Voltage switch configuration having an input terminal which receives an input signal and an output terminal which issues an output signal to a load. The High Voltage switch configuration comprises at least a first and a second diode, being placed in antiseries between said input and output terminals and having a pair of corresponding terminals in common, in correspondence of a first internal circuit node. | 10-04-2012 |
| 20120241704 | LATERAL PHASE CHANGE MEMORY - A lateral phase change memory includes a pair of electrodes separated by an insulating layer. The first electrode is formed in an opening in an insulating layer and is cup-shaped. The first electrode is covered by the insulating layer which is, in turn, covered by the second electrode. As a result, the spacing between the electrodes may be very precisely controlled and limited to very small dimensions. The electrodes are advantageously formed of the same material, prior to formation of the phase change material region. | 09-27-2012 |
| 20120237124 | IMAGE CHROMA NOISE REDUCTION IN THE BAYER DOMAIN - An embodiment relates to a method and an image processor for reducing chroma noise in digital-image data. An embodiment performs noise reduction in the color-filter-array domain prior to demosaicing in order to prevent spreading of noise in subsequent stages of the image-processing pipeline. Peaks in the CFA data are attenuated in order to prevent any undesired color cast. Specifically, any correction to a certain pixel is made in accordance with the amplitude of digital gains applied, as well as with the local luminance and the contribution of the current color channel to the local luminance. In this manner, corrections are restricted to image areas that are subject to high digital amplification, that are comparatively dark, and that are not dominated by the current color channel. | 09-20-2012 |
| 20120237061 | PROCESS FOR MANUFACTURING A MEMBRANE MICROELECTROMECHANICAL DEVICE, AND MEMBRANE MICROELECTROMECHANICAL DEVICE - Disclosed herein is a microelectromechanical device and a process for manufacturing same. One or more embodiments may include forming a semiconductor structural layer separated from a substrate by a dielectric layer, and opening a plurality of trenches through the structural layer exposing a portion of the dielectric layer. A sacrificial portion of the dielectric layer is selectively removed through the plurality of trenches in membrane regions so as to free a corresponding portion of the structural layer to form a membrane. To close the trenches, the wafer is brought to an annealing temperature for a time interval in such a way as to cause migration of the atoms of the membrane so as to reach a minimum energy configuration. | 09-20-2012 |
| 20120235744 | DRIVING METHOD FOR OBTAINING A GAIN LINEAR VARIATION OF A TRANSCONDUCTANCE AMPLIFIER AND CORRESPONDENCE DRIVING CIRCUIT - The disclosure relates to a driving method for obtaining a linear gain variation of a transconductance amplifier that includes a first differential transistor cell, with adjustment of a driving voltage value of a degenerative driving transistor of the transconductance amplifier The method includes generating an output current signal of a second differential cell corresponding to the first differential transistor cell of the transconductance amplifier, the output current signal having a linear relationship with a transconductance value of the second differential cell as the driving voltage varies; generating a reference current signal having a linear relationship with a differential input voltage; comparing the output current signal and the reference current signal for adjusting the driving voltage value; and modifying the transconductance value of the second differential cell up to a balance of the current signals. | 09-20-2012 |
| 20120235729 | INTEGRATED DEVICE AND METHOD OF REDUCING VOLTAGE DROPS ON A SUPPLY DISTRIBUTION METAL PATH OF A DEVICE - An embodiment of an integrated circuit includes first and second pads, a supply conductor, and a selection circuit. The first pad is coupled to the supply conductor, and the selection circuit is configurable to couple the second pad to the supply conductor. For example, in a low-pin-count integrated circuit, one may select the second pad to be an input/output pad under normal-power conditions, and to be a supply pad under high-power conditions to reduce the voltage drop along the supply conductor. | 09-20-2012 |
| 20120230059 | DEVICE FOR AVOIDING HARD SWITCHING IN RESONANT CONVERTER AND RELATED METHOD - A control device controls a switching circuit for a converter. The switching circuit comprises a half-bridge having a high-side transistor and a low-side transistor. The control device comprises a controller configured to control turning on and turning off said two transistors, so that a square-wave voltage is applied to the transformer primary. The controller is configured to start switching the half-bridge by turning on the low-side transistor. The control device comprises a first timer configure to initially turn on the low-side transistor for a duration given by a first time period useful for pre-charging a bootstrap capacitor couplable to the middle point of the half-bridge, and a second timer configured to keep the low-side transistor and the high-side transistor turned off for a second time period immediately following the first time period and having a longer duration than the first time period. | 09-13-2012 |
| 20120223735 | DETECTION OF SINGLE BIT UPSET AT DYNAMIC LOGIC DUE TO SOFT ERROR IN REAL TIME - A circuit for detecting a single bit upset in a dynamic logic circuit includes a latch circuit having an input for receiving a reset signal, and an output for providing a flag output signal, the latch circuit being clocked by a first clock signal, a first transistor having a drain coupled to the output of the latch circuit, a gate for receiving a second clock signal, and a source, and a second transistor having a drain coupled to the source of the first transistor, a gate for receiving a third clock signal, and a source coupled to ground. | 09-06-2012 |
| 20120223402 | CAPACITIVE SEMICONDUCTOR PRESSURE SENSOR - A capacitive semiconductor pressure sensor, comprising: a bulk region of semiconductor material; a buried cavity overlying a first part of the bulk region; and a membrane suspended above said buried cavity, wherein, said bulk region and said membrane are formed in a monolithic substrate, and in that said monolithic substrate carries structures for transducing the deflection of said membrane into electrical signals, wherein said bulk region and said membrane form electrodes of a capacitive sensing element, and said transducer structures comprise contact structures in electrical contact with said membrane and with said bulk region. | 09-06-2012 |
| 20120218837 | VOLTAGE REGULATOR - A voltage regulator may include an input terminal for receiving an input voltage and an output terminal for providing a respective output voltage, a regulation transistor having a first conduction terminal coupled to the input terminal for receiving the input voltage, a second conduction terminal coupled to the output terminal, and a control terminal coupled to the output of a first operational amplifier. The first operational amplifier may have a non-inverting input terminal for receiving a first reference voltage, and an inverting input terminal coupled to a first terminal of a divider circuit for receiving a second reference voltage. | 08-30-2012 |
| 20120218261 | GRAPHIC SYSTEM COMPRISING A FRAGMENT GRAPHIC MODULE AND RELATIVE RENDERING METHOD - A graphic system having a central processing unit; a system memory coupled to the central processing unit; a display unit provided with a corresponding screen; a graphic module coupled to and controlled by the central processing unit to render an image on the screen of the display unit, the graphic module including a fragment graphic module having a depth test buffer for storing a current depth value; a depth test stage coupled to the depth test buffer for comparing the current depth value with a depth coordinate associated with an incoming fragment and defining a resulting fragment; a test stage for testing the resulting fragment and defining a retained fragment; a buffer writing stage operatively associated with the test stage for receiving the retained fragment, the buffer writing stage coupled to the depth test buffer for updating the current depth value with a depth value of the retained fragment. | 08-30-2012 |
| 20120217655 | ELECTRONIC DEVICE FOR HIGH POWER APPLICATIONS - An electronic device includes a first semi-conductor die, a second semi-conductor die and an electrically conductive element. The electrically conductive element includes a first electrically conductive part interposed at least partially between the first semi-conductor die and the second semi-conductor die, wherein said first part is electrically coupled to the first semi-conductor die. The electrically conductive element further includes a second electrically conductive part electrically coupled to the first part, wherein said second part extends from at least part of the first part. The first part is an electrically conductive strap between the dice, and the second part is clip extending from at least part of the strap. | 08-30-2012 |
| 20120212259 | COMPARATOR OF A DIFFERENCE OF INPUT VOLTAGES WITH AT LEAST A THRESHOLD - A comparator is configured to generate an output voltage representing the comparison between the absolute value of the difference between two input voltages with an adjustable reference voltage. The comparator includes an input differential amplifier, receiving the two input voltages and connected to an active load network controlled by a control voltage, a control circuit that generates the control voltage representing the adjustable reference voltage, and an output stage having a logic circuit configured to produce the output voltage of the comparator as a logic combination of the output voltages of the differential amplifier. | 08-23-2012 |
| 20120208343 | METHOD FOR MANUFACTURING A MICRO-ELECTRO-MECHANICAL DEVICE, IN PARTICULAR AN OPTICAL MICROSWITCH, AND MICRO-ELECTRO-MECHANICAL DEVICE THUS OBTAINED - A method for manufacturing a micro-electro-mechanical device, which has supporting parts and operative parts, includes providing a first semiconductor wafer, having a first layer of semiconductor material and a second layer of semiconductor material arranged on top of the first layer, forming first supporting parts and first operative parts of the device in the second layer, forming temporary anchors in the first layer, and bonding the first wafer to a second wafer, with the second layer facing the second wafer. After bonding the first wafer and the second wafer together, second supporting parts and second operative parts of said device are formed in the first layer. The temporary anchors are removed from the first layer to free the operative parts formed therein. | 08-16-2012 |
| 20120197581 | MEMORY DEVICE WITH INTERNAL MEASUREMENT OF FUNCTIONAL PARAMETERS - A non-volatile memory device may be integrated in a chip of semiconductor material. The memory device may include circuitry for receiving a measure instruction for obtaining a numerical measure value of a selected one among a plurality of predefined memory operations of the memory device. The memory device may also include circuitry for enabling the execution of the selected memory operation in response to the measure instruction. The execution of the selected memory operation may generate a corresponding result. The memory device may further include circuitry for providing at least one time signal, different from the corresponding result, relating to the execution of each memory operation, and circuitry for determining the measure value according to the at least one time signal of the selected memory operation. | 08-02-2012 |
| 20120195093 | MEMORY SUPPORT PROVIDED WITH MEMORY ELEMENTS OF FERROELECTRIC MATERIAL AND IMPROVED NON-DESTRUCTIVE READING METHOD THEREOF - A method is for non-destructive reading of an information datum stored in a memory that includes a first wordline, a first bitline and a second bitline, and a first ferroelectric transistor, which is connected between the bitlines and has a control terminal coupled to the first wordline. The method includes applying to the first wordline a first reading electrical quantity, generating a first difference of potential between the first and second bitlines, generating a first output electrical quantity, and applying to the first wordline a second reading electrical quantity. The method further includes generating a second difference of potential between the first and second bitlines, generating a second output electrical quantity, and comparing the first and second output electrical quantities with one another. On the basis of a result of said comparison, the method includes determining the logic value of the information data. | 08-02-2012 |
| 20120193755 | COPPER-BASED METALLIZATION SYSTEM INCLUDING AN ALUMINUM-BASED TERMINAL LAYER - In a copper-based metallization system of a semiconductor device the contact pad, such as a bond pad, is formed on the basis of two lithography steps by depositing the cap metal layer stack directly on any exposed copper surface areas of the last metallization layer. After patterning of the cap layer stack therefore reliable confinement of any exposed metal region is accomplished on the basis of a conductive barrier material, while the actual passivation materials are formed and patterned subsequently, thereby avoiding any negative influence on these materials, as may be the case in some conventional approaches. Moreover, superior mechanical integrity of the contact pad in combination with superior electrical performance of any metal region in the last metallization layer is achieved. | 08-02-2012 |
| 20120189063 | METHOD FOR ENCODING SIGNALS, RELATED SYSTEMS AND PROGRAM PRODUCT THEREFOR - A method for encoding video signals subjects the signals to unbalanced multiple description coding. The unbalanced multiple description coding codes a video signal in a first high resolution packet and a second low resolution packet and represents, respectively a first high resolution description and a second low resolution description. The unbalanced multiple description coding step includes using different intra refresh periods for the first and second high resolution descriptions, with an intra refresh period for the second low resolution description shorter than the intra refresh period of the first high resolution description. | 07-26-2012 |
| 20120188418 | TEXTURE DETECTION IN IMAGE PROCESSING - An embodiment relates to a method for the detection of texture of a digital image, including providing a raw data image of the image by means of Bayer image sensors, determining noise in at least a region of the raw data image and determining the texture based on the determined noise without using a high pass or low pass filter. | 07-26-2012 |
| 20120187480 | PROCESS FOR MANUFACTURING A POWER SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICE HAVING CHARGE-BALANCE COLUMNAR STRUCTURES ON A NON-PLANAR SURFACE, AND CORRESPONDING POWER SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICE - An embodiment of a process for manufacturing a power semiconductor device envisages the steps of: providing a body of semiconductor material having a top surface and having a first conductivity; forming columnar regions having a second type of conductivity within the body of semiconductor material, and surface extensions of the columnar regions above the top surface; and forming doped regions having the second type of conductivity, in the proximity of the top surface and in contact with the columnar regions. The doped regions are formed at least partially within the surface extensions of the columnar regions; the surface extensions and the doped regions have a non-planar surface pattern, in particular with a substantially V-shaped groove. | 07-26-2012 |
| 20120187479 | PROCESS FOR MANUFACTURING A POWER SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICE HAVING CHARGE-BALANCE COLUMNAR STRUCTURES ON A NON-PLANAR SURFACE, AND CORRESPONDING POWER SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICE - An embodiment of a process for manufacturing a power semiconductor device envisages the steps of: providing a body of semiconductor material having a top surface and having a first conductivity; forming columnar regions having a second type of conductivity within the body of semiconductor material, and surface extensions of the columnar regions above the top surface; and forming doped regions having the second type of conductivity, in the proximity of the top surface and in contact with the columnar regions. The doped regions are formed at least partially within the surface extensions of the columnar regions; the surface extensions and the doped regions have a non-planar surface pattern, in particular with a substantially V-shaped groove. | 07-26-2012 |
| 20120177224 | SIGNAL PROCESSOR AND METHOD FOR COMPENSATING LOUDSPEAKER AGING PHENOMENA - A signal processor including an equalizer responsive to an input signal and to a parameter signal, said equalizer configured to provide an output signal to an electro-acoustical transducer for compensating a frequency response of said electro-acoustical transducer; a transducer element for monitoring at least a physical parameter of said electro-acoustical transducer, said transducer element configured to provide a transducer signal, a processor block responsive to said transducer signal, configured to provide said parameter signal. | 07-12-2012 |
| 20120173943 | APPARATUS FOR AT-SPEED TESTING, IN INTER-DOMAIN MODE, OF A MULTI-CLOCK-DOMAIN DIGITAL INTEGRATED CIRCUIT ACCORDING TO BIST OR SCAN TECHNIQUES - An embodiment is directed to extended test coverage of complex multi-clock-domain integrated circuits without forgoing a structured and repeatable standard approach, thus avoiding custom solutions and freeing the designer to implement his RTL code, respecting only generally few mandatory rules identified by the DFT engineer. Such an embodiment is achieved by introducing in the test circuit an embodiment of an additional functional logic circuit block, named “inter-domain on chip clock controller” (icOCC), interfaced with every suitably adapted clock-gating circuit (OCC), of the different clock domains. The icOCC actuates synchronization among the different OCCs that source the test clock signals coming from an external ATE or ATPG tool and from internal at-speed test clock generators to the respective circuitries of the distinct clock domains. Scan structures like the OCCs, scan chain, etc., may be instantiated at gate pre-scan level, with low impact onto the functional RTL code written by the designer. | 07-05-2012 |
| 20120171953 | RF IDENTIFICATION DEVICE WITH NEAR-FIELD-COUPLED ANTENNA - An embodiment of a RF identification device is formed by a tag and by a reader. The tag is formed by a processing circuit and a first antenna, which has the function both of transmitting and of receiving data. The reader is formed by a control circuit and by a second antenna, which has the function both of transmitting and of receiving data. The processing circuit is formed by a resonance capacitor, a modulator, a rectifier circuit, a charge-pump circuit and a detection circuit. The antenna of the tag and the processing circuit are integrated in a single structure in completely monolithic form. The first antenna has terminals connected to the input of the rectifier circuit, the output of which is connected to the charge-pump circuit. The charge-pump circuit has an output connected to the detection circuit. | 07-05-2012 |
| 20120171838 | RESISTOR STRUCTURE OF PHASE CHANGE MATERIAL AND TRIMMING METHOD THEREOF - An embodiment of a resistor formed by at least one first portion and one second portion, electrically coupled to one another and with different crystalline phases. The first portion has a positive temperature coefficient, and the second portion has a negative temperature coefficient. The first portion has a first resistivity, and the second portion has a second resistivity, and the portions are coupled so that the resistor has an overall temperature coefficient that is approximately zero. | 07-05-2012 |
| 20120170688 | DEMODULATOR OF DIGITAL MODULATED SIGNAL, RECEIVER APPARATUS EMPLOYING THE DEMODULATOR, AND DEMODULATION METHOD - A demodulator comprising an input structured to receive at least one past value and a current value both associated with the same bit transmitted in different time instants, a bit decoder configured to provide a decoded bit from an input value, a quality signal evaluation module configured to provide a quality signal representing a quality of the current value, and a filtering module structured to provide a filtered value computed as a weighted average of said at least one past value and said current value. Moreover the demodulator comprises a selection module connected between said input and said bit decoder, configured to transfer the current value as the input value of the bit decoder if the quality is greater than a reference value or transfer the filtered value as the input value of the bit decoder if the quality is not greater than the reference value. | 07-05-2012 |
| 20120170628 | DIFFERENTIAL PHASE SHIFT KEYING DEMODULATOR, RECEIVER APPARATUS EMPLOYING THE DEMODULATOR, AND DEMODULATION METHOD - A differential phase shift keying demodulator having an input structured to receive current data representing a current phasor and past data representing at least two past phasors, and a phase differentiator structured to process the current data and reference data representing a reference phasor to provide resulting data representing a phase difference between said current and reference phasors. The differential phase shift keying demodulator also includes a reference phasor computational module configured to generate said reference data basing on said past data representing the at least two past phasors. | 07-05-2012 |
| 20120170608 | METHOD OF CALIBRATING A TEMPERATURE SENSOR OF A CHEMICAL MICROREACTOR AND ANALYZER FOR BIOCHEMICAL ANALYSES - A method of calibrating a temperature sensor of a chemical microreactor envisages: determining an airflow along a path in such a way as to cause a thermal exchange between the airflow and a chemical microreactor, which is provided with an on-board temperature sensor and is set along the path; and detecting a temperature in the airflow downstream of the microreactor, in conditions of thermal equilibrium. | 07-05-2012 |
| 20120170237 | SUBSTRATE ASSEMBLY PROVIDED WITH CAPACITIVE INTERCONNECTIONS, AND MANUFACTURING METHOD THEREOF - An assembly including: a first substrate having a first surface and housing a first electrical-interconnection element and a second electrical-interconnection element in a position corresponding to the first surface; a second substrate having a second surface, housing a third electrical-interconnection element and a fourth electrical-interconnection element in a position corresponding to the second surface, and provided with a dielectric layer extending on top of the third interconnection element; and a first bump and a second bump made of conductive material, extending between the first electrical-interconnection element and the third electrical-interconnection element and, respectively, between the second electrical-interconnection element and the fourth electrical-interconnection element, at least partially aligned to the respective electrical-interconnection elements, the first bump being ohmically coupled to the first interconnection element and capacitively coupled to the third interconnection element, and the second bump being ohmically coupled to the second interconnection element and to the fourth interconnection element. | 07-05-2012 |
| 20120168909 | RADIATION HARDENED BIPOLAR INJUNCTION TRANSISTOR - A method for integrating a bipolar injunction transistor in a semiconductor chip includes the steps of forming an intrinsic base region of a second type of conductivity extending in the collector region from a main surface through an intrinsic base window of the sacrificial insulating layer, forming an emitter region of the first type of conductivity extending in the intrinsic base region from the main surface through an emitter window of the sacrificial insulating layer, removing the sacrificial insulating layer, forming an intermediate insulating layer on the main surface, and forming an extrinsic base region of the second type of conductivity extending in the intrinsic base region from the main surface through an extrinsic base window of the intermediate insulating layer | 07-05-2012 |
| 20120168901 | SEMICONDUCTOR ELECTRONIC DEVICE WITH AN INTEGRATED DEVICE WITH AN INTEGRATED GALVANIC ISOLATOR ELEMENT AND RELATED ASSEMBLY PROCESS - An electronic device is provided with: a first electronic circuit, integrated in a first die; a second electronic circuit, integrated in a second die; and a galvanic isolator element, designed to insulate galvanically, and to enable transfer of signals between, the first electronic circuit and the second electronic circuit. The galvanic isolator element has: a transformer substrate, distinct from the first die and from the second die; and a galvanic-insulation transformer formed by a first inductive element, integrated in the first die, and by a second inductive element, integrated in the transformer substrate and so arranged as to be magnetically coupled to the first inductive element. | 07-05-2012 |
| 20120168520 | RF IDENTIFICATION DEVICE WITH NEAR-FIELD-COUPLED ANTENNA - An embodiment of a RF identification device is formed by a tag and by a reader. The tag is formed by a processing circuit and a first antenna, which has the function both of transmitting and of receiving data. The reader is formed by a control circuit and by a second antenna, which has the function both of transmitting and of receiving data. The processing circuit is formed by a resonance capacitor, a modulator, a rectifier circuit, a charge-pump circuit and a detection circuit. The antenna of the tag and the processing circuit are integrated in a single structure in completely monolithic form. The first antenna has terminals connected to the input of the rectifier circuit, the output of which is connected to the charge-pump circuit. The charge-pump circuit has an output connected to the detection circuit. | 07-05-2012 |
| 20120166505 | S12 TX FIR ARCHITECTURE - A FIR transmit architecture uses multiple driver divisions to allow signals with different delays to be summed into the output signal by the driver itself. The architecture includes a first multiplexer, a plurality of delay cells, a plurality of sign blocks, a switch block, a second multiplexer, and a plurality of drivers. | 06-28-2012 |
| 20120166122 | READING CIRCUIT WITH AUTOMATIC OFFSET COMPENSATION FOR A MAGNETIC-FIELD SENSOR, AND RELATED READING METHOD WITH AUTOMATIC OFFSET COMPENSATION - A method for reading a magnetic-field sensor provided with at least one first magnetoresistive element envisages generation of an output signal, indicative of a magnetic field, as a function of a detection signal supplied by the magnetic-field sensor. The reading method envisages: determining an offset signal present in the output signal; generating at least one compensation quantity as a function of the offset signal; and feeding back the compensation quantity at input to the reading stage so as to apply a corrective factor at input to the reading stage as a function of the compensation quantity, such as to reduce the value of the offset signal below a given threshold. | 06-28-2012 |
| 20120164775 | ELECTRONIC DEVICE, SYSTEM, AND METHOD COMPRISING DIFFERENTIAL SENSOR MEMS DEVICES AND DRILLED SUBSTRATES - Electronic device which comprises a substrate provided with at least one passing opening, a MEMS device with function of differential sensor provided with a first and a second surface and of the type comprising at least one portion sensitive to chemical and/or physical variations of fluids present in correspondence with a first and a second opposed active surface thereof, the first surface of the MEMS device leaving the first active surface exposed and the second surface being provided with a further opening which exposes said second opposed active surface, the electronic device being characterized in that the first surface of the MEMS device faces the substrate and is spaced therefrom by a predetermined distance, the sensitive portion being aligned to the passing opening of the substrate, and in that it also comprises a protective package, which incorporates at least partially the MEMS device and the substrate so as to leave the first and second opposed active surfaces exposed respectively through the passing opening of the substrate and the further opening of the second surface. | 06-28-2012 |
| 20120162006 | CINEMATIC PARAMETER COMPUTING METHOD OF A SATELLITE NAVIGATION SYSTEM AND RECEIVING APPARATUS EMPLOYING THE METHOD - A cinematic parameter computing method of a satellite navigation system, including: receiving signals at a receiving apparatus from a plurality of satellites; processing said signals to provide received data; computing a first cinematic parameter value of said receiving apparatus according to a first computational method using said received data; computing a second cinematic parameter value of said receiving apparatus according to a second computational method using said received data and computing a distance value representing a difference between said first and second cinematic parameter values. The distance value is compared with a reference value providing a comparison result data and selecting one of first and second computational methods based on said comparison result data. | 06-28-2012 |
| 20120161819 | HIGH VOLTAGE TRANSMISSION SWITCH, NAMELY FOR ULTRASOUND APPLICATIONS - A high voltage transmission switch comprises a switching block coupled between a connection terminal to a load and a low voltage output terminal and comprising at least a first switching transistor and a second switching transistor coupled between the connection terminal and the low voltage output terminal and interconnected at a first circuit node; and a driving circuit coupled between a positive low voltage supply reference and a negative high voltage supply reference and having an output terminal connected to the switching block. The driving circuit including at least a first driving transistor coupled between the positive low voltage supply reference and the output terminal and a second driving transistor coupled between the output terminal and the negative high voltage supply reference. | 06-28-2012 |
| 20120161789 | DEVICE FOR MONITORING AT LEAST A PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTIC OF A BUILDING MATERIAL - A monitoring device is for monitoring physical characteristics of a building material. The monitoring device is buried inside a block of the building material, and has a sensor to sense physical characteristics thereof. The sensor transmits a signal representative of the physical characteristics. | 06-28-2012 |
| 20120161759 | MAGNETORESISTIVE SENSOR WITH REDUCED PARASITIC CAPACITANCE, AND METHOD - A magnetic-field sensor adapted to detect an external magnetic field, comprising: a first chip, including a first magnetoresistive structure for detection of the external magnetic field, the first magnetoresistive detection structure including an electrical-contact pad and magnetoresistive means; and a second chip housing an integrated electronic circuit and a magnetic-field generator, the first and second chips being mutually arranged in such a way that the integrated electronic circuit can be electrically coupled to the electrical-contact pad of the magnetoresistive structure and in such a way that the magnetic-field generator can be magnetically coupled to the magnetoresistive structure. | 06-28-2012 |
| 20120161756 | MAGNETIC FIELD SENSOR HAVING ANISOTROPIC MAGNETORESISITIVE ELEMENTS, WITH IMPROVED ARRANGEMENT OF MAGNETIZATION ELEMENTS THEREOF - An integrated magnetic-field sensor designed to detect an external magnetic field, comprising a first magnetoresistive structure for detecting the external magnetic field, the first magnetoresistive structure including first magnetoresistive means having a main axis of magnetization and a secondary axis of magnetization set orthogonal to one another. The magnetic-field sensor further comprises a magnetic-field generator, including a first portion configured for generating a first magnetic field having field lines in a first field direction, and a second portion, which is coplanar and is connected to the first portion, configured for generating a second magnetic field having field lines in a second field direction, the first magnetoresistive means being configured so that the main axis of magnetization extends parallel to the first field direction, and the secondary axis of magnetization extends parallel to the second field direction. | 06-28-2012 |
| 20120161741 | CURRENT GENERATOR FOR TEMPERATURE COMPENSATION - A current generator includes a thermistor configured to receive an input current, a reference resistor of a value substantially corresponding to a resistance of said thermistor at a reference temperature, a current mirror configured to generate a mirrored current proportional to said input current, a feedback circuit configured to generate an output compensation current proportional to a difference between voltages on said reference resistor and on said thermistor, and a first adder configured to force through said reference resistor a difference current between said mirrored replica current and said output compensation current. | 06-28-2012 |
| 20120161678 | MANAGEMENT APPARATUS OF A ROTATING MOTOR AND AN ANNEXED LOAD DURING POWER LOSS - A management apparatus is described of a rotating motor and a load during power loss; the apparatus comprises a first switching circuit coupled with the rotating motor and a controller of said first switching circuit. The controller is configured to drive the first switching circuit so as to convert a back-electromotive force voltage developed in the rotating motor into a power supply voltage for the load. The first switching circuit is driven in accordance with a first duty cycle. The apparatus comprises a second switching circuit coupled with the load and driven in accordance with a second duty cycle. The controller is configured to vary said first and said second duty cycles to keep the power supply voltage for the load above or equal to a threshold voltage. | 06-28-2012 |
| 20120159095 | INTERFACE SYSTEM, AND CORRESPONDING INTEGRATED CIRCUIT AND METHOD - An interface system for interfacing an asynchronous circuit with a synchronous circuit, wherein the synchronous circuit samples, in response to a clock signal, a first data signal when a first control signal indicates that the first data signal contains valid data, and wherein the asynchronous circuit generates a second data signal according to an asynchronous communication protocol. The system includes a FIFO memory, a control circuit for asynchronously writing the second data signal in the memory when the second data signal indicates the start of a communication, and synchronously reading the second data signal from the memory in response to a clock signal, and a conversion circuit for decoding, according to a asynchronous communication protocol, the second data signal read from the memory in a decoded data signal, wherein the decoded data signal corresponds to the first data signal. | 06-21-2012 |
| 20120159017 | METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR ROUTING TRANSACTIONS THROUGH PARTITIONS OF A SYSTEM-ON-CHIP - A node having a node input is configured to receive a plurality of transactions intended for a plurality of different targets. The node has multiple node outputs. At least one target is provided, that target including an input configured to receive a respective output of the node. The node is configured to direct transactions to the at least one target or an output (for passing to a different partition) depending on whether the transactions are intended for the target or a different target. This determination is made in response to a conversion operation which converts a target address of the transaction to an identification associated with the target or the output. | 06-21-2012 |
| 20120158324 | MAGNETIC SENSOR READING DEVICE, SYSTEM AND METHOD - A reading circuit for a magnetic-field sensor, provided with a detection structure generating an electrical detection signal as a function of an external magnetic field, has a signal-conditioning stage, which is electrically coupled to the detection structure and generates an output signal as a function of the electrical detection signal; the reading circuit is provided with a full-scale-control stage that is able to select automatically a full-scale value for the signal-conditioning stage, as a function of the value of the external magnetic field, such as to prevent saturation of the same conditioning stage. | 06-21-2012 |
| 20120156767 | PCR DEVICE - PCR device ( | 06-21-2012 |
| 20120155568 | INTERFACE SYSTEM, AND CORRESPONDING INTEGRATED CIRCUIT AND METHOD - An interface system is used for interfacing a synchronous circuit with an asynchronous circuit, wherein the synchronous circuit generates, in response to a clock signal, a first control signal for indicating that a first data signal contains valid data, and wherein the asynchronous circuit generates, according to an asynchronous communication protocol, a second control signal indicating the state of transmission of a second data signal. | 06-21-2012 |
| 20120155489 | COMMUNICATION SYSTEM, AND CORRESPONDING INTEGRATED CIRCUIT AND METHOD - A communication system includes interfacing between a first synchronous circuit and a second synchronous circuit. The system includes a first interface system and a second interface system. The first interface system receives data from the first synchronous circuit, and encodes the data according to an asynchronous communication protocol. The encoded data are transmitted over a communication channel to the second interface system. The second interface system decodes the data and transmits the decoded data to the second synchronous circuit. The first interface system includes a first FIFO memory for storing temporarily the data received from the first synchronous circuit and the second interface system includes a second FIFO memory for storing temporarily the data transmitted over the communication channel. | 06-21-2012 |
| 20120154275 | USER CONTROLLED DEVICE FOR SENDING CONTROL SIGNALS TO AN ELECTRIC APPLIANCE, IN PARTICULAR USER CONTROLLED POINTING DEVICE SUCH AS MOUSE OR JOYSTICK, WITH 3D-MOTION DETECTION - A user controlled device, movable into a plurality of positions of a three-dimensional space, includes a MEMS acceleration sensor to detect 3D movements of the user controlled device. The device, such as a mouse, sends control signals correlated to the detected positions to an electrical appliance, such as a computer system. A microcontroller processes the output signals of the MEMS acceleration sensor to generate the control signals, such as screen pointer position signals and “clicking” functions. | 06-21-2012 |
| 20120153987 | DIGITAL NOISE PROTECTION CIRCUIT AND METHOD - A method of protection from noise of a digital signal generated by a comparator, including the steps of generating an output signal that switches from a first logic state to a second logic state at a first switching of logic state of the digital signal; detecting a change from the first logic state to the second logic state of the output signal; and inhibiting further switchings of the output signal for a first time interval after the change from the first logic state to the second logic state. | 06-21-2012 |
| 20120153937 | BIASING CIRCUIT FOR A MAGNETIC FIELD SENSOR, AND CORRESPONDING BIASING METHOD - Described herein is a biasing circuit for a magnetic-field sensor; the magnetic-field sensor is provided with a first detection structure, which generates a first electrical detection quantity as a function of a first component of an external magnetic field, and a second detection structure, which generates a second electrical detection quantity as a function of a second component of an external magnetic field. The biasing circuit electrically supplies the first detection structure and the second detection structure in respective biasing time intervals, at least partially distinct from one another, which preferably do not temporally overlap one other. | 06-21-2012 |
| 20120153936 | READING CIRCUIT FOR A MAGNETIC FIELD SENSOR WITH SENSITIVITY CALIBRATION, AND RELATED READING METHOD - A reading circuit for a magnetic-field sensor, generating an electrical detection quantity as a function of a detected magnetic field and of a detection sensitivity, is provided with an amplification stage, which is coupled to the magnetic-field sensor and generates an output signal as a function of the electrical detection quantity and of an amplification gain. In particular, the amplification gain is electronically selectable, and the reading circuit is moreover provided with a calibration stage, integrated with the amplification stage and configured so as to vary a value of the amplification gain in such a way as to compensate a variation of the detection sensitivity with respect to a nominal sensitivity value. | 06-21-2012 |
| 20120153771 | MICROELECTROMECHANICAL TRANSDUCER AND CORRESPONDING ASSEMBLY PROCESS - A MEMS transducer has a micromechanical sensing structure and a package. The package is provided with a substrate, carrying first electrical-connection elements, and with a lid, coupled to the substrate to define an internal cavity, in which the micromechanical sensing structure is housed. The lid is formed by: a cap layer having a first surface and a second surface, set opposite to one another, the first surface defining an external face of the package and the second surface facing the substrate inside the package; and a wall structure, set between the cap layer and the substrate, and having a coupling face coupled to the substrate. At least a first electrical component is coupled to the second surface of the cap layer, inside the package, and the coupling face of the wall structure carries second electrical-connection elements, electrically connected to the first electrical component and to the first electrical-connection elements. | 06-21-2012 |
| 20120153745 | INDUCTIVE CONNECTION STRUCTURE FOR USE IN AN INTEGRATED CIRCUIT - An embodiment in a single structure combines a pad comprising a connection terminal suitable for coupling the circuit elements integrated in a chip to circuits outside the chip itself and at least one inductor that can be used to receive/transmit electromagnetic waves or to supply the chip with power or both. By combining a connection pad and an inductor in a single structure, it is possible to reduce the overall area that otherwise would be occupied exclusively by the inductors, thus reducing the cost and size of integrated circuits that include such a structure. | 06-21-2012 |
| 20120152628 | ROLLING MEANS OF A MOVING DEVICE AND RELATED MOVING DEVICE - A moving device to move across a surface including a motor rolling motion apparatus is disclosed. The moving device is coupled to the motor and has a body with an outer surface. A dense population of fibrils protrudes from the outer surface, with each fibril having a free-end termination configured to establish adhesion to the surface by inter-molecular Van der Waals forces. | 06-21-2012 |
| 20120150477 | DRIVING CIRCUIT OF A TEST ACCESS PORT - A driving circuit of a test access port is disclosed. The driving circuit includes an input terminal for receiving a first test data signal when the driving circuit is operating in an external test mode. The driving circuit is configured to receive a second test data signal (BS) carrying a test command to be executed on the test access port when the driving circuit is operating in an internal test mode. The driving circuit comprises a control logic circuit configured for processing the test command and generating therefrom an internal test data signal carrying the processed test command when the driving circuit is operating in the internal test mode. The driving circuit includes a selector configured for generating a selected test data signal, the selected test data signal being selected from the first test data signal when the driving circuit is operating in the external test mode. | 06-14-2012 |
| 20120146135 | METHOD AND A STRUCTURE FOR ENHANCING ELECTRICAL INSULATION AND DYNAMIC PERFORMANCE OF MIS STRUCTURES COMPRISING VERTICAL FIELD PLATES - In an MIS structure a field plate electrode is incorporated below a buried gate electrode by using an insulating oxide layer, which is formed concurrently with the gate dielectric layer. In order to obtain superior dynamic behavior and enhanced dielectric strength the oxidation behavior of the field plate electrode is modified, for instance by incorporating a desired high concentration of arsenic. | 06-14-2012 |
| 20120139771 | DIFFERENTIAL SUCCESSIVE APPROXIMATION ANALOG TO DIGITAL CONVERTER - A differential successive approximation analog to digital converter including: a comparator; a first plurality of capacitors coupled between a corresponding plurality of first switches and a first input of the comparator, at least one of the first capacitors being arranged to receive a first component of a differential input signal; and a second plurality of capacitors coupled between a corresponding plurality of second switches and a second input of the comparator, at least one of the second capacitors being arranged to receive a second component of the differential input signal, wherein each of the first and second plurality of switches are each adapted to independently couple the corresponding capacitor to a selected one of: a first supply voltage level; a second supply voltage level; and a third supply voltage level; and control circuitry adapted to sample the differential input voltage during a sample phase, and to control the first and second switches to couple each capacitor of the first and second plurality of capacitors to the third supply voltage level at the start of a voltage conversion phase. | 06-07-2012 |
| 20120139557 | RFID READABLE DEVICE WITH SMART SURFACE ACCESS - A monitoring system includes an array of concatenated sensing nodes, with each sensing node being configured to have at least one of near-field and far-field RF coupling circuitry to interface with an adjacent sensing node. A respective device is coupled to each of the sensing nodes. A reader device is configured to have at least one of near-field and far-field RF coupling circuitry to interface with the array of concatenated sensing nodes to read data from the devices. | 06-07-2012 |
| 20120139034 | Process For Manufacturing A MOS Device With Intercell Ion Implant - A process for manufacturing a MOS device includes forming a semiconductor layer having a first type of conductivity; forming an insulated gate structure having an electrode region, above the semiconductor layer; forming body regions having a second type of conductivity, within the semiconductor layer, laterally and partially underneath the insulated gate structure; forming source regions having the first type of conductivity, within the body regions; and forming a first enrichment region, in a surface portion of the semiconductor layer underneath the insulated gate structure. The first enrichment region has the first type of conductivity and is set at a distance from the body regions. In order to form the first enrichment region, a first enrichment window is defined within the insulated gate structure, and first dopant species of the first type of conductivity are introduced through the first enrichment window and in a way self-aligned thereto. | 06-07-2012 |
| 20120137022 | ELECTRONIC DEVICE WITH ADDRESS PROGRAMMABLE THROUGH REDUCED NUMBER OF TERMINALS - An electronic device includes a set of programming terminals for receiving corresponding programming signals, and assignment circuitry for assigning an address to the electronic device according to the programming signals. The assignment circuitry includes circuitry for providing a set of comparison signals, with at least part of the comparison signals that is variable during a non-zero comparison interval, and comparison circuitry for determining the address according to a comparison between the programming signals and the comparison signals during the comparison interval. | 05-31-2012 |
| 20120134060 | ELECTRONIC DEVICE WITH PROTECTION CIRCUIT - An electronic device comprises an application circuit; a first supply rail having a first electric potential; a second supply rail having a second electric potential different from the first electric potential; at least one terminal having a third electric potential, connected to the application circuit; and a protection circuit for protecting the application circuit from an injected current. The protection circuit comprises a first conductive line connected between the at least one terminal and the first supply rail, the first conductive line comprising a first switch having a first control input; and a first voltage amplifier circuit having a first input connected to the at least one terminal, a second input connected to the second supply rail and a first output connected to the first control input. | 05-31-2012 |
| 20120133151 | DEVICE AND RELATIVE METHOD FOR SCAVENGING ENERGY - An energy scavenging device includes an electromagnetic transducer adapted to generate a current in response to accelerations impressed thereto. The device also includes a power switching stage input with the current generated by the electromagnetic transducer, having a network of controlled switches adapted to alternately deliver on output nodes of the switching stage an output current that does not invert its sign and to short-circuit the transducer. There is an output capacitor coupled between the output nodes of the power stage. A controller having a sensor coupled to the electromagnetic transducer is to sense the current flowing therethrough, the controller being adapted to drive the switches of the power stage in order to either short-circuit the electromagnetic transducer or to direct the current flowing through the transducer to charge the output capacitor. | 05-31-2012 |
| 20120132711 | LARGE AREA MONITORING DEVICE - A monitoring device may include a core cell including a detection circuit, and a radio frequency (RF) tag antenna configured to exchange data with a data acquisition reader device, and a single-tier corolla having sensor cells around the core cell and covering a monitoring area. The sensor cells may be configured to convert a change of a parameter at the cell location. The detection circuit may be configured to detect a change in the parameter and location based upon excitation by the reader device. | 05-31-2012 |
| 20120132003 | MEMS BIAXIAL RESONANT ACCELEROMETER - A microelectromechanical detection structure for a MEMS resonant biaxial accelerometer is provided with: an inertial mass, anchored to a substrate by elastic elements to be suspended above the substrate. The elastic elements enabling inertial movements of the inertial mass along a first axis of detection and a second axis of detection that belong to a plane of main extension of said inertial mass, in response to respective linear external accelerations. At least one first resonant element and one second resonant element have a respective longitudinal extension, respectively along the first axis of detection and the second axis of detection, and are mechanically coupled to the inertial mass through a respective one of the elastic elements to undergo a respective axial stress when the inertial mass moves respectively along the first axis of detection and the second axis of detection. | 05-31-2012 |
| 20120128071 | APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR PERFORMING ERROR CONCEALMENT OF INTER-CODED VIDEO FRAMES - An embodiment relates to performing error concealment of a corrupted block in a video frame, which is capable of performing a real time reconstruction of corrupted blocks which allow to precisely recover small details and fine movements, in particular, the error concealment apparatus and method according to an embodiment selects a replacement block by taking into account the luminance distortion and the motion characteristics of the video sequence. The latter is represented by the distance of the motion vectors chosen as candidate replacements and the average value of the motion vectors of the blocks surrounding the missing block in the current frame. | 05-24-2012 |
| 20120127350 | METHOD AND DEVICE FOR DE-NOISING A DIGITAL VIDEO SIGNAL, AND CORRESPONDING COMPUTER PROGRAM PRODUCT - A method may denoise a digital video signal produced by a photoelectric sensor as a matrix of pixel signals affected by both thermal noise and impulsive noise. The method may include estimating the noise level associated to the pixel signals, and filtering the pixel signals with an attenuation factor that is a function of the estimated noise level. | 05-24-2012 |
| 20120126880 | IGBT DEVICE WITH BURIED EMITTER REGIONS - An embodiment of an IGBT device is integrated in a chip of semiconductor material including a substrate of a first type of conductivity, an active layer of a second type of conductivity formed on an inner surface of the substrate, a body region of the first type of conductivity extending within the active layer from a front surface thereof opposite the inner surface, a source region of the second type of conductivity extending within the body region from the front surface, a channel region being defined within the body region between the source region and the active layer, a gate element insulated from the front surface extending over the channel region, a collector terminal contacting the substrate on a rear surface thereof opposite the inner surface, an emitter terminal contacting the source region and the body region on the front surface, and a gate terminal contacting the gate element. | 05-24-2012 |
| 20120120987 | Temperature-Current Transducer - A temperature-current transducer includes first and second voltage dividers, with the first voltage divider including a thermistor in an environment. An operational amplifier has a first input coupled to an intermediate node of the first voltage divider, and a second input coupled to an intermediate node of the second voltage divider. A cascode stage is configured to be biased in a conduction state and is controlled by the operational amplifier. The cascode stage includes a first current terminal coupled to the intermediate node of the second voltage divider. A current mirror is coupled to a second current terminal of the cascode stage, and is configured to mirror on an output line current flowing through the cascode stage that is representative of temperature differences between a temperature in an environment of the thermistor and a reference temperature. | 05-17-2012 |
| 20120119382 | SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICE WITH VERTICAL CURRENT FLOW AND LOW SUBSTRATE RESISTANCE AND MANUFACTURING PROCESS THEREOF - A semiconductor device with vertical current flow includes a body having a substrate made of semiconductor material. At least one electrical contact on a first face of the body. A metallization structure is formed on a second face of the body, opposite to the first face. The metallization structure is provided with metal vias, which project from the second face within the substrate so as to form a high-conductivity path in parallel with portions of said substrate. | 05-17-2012 |
| 20120119381 | SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICE WITH VERTICAL CURRENT FLOW AND LOW SUBSTRATE RESISTANCE AND MANUFACTURING PROCESS THEREOF - A semiconductor device with vertical current flow includes a body having a substrate made of semiconductor material. At least one electrical contact on a first face of the body. A metallization structure is formed on a second face of the body, opposite to the first face. The metallization structure is provided with metal vias, which project from the second face within the substrate so as to form a high-conductivity path in parallel with portions of said substrate. | 05-17-2012 |
| 20120116746 | SIMULATION SYSTEM FOR IMPLEMENTING COMPUTING DEVICE MODELS IN A MULTI-SIMULATION ENVIRONMENT - An embodiment of a simulation tool includes a path determiner and a simulator. The path determiner is configured to identify a first communication path between first and second devices of a system, and the simulator is configured to simulate a routing of a first item from one of the first and second devices to the other of the first and second devices via the identified path. The path determiner may also be configured to identify the communication path before the simulator simulates the routing of the item, or to identify the communication path while the simulator is inactive. | 05-10-2012 |
| 20120099344 | CONTROL DEVICE FOR A RESONANT CONVERTER - A control device controls a switching circuit of a resonant converter having an output direct current. The switching circuit includes at least a half-bridge of at least a first and a second transistor connected between an input voltage and a reference voltage. The half-bridge is adapted to generate a periodic square-wave voltage for driving the resonant circuit of said resonant circuit and the periodic square-wave voltage oscillates between a high voltage corresponding to the input voltage and a low voltage corresponding to the reference voltage. The control device comprises a generator adapted to generate a periodic square-wave signal for driving the half-bridge. The control device comprises a detector adapted to detect the phase-shift between the periodic square-wave signal generated by the generating means and the current flowing through the resonant circuit, and adapted to control the turning off of the half-bridge when the phase-shift exceeds a first phase-shift value. | 04-26-2012 |
| 20120098520 | METHOD AND RELATIVE DEVICE FOR SENSING AMPLITUDE AND PHASE OF AN ELECTRICAL SIGNAL - A method of sensing an amplitude and a phase of a varying electrical signal representing an impedance of an electrically conductive tissue through which an AC stimulation current is forced may include measuring a first amplitude value of the varying electrical signal corresponding to an arbitrary initial phase offset value and assuming the first amplitude value corresponds to the amplitude and assuming the arbitrary initial phase offset value corresponds to the phase. The method may include measuring a second amplitude value of the varying electrical signal at a phase offset different from the phase. The method may further include comparing the second amplitude value with the amplitude, and updating the amplitude and the phase to correspond to one of a maximum and a minimum amplitude value and to a corresponding phase offset. | 04-26-2012 |
| 20120098474 | APPARATUS FOR DETECTING THE POSITION OF A ROTOR OF AN ELECTRIC MOTOR AND RELATED METHOD - An apparatus detects the position of a rotor of an electric motor having three phases and a plurality of windings. The apparatus includes circuitry configured to connect at least two of said windings between first and second reference voltages according to a first current path disconnect said at least two windings, and allow the current stored in said two windings to be discharged through a second current path. The apparatus comprises a measuring circuit configured to measure the time period between the starting instant of storing the current in the two windings and the final instant of discharging the two windings and a rotor detector configured to detect the rotor position based at least in part on the measured time period. | 04-26-2012 |
| 20120098142 | ELECTRICAL CONTACT FOR A DEEP BURIED LAYER IN A SEMI-CONDUCTOR DEVICE - A semi-conductor device includes at least one deep buried layer with an electrical connection made thereto by an electrical contact. The electrical contact to the deep buried layer is made by formed an opening through the use of a first chemical attack and a second chemical attack after the first chemical attack. By making an opening, the electrical contact can be made with the deep buried layer without at the same time occupying excessively wide portions of the device. For example, it is possible to make electrical contacts having a width of less than 1.5 μm with deep layers having a depth of more than 5 μm. | 04-26-2012 |
| 20120098135 | INTEGRATED CIRCUITS WITH BACKSIDE METALIZATION AND PRODUCTION METHOD THEREOF - An embodiment of an integrated device, including a chip of semiconductor material wherein an integrated circuit is integrated, is proposed; the integrated device includes a set of contact terminals for contacting the integrated circuit. At least one contact terminal of said set of contact terminals includes a contact layer of metal material being suitable to be directly coupled mechanically to an element external to the chip, and a coupling element for improving an electrical and/or mechanical coupling between the contact layer and the chip. The coupling element includes a coupling layer being formed by a combination between the metal material of the contact layer and the semiconductor material of the chip, with the coupling layer that is directly coupled to the chip and to the contact layer. | 04-26-2012 |
| 20120096928 | METHOD FOR MANUFACTURING A SENSOR DEVICE OF A GASEOUS SUBSTANCE OF INTEREST - A method manufactures a sensor device for sensing a gaseous substance and includes a thin film transistor, which includes a source electrode, a drain electrode and a gate electrode; and an element sensitive to the gaseous substance. In particular, the method includes: forming a first metallic layer on a substrate; defining and patterning the first metallic layer for realizing the gate electrode; depositing a dielectric layer above the gate electrode; depositing a second metallic layer above the layer of dielectric material, defining and patterning the second metallic layer for realizing the source electrode and the drain electrode, and forming the sensitive element by filling a channel region of the thin film transistor with an active layer sensitive to the gaseous substance. | 04-26-2012 |
| 20120089352 | MODULAR DEVICE FOR PROTECTING AND MONITORING A BATTERY - A modular device having at least one master integrated circuit, and one or more slave integrated circuit modules coupled to the at least one master integrated circuit with each slave integrated circuit module of the one or more slave integrated circuit modules coupled to and associated with only a single cell of the battery. Each slave integrated circuit module of the one or more slave integrated circuit modules further comprises: detection circuitry adapted to detect data comprising one or more of the temperature, voltage or charge status, and malfunctioning of the single cell associated with and monitored by the slave integrated circuit; and an interface operable to send said detected data to the at least one master integrated circuit. The at least one master integrated circuit is adapted to send commands to a slave integrated circuit module in response to the detected data detected by the slave integrated circuit module. | 04-12-2012 |
| 20120081137 | TESTING METHOD FOR SEMICONDUCTOR INTEGRATED ELECTRONIC DEVICES AND CORRESPONDING TEST ARCHITECTURE - A testing method is described of at least one device provided with an integrated testing circuit and in communication with at least one tester where messages/instructions/test signals/information are exclusively sent from the tester to the device . A testing architecture is also described for implementing this testing method. | 04-05-2012 |
| 20120079438 | INTEGRATED CIRCUIT DESIGN FRAMEWORK COMPRISING AUTOMATIC ANALYSIS FUNCTIONALITY - An embodiment of an integrated circuit design framework comprises a user interface which automatically initializes a three-dimensional simulation tool for simulating or analyzing the characteristics of a complex metallization system. In some illustrative embodiments the user interface may additionally provide electrically simulated parameter values for an input parameter, such as the channel resistance of a power transistor, thereby enabling a simulation of a portion of interest of the metallization system without actually requiring the provision of the design data of the power transistor. | 03-29-2012 |
| 20120079154 | TRANSACTION REORDERING ARRANGEMENT - An embodiment of a transaction reordering arrangement is provided. The transaction reordering arrangement includes a queue into which respective responses to requests are writable and a controller configured to control a position in said queue to which said respective responses to said requests are written. The position is controlled such that the responses are read out of said queue in an order which corresponds to an order in which the requests are issued. | 03-29-2012 |
| 20120079148 | REORDERING ARRANGEMENT - An embodiment of a network-on-chip is provided. The network-on-chip includes a plurality of sources of requests and a plurality of destinations for requests. The plurality of destinations are configured to provide respective responses to respective requests. The network-on-chip further includes an interconnect for routing said requests and respective responses to said requests to and from the plurality of sources and at least one transaction reordering arrangement. The transaction reordering arrangement is configured to reorder said responses such that said responses are provided to a respective source in an order which corresponds to an order in which the requests are issued by said respective source. A respective transaction reordering arrangement is associated with a respective source. | 03-29-2012 |
| 20120076162 | DEVICE FOR TRANSFORMING ELECTROMAGNETIC IR ENERGY FROM SPATIALLY INCOHERENT, LOW-POWER DENSITY, BROAD-BAND RADIATION IN SPATIALLY COHERENT, HIGH-POWER DENSITY, QUASI-MONOCHROMATIC RADIATION - A device to be positioned between a heat source and a heat sink may transform infrared electromagnetic (IR-EM) energy exchanged therebetween from a first form to a second form. The device may include a pair of layers facing each other and having dielectric material with molecular excitability characteristics to produce the second form of IR-EM energy. The pair of layers may define a gap therebetween. The device may include a conversion circuit configured to convert the second form of IR-EM energy into electrical energy. | 03-29-2012 |
| 20120075010 | DISCHARGE CIRCUIT FOR VOLTAGE MULTIPLIERS - An embodiment of a discharge circuit for evacuating electric charge accumulated in circuit nodes of a charge pump during a discharge phase consequent to a shutdown of the charge pump is proposed. The charge pump is configured to bias each circuit node with a corresponding pump voltage during an operational phase of the charge pump. The discharge circuit includes a generator circuit configured to generate a discharge current during the discharge phase. The discharge circuit further includes means for evacuating the electric charge stored in each circuit node of the charge pump during a corresponding portion of the discharge phase; such means for evacuating include a respective discharge stage for each circuit node of the charge pump. Each discharge stage includes a first discharge circuit branch and a second discharge circuit branch coupled to the corresponding circuit node. The discharge stage is configured to cause the discharge current flowing through the first discharge circuit branch—during the portion of the discharge phase of the corresponding circuit node—when the pump voltage of the corresponding circuit node is higher than a respective threshold, and through the second discharge circuit branch when the pump voltage of the corresponding circuit node is lower than said respective threshold. | 03-29-2012 |
| 20120071365 | Detection Device Having Increased Detection Rate, and Method for Quick Detection of Biological Molecules - A biological molecule detection device that includes a detection array, arranged on a body and having one or more probes for detecting corresponding electrically charged molecules, wherein a time varying electric field generating circuit is provided for generating at least one time varying electric field around the detection array within the detection region. The time varying electric field moves the electrical charged molecules repeatedly back and forth over the probes, thus providing increased opportunities for interaction and speeding the detection process. | 03-22-2012 |
| 20120069994 | METHOD FOR GENERTAING A DIGITAL SIGNATURE - A method for generating a digital signature includes calculating a first magnitude representative of the inverse of a random number raised to the power two; obtaining a first element of the digital signature by executing scalar multiplication between an established point of the elliptic curve and the random number; obtaining a second magnitude by executing modular multiplication, with modulus corresponding to the established elliptic curve's order between the first magnitude and the secret encryption key; obtaining a third magnitude by executing a modular multiplication, with modulus corresponding to the established elliptic curve's order between the random number and the secret encryption key; obtaining a first addend of a second element of the digital signature by executing a modular multiplication, with modulus corresponding to the established elliptic curve's order between the second magnitude and the third magnitude; and generating a second element of the digital signature based on the first addend. | 03-22-2012 |
| 20120068725 | SENSING STRUCTURE OF ALIGNMENT OF A PROBE FOR TESTING INTEGRATED CIRCUITS - A sensing structure for use in testing integrated circuits on a substrate. The sensing structure includes at least two sensing regions connectable to a probe and at least one first sensing element. Each of the at least one first sensing elements is directly connected to two sensing regions such that for each sensing region a different value of an electrical parameter is measurable between the sensing region and a first reference potential so as to reliably determine a drift direction of a probe. | 03-22-2012 |
| 20120059622 | LOCATION SYSTEM FOR STREET LIGHT MONITORING - A street light monitoring system has a small fraction of the street lights in the system being anchor nodes that are configured to detect and store their own actual fixed position, thereby acting as reference points. Further, the other street lights are referred to as blind nodes and do not have their actual fixed position but can derive their position using the coordinates of the anchor nodes and estimating their distance to them. The distance estimation for any blind node can be performed using a received signal strength indication (RSSI) measured at the respective blind node for small distances of up to a threshold value and a link quantization technique takes advantage of the typical placement of the street lights. Inferred distances between the street lights can be assigned to pre-determined categories of distances for a coarse estimation and further position adjustment to a closest possible “real” position. | 03-08-2012 |
| 20120057379 | POWER SUPPLY CIRCUIT FOR REMOTELY TURNING-ON ELECTRICAL APPLIANCES - A power supply circuit for an electrical appliance, including a turning-on stage configured for determining a transition from a turned-off state, in which the power supply circuit is off and does not supply electric power, to a turned-on state of the power supply circuit. The turning-on stage includes a transducer of the remote-control type configured for triggering the transition in response to the reception of a wireless signal. | 03-08-2012 |
| 20120056200 | INTEGRATED ELECTRONIC DEVICE WITH EDGE-TERMINATION STRUCTURE AND MANUFACTURING METHOD THEREOF - An embodiment of an integrated electronic device formed in a semiconductor body delimited by a lateral surface, which includes: a substrate made of a first semiconductor material; a first epitaxial region made of a second semiconductor material, which overlies the substrate and defines a first surface; a second epitaxial region made of a third semiconductor material, which overlies the first surface and is in contact with the first epitaxial region, the third semiconductor material having a bandgap narrower than the bandgap of the second semiconductor material; an active area, extending within the second epitaxial region and housing at least one elementary electronic component; and an edge structure, arranged between the active area and the lateral surface, and including a dielectric region arranged laterally with respect to the second epitaxial region, which overlies the first surface and is in contact with the first epitaxial region. | 03-08-2012 |
| 20120045076 | ELECTRONIC CIRCUIT FOR DRIVING A SWITCHING AMPLIFIER - An electronic circuit is disclosed for driving a switching amplifier. The electronic circuit is configured for generating, when operating in a switch-on mode, a driving signal for driving the switching amplifier. The driving signal carries a plurality of pulses having: an pulse width increasing between contiguous pulses of the plurality of pulses according to a step value having modulus equal to two and odd values; a polarity alternating between the contiguous pulses. | 02-23-2012 |
| 20120040856 | METHOD FOR DETECTING THE PRESENCE OF LIQUIDS IN A MICROFLUIDIC DEVICE, DETECTING APPARATUS AND CORRESPONDING MICROFLUIDIC DEVICE - A method for detecting the presence of liquids includes detecting an initial temperature in a channel accommodating a liquid; heating the channel for a pre-determined test time; detecting a test temperature; determining a temperature variation on the basis of the initial temperature, the test temperature, and the test time; and comparing the temperature variation with at least one threshold. Before detecting an initial temperature, an ambient temperature is read, the channel is heated to the initial temperature, and is kept at the initial temperature for a time period. | 02-16-2012 |
| 20120033806 | METHOD OF ENCRYPTING A DATA STREAM - The disclosure relates to a method of encrypting or of decrypting a binary data stream by generating a binary encryption stream and combining by a reversible logic operation each bit of the binary data stream with a bit of the binary encryption stream, the generation of the binary encryption stream including generating an input block by applying a cryptographic function using a secret key to a data block, and generating the binary encryption stream from the input block by combining the bits of the input block with each other by logic operations in a manner so as to prevent the input block from being determined from the binary encryption stream. | 02-09-2012 |
| 20120032285 | Electronic Device Including MEMS Devices And Holed Substrates, In Particular Of The LGA Or BGA Type - An electronic device includes a substrate provided with a passing opening and a MEMS device including an active surface wherein a portion of the MEMS device is integrated sensitive to chemical/physical variations of a fluid. The active surface of the MEMS device faces the substrate and is spaced therefrom, the sensitive portion being aligned to the opening. A protective package incorporates at least partially the MEMS device and the substrate, leaving at least the sensitive portion of the MEMS device, and the opening of the substrate exposed. A barrier element is positioned in an area which surrounds the sensitive portion to realize a protection structure for the MEMS device, so that the sensitive portion is free. | 02-09-2012 |
