DIGITAL POWER LURES SYSTEM ARCHITECTS POWER-SUPPLY VENDORS

摘要

DIGITAL POWER PROMISES TO LOWER OVERALL SYSTEM-POWER COSTS BY IMPROVING MAINTE-NANCE COSTS AND RELIABILITY, LOWERING POWER-COMPONENT COSTS, AND SIMPLIFYING BOMs. TO ACHIEVE THESS GOALS, DESIGNERS MUST ADD SMARTS TO THE TRADITIONALLY DUMB POWER SUBSYSTEM. DIGITAL-POWER-CONTROL AND MAN-AGEMENT ICS OFFER HELP. In the past year, digital power has been a hot topic for system architects, power-supply designers, and mixed-signal-IC vendors. Nay-sayers argue that digital power is needlessly expensive and complex-a solution in search of a problem. Proponents argue just as vehemently that digital power is inevitable and will within a few years virtually take over the power-subsystem landscape. These seemingly incompatible viewpoints seem strange for a technology as straightforward as system power, but the disparate views are understandable once you find that each side offers different definitions of digital power and often refers to different applications. This confusion occurs because digital power has two distinct components: digital control of the PWM-feedback loop and power management and communication.