Recording system abnormalities caused by power supply circuits

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I think that there are many cases where it is difficult to confirm reproducibility during trial evaluation before mass production or when a system abnormality caused by a power supply circuit occurs in the market.

Power failure

It's common to see circuits designed to monitor the power supply circuit and raise alerts in the event of system or power supply malfunctions. While monitoring the power supply circuit is a very good thing, it's extremely difficult to determine which power supply is experiencing what kind of problem when one actually occurs.

In such situations, it is extremely useful to be able to record logs of when an anomaly occurs. This time, we will introduce a solution for recording logs.

If the power supply circuit is damaged by overvoltage damage

If a power supply circuit (IC or module) experiences an output abnormality due to overvoltage failure (EOS: Electrical Over Stress), the problematic circuit can be easily identified by checking it with a multimeter. In some cases, the circuit may be burnt out and visible (see Figure 1).

If this problem occurs frequently, it is highly likely that there is an issue with how the power supply IC or module is being used, so checking the usage instructions is the quickest solution.

If you would like to learn about checking methods and examples of problems, we recommend attending our regularly held seminar, "Points to Note Regarding Layout." Please check the seminar schedule from the list below.
Learn the basics! Analog Circuit Technology Seminar

Article header library 129769 pic01 1 — Figure 1: Appearance of overvoltage breakdown IC

What about power supply circuit failures other than overvoltage breakdown?

In cases of power supply circuit malfunctions other than overvoltage, the power supply circuit often appears to be functioning normally even after inspecting the faulty circuit board. In such cases, the cause is often a malfunction related to the wiring patterns of the power supply circuit or ground. Even if you try to reproduce a power supply circuit malfunction other than overvoltage damage by performing long-term operational testing, it often remains unreproduced.

Solution for logging power circuit anomalies

Analog Devices offers a product called Power System Management (PSM). The LTC2977 PSM product, as shown in Figure 2, can be connected to a DC/DC converter to adjust the voltage accuracy to within ±0.5% and control the power supply sequence.

Because it allows for high-precision control of power supply voltage accuracy and the creation of power sequences by changing the built-in register settings via a GUI, it has excellent compatibility with boards equipped with FPGAs. Another distinctive feature is its ability to detect abnormalities in the power supply circuit.

Article header library 129769 pic02 1 — Figure 2: LTC2977 connection example and power sequence

Abnormalities in the power supply circuit can be detected and logged.

The Power Supply Manager (PSM) can detect power supply anomalies using a 10usec high-speed comparator to identify Over Voltage, Under Voltage, and Over Current conditions. This high-speed comparator automatically logs any detected power supply circuit anomalies to the PSM's internal EEPROM. This recorded log is useful when a system is recalled from the market due to a power supply circuit anomaly. Normally, it is difficult to reproduce the anomaly and to determine which power supply circuit was problematic. However, if the board is equipped with a PSM, the anomaly log can be read using a dedicated, free tool for the PSM (Figure 3).

By reviewing this log, you can check the date and time of the incident, the monitored voltage values, and the details of the error. This allows you to quickly create reports on market malfunctions and report them to your company and customers.

Article header library 129769 pic03 1 — Figure 3: Sample recorded log

Demonstration video of PSM (Power System Management)

This is a demo video of Analog Devices' PSM (Power System Management) product, which can record system abnormalities caused by power supply circuits and also features voltage correction and sequence control functions. Please take a look.