Appeal No. 1997-4038
Application 08/337,550
The present invention is concerned with the accurate determination of temperature of a discrete
power semiconductor device using an analog integrated circuit that is copackaged with the power
semiconductor device on a heat sink.
Independent claim 11 is reproduced as follows:
11. A method for determining the steady state temperature of a discrete power semiconductor
device using an analog integrated circuit that is co-packaged with the power semiconductor device on a
heat sink, given knowledge of the thermal resistance between the power semiconductor device and the
analog integrated circuit, the thermal resistance between the power semiconductor device and the heat
sink and the thermal resistance between the analog integrated circuit and the heat sink, the method
comprising:
determining the voltage across the power semiconductor device and the current through the
power semiconductor device, thereby determining the power dissipated in the power semiconductor
device;
determining the temperature of the analog integrated circuit;
determining the heat sink temperature; and
using said heat sink temperature, the power dissipated in the power semiconductor device, the
temperature of the analog integrated circuit and the thermal resistances between the power
semiconductor device and the analog integrated circuit, between the power semiconductor device and
the heat sink, and between the analog integrated circuit and the heat sink to determine the temperature
of the discrete power semiconductor device.
The Examiner relies on the following reference:
Young 4,001,649 Jan. 4, 1977
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