Collaboration Aims to Commercialize Power Management IP

Jun 25, 2008 5:32 PM

Patriot Scientific announces that it has entered into an initial agreement with NuPOWER Semiconductor, to commercialize its power management IP to other semiconductor and electronic systems suppliers. In this phase one “validation phase” agreement both companies will work exclusively together to commercialize NuPOWER’s extensive portfolio consisting of more than 60 claims covered under four issued and allowed patents.

These patents relate to circuitry for a buck converter in point-of-load (POL) products, and network product power management (PM) chipsets for voltage conversion and microprocessor-based system load line regulation.

While no financial details of the agreement will be made public, Patriot confirms that the companies will both share in the revenues generated by the licensing efforts, whether from front-end license fees and/or on-going royalties. This initial “validation phase” agreement will focus the two companies on a handful of target customers before proceeding to a broader, full commercialization phase agreement.

“NuPOWER’s IP can substantially improve the regulation of the load line and accuracy of power management performance in next-generation microprocessor systems. It offers unique features in POL products that require integrated field-effect transistors (FETs), combined with creative design approaches to network product PM chipsets for voltage regulation,” says says Tony Tabaian, president of NuPOWER.

“The elimination of external FETs, and other external passive components, allows PM designers to drive down overall system costs and improves time to market. The integration of FET technology, coupled with the ability to perform post-production trimming, enables designers to meet tighter power specifications and enhances the yields of microprocessor components,” says Tabaian. “We have been able to substantiate much of the IP through initial silicon validation, with several devices in volume production through original equipment manufacturer customers.”