Digital power system manager enables conversion efficiency monitoring

Analog Devices has released the Power by Linear LTC2972, a two-channel power system manager, providing current, power and energy monitoring of the intermediate bus input to POL converters. Monitoring circuit board power and energy use is a prerequisite for managing, optimising and reducing their consumption to lower server rack and data centre cooling and utility costs. The device reduces the host of burdensome polling and computation by conveniently affording the input energy, detailed in joules, and the elapsed time through a PMBus interface. When coupled with its digital measurements of POL output voltages, currents, and power, the device allows long-term monitoring of a power system’s conversion efficiency. The device adds thorough software-based monitoring and control to the power systems of FPGA, ASIC, and DSP boards, quickening time to market, enhancing system reliability, and optimising board energy consumption. Supply output voltages are margined, trimmed, and monitored using a best-in-class 16-bit ADC with 0.25% TUE, improving board yields and long-term performance. Supply output currents are measured using an inductor DCR, sense resistor, or the IMON output of a power supply. Supply supervision, sequencing, and EEPROM fault-logging are built in. Faults trigger EEPROM black box recording, simplifying failure analysis while giving insight into future system improvements. Programmable power good, or GPIO pins are available with each channel. The device connects with other power system managers to coordinate sequencing and fault management of more than two rails. PMBus-compatible commands are applied for flexible programming and data readback of the power system. Configuration is achieved through the LTpowerPlay development environment, which helps all Power by Linear PSM devices. Once programmed, no software coding is required for autonomous operation. Specified over the 0C to 70C commercial and -40C to 105C industrial temperature ranges, the device is offered in a 44-pin 6mm x 7mm QFN package.