Integrated circuit system having single power supply

Claim 2

An integrated circuit system comprising a single system power supply, a plurality of circuits all coupled to said single system power supply and being powered thereby, at least two of said circuits being fed by input signals from others of said circuits which input signals vary between two discrete levels both of which change in the same direction with a change in temperature each of said at least two circuits having two input terminals and at least one output terminal, means for feeding the input signal to each of said at least two circuits to one of the input terminals thereof such that the signal developed by each of said at least two circuits at the output terminal thereof is at one of two levels dependent upon the relative magnitudes of the signals at said two input terminals, and at least two means for deriving at least two different reference voltages from said single system power supply for application to respective ones of the second input terminals of said at least two circuits which reference voltages change with temperature in the same direction as the two discrete input signal levels fed to each of said at least two circuits.

Claim 3

An integrated circuit system in accordance with claim 1 wherein each of said at least two reference voltage deriving means includes at least one diode and one resistor connected in series across said single system power supply.

Claim 4

An integrated circuit system in accordance with claim 2 wherein each of said at least two reference voltage deriving means further includes a transistor having a base-emitter junction connected between the second input terminal of the respective one of said at least two circuits and said series-connected resistor and diode.

Claim 5

An integrated circuit system in accordance with claim 3 wherein the input signal fed to each of said at least two circuits is derived from circuit means including at least one transistor and at least one diode connected in series with the base-emitter junction of said transistor, said series-connected transistor and diode being coupled to said one input terminal, and the input signal deriving circuit means and the reference voltage deriving means for each of said at least two circuits have the same number of active elements, connected respectively to said two input terminals, which affect the signal levels at said two input terminals in accordance with temperature changes.

Claim 6

An integrated circuit system in accordance with claim 4 wherein the change in potential drops across the active elements in said input signal deriving circuit means and the change in potential drops across the active elements in said reference voltage deriving means connected to the same one of said at least two circuits are approximately equal for the same change in temperature.

Claim 7

An integrated circuit system in accordance with claim 5 wherein each of said at least two circuits includes two transistors, each having emitter, base and collector terminals, means for interconnecting the emitter terminals of said two transistors, said base terminals being said two input terminals and one of said collector terminals being said at least one output terminal.

Claim 8

An integrated circuit system in accordance with claim 1 wherein the input signal fed to each of said at least twO circuits is derived from circuit means including at least one transistor and at least one diode connected in series with the base-emitter junction of said transistor, said series-connected transistor and diode being coupled to said one input terminal, and the input signal deriving circuit means and the reference voltage deriving means for each of said at least two circuits have the same number of active elements, connected respectively to said two input terminals, which affect the signal levels at said two input terminals in accordance with temperature changes.

Claim 9

An integrated circuit system in accordance with claim 7 wherein the change in potential drops across the active elements in said input signal deriving circuit means and the change in potential drops across the active elements in said reference voltage deriving means connected to the same one of said at least two circuits are approximately equal for the same change in temperature.

Claim 10

An integrated circuit system in accordance with claim 8 wherein each of said at least two circuits includes two transistors, each having emitter, base and collector terminals, means for interconnecting the emitter terminals of said two transistors, said base terminals being said two input terminals and one of said collector terminals being said at least one output terminal.

Claim 11

An integrated circuit system in accordance with claim 1 wherein each of said at least two circuits includes two transistors, each having emitter, base and collector terminals, means for interconnecting the emitter terminals of said two transistors, said base terminals being said two input terminals and one of said collector terminals being said at least one output terminal.

Claim 12

An integrated circuit system in accordance with claim 10 wherein the input signal fed to each of said at least two circuits is derived from circuit means including at least one active element, and the input signal deriving circuit means and the reference voltage deriving means for each of said at least two circuits have the same number of active elements, connected respectively to said two input terminals, which affect the signal levels at said two input terminals in accordance with temperature changes.

Claim 13

An integrated circuit system in accordance with claim 11 wherein the change in potential drops across the active elements in said input signal deriving circuit means and the change in potential drops across the active elements in said reference voltage deriving means connected to the same one of said at least two circuits are approximately equal for the same change in temperature.

Claim 14

An integrated circuit system in accordance with claim 1 wherein the input signal fed to each of said at least two circuits is derived from circuit means including at least one active element, and the input signal deriving circuit means and the reference voltage deriving means for each of said at least two circuits have the same number of active elements, connected respectively to said two input terminals, which affect the signal levels at said two input terminals in accordance with temperature changes.

Claim 15

An integrated circuit system in accordance with claim 13 wherein the change in potential drops across the active elements in said input signal deriving circuit means and the change in potential drops across the active elements in said reference voltage deriving means connected to the same one of said at least two circuits are approximately equal for the same change in temperature.

Claim 16

An integrated circuit system in accordance with claim 1 wherein at least one of said at least two circuits includes two transistors, each having emitter, base and collector terminals, means for interconnecting the emitter terminals of said two transistors, said base terminals being said two input terminals and one of said collector terminals being said at least one output terminal, and further including clamping means coupled to the collector terminals of said two transistors for applying a clampinG voltage thereto, and means connected to said clamping means for deriving a reference voltage from said single system power supply which causes said clamping means to change the clamping voltage at said collector terminals with a variation in temperature in the same direction as the input signal to said at least one of said at least two circuits changes with a variation in temperature.

Claim 17

An integrated circuit system comprising a single system power supply, a plurality of circuits all on the same semiconductor chip and all coupled to said single system power supply and being powered thereby, at least two of said circuits being fed by input signals from others of said circuits which input signals vary between two levels, said input signals varying with changes in temperature, each of said at least two circuits having two input terminals and at least one output terminal, means for feeding the input signal to each of said at least two circuits to one of the input terminals thereof such that the signal developed by each of said at least two circuits at the output terminal thereof is at a level dependent upon the relative magnitudes of the signals at said two input terminals, and at least two means for deriving at least two reference voltages from said single system power supply for application to respective ones of the second input terminals of said at least two circuits which reference voltages change with temperature in the same direction as the input signal levels fed to each of said at least two circuits.

Claim 18

An integrated circuit system comprising a single system power supply, a plurality of circuits all on the same semiconductor chip and all coupled to said single system power supply and being powered thereby, at least two of said circuits being fed by input signals from others of said circuits which input signals vary between two levels, said input signals varying with changes in temperature, each of said at least two circuits having two input terminals and at least one output terminal, means for feeding the input signal to each of said at least two circuits to one of the input terminals thereof such that the signal developed by each of said at least two circuits at the output terminal thereof is at a level dependent upon the relative magnitudes of the signals at said two input terminals, and at least two means for deriving at least two reference voltages from said single system power supply for application to respective ones of the second input terminals of said at least two circuits which reference voltages change with temperature in the same direction as the input signal levels fed to each of said at least two circuits.

Claim 19

An integrated circuit system in accordance with claim 16 wherein each of said at least two reference voltage deriving means includes at least one diode and one resistor connected in series across said single system power supply.

Claim 20

An integrated circuit system in accordance with claim 17 wherein each of said at least two reference voltage deriving means further includes a transistor having a base-emitter junction connected between the second input terminal of the respective one of said at least two circuits and said series-connected resistor and diode.

Claim 21

An integrated circuit system in accordance with claim 18 wherein the input signal fed to each of said at least two circuits is derived from circuit means including at least one transistor and at least one diode connected in series with the base-emitter junction of said transistor, said series-connected transistor and diode being coupled to said one input terminal, and the input signal deriving circuit means and the reference voltage deriving means for each of said at least two circuits have the same number of active elements, connected respectively to said two input terminals, which affect the signal levels at said two input terminals in accordance with temperature changes.

Claim 22

An integrated circuit system in accordance with claim 19 wherein the change in potential drops across the active elements in said input signal deriving circuit means and the change in potential drops across the active elements in said reference voltage deriving means connected to the same one of said at least two circuits are approximately equal for the same change in temperature.

Claim 23

An integrated circuit system in accordance with claim 19 wherein each of said at least two circuits includes two transistors, each having emitter, base and collector terminals, means for interconnecting the emitter terminals of said two transistors, said base terminals being said two input terminals and one of said collector terminals being said at least one output terminal.

Claim 24

An integrated circuit system in accordance with claim 16 wherein the input signal fed to each of said at least two circuits is derived from circuit means including at least one transistor and at least one diode connected in series with the base-emitter junction of said transistor, said series-connected transistor and diode being coupled to said one input terminal, and the input signal deriving circuit means and the reference voltage deriving means for each of said aT least two circuits have the same number of active elements, connected respectively to said two input terminals, which affect the signal levels at said two input terminals in accordance with temperature changes.

Claim 25

An integrated circuit system in accordance with claim 22 wherein the change in potential drops across the active elements in said input signal deriving circuit means and the change in potential drops across the active elements in said reference voltage deriving means connected to the same one of said at least two circuits are approximately equal for the same change in temperature.

Claim 26

An integrated circuit system in accordance with claim 23 wherein each of said at least two circuits includes two transistors, each having emitter, base and collector terminals, means for interconnecting the emitter terminals of said two transistors, said base terminals being said two input terminals and one of said collector terminals being said at least one output terminal.

Claim 27

An integrated circuit system in accordance with claim 16 wherein each of said at least two circuits includes two transistors, each having emitter, base and collector terminals, means for interconnecting the emitter terminals of said two transistors, said base terminals being said two input terminals and one of said collector terminals being said at least one output terminal.

Claim 28

An integrated circuit system in accordance with claim 25 wherein the input signal fed to each of said at least two circuits is derived from circuit means including at least one active element, and the input signal deriving circuit means and the reference voltage deriving means for each of said at least two circuits have the same number of active elements, connected respectively to said two input terminals, which affect the signal levels at said two input terminals in accordance with temperature changes.

Claim 29

An integrated circuit system in accordance with claim 26 wherein the change in potential drops across the active elements in said input signal deriving circuit means and the change in potential drops across the active elements in said reference voltage deriving means connected to the same one of said at least two circuits are approximately equal for the same change in temperature.

Claim 30

An integrated circuit system in accordance with claim 16 wherein the input signal fed to each of said at least two circuits is derived from circuit means including at least one active element, and the input signal deriving circuit means and the reference voltage deriving means for each of said at least two circuits have the same number of active elements, connected respectively to said two input terminals, which affect the signal levels at said two input terminals in accordance with temperature changes.

Claim 31

An integrated circuit system in accordance with claim 28 wherein the change in potential drops across the active elements in said input signal deriving circuit means and the change in potential drops across the active elements in said reference voltage deriving means connected to the same one of said at least two circuits are approximately equal for the same change in temperature.

Claim 32

An integrated circuit system in accordance with claim 16 wherein at least one of said at least two circuits includes two transistors, each having emitter, base and collector terminals, means for interconnecting the emitter terminals of said two transistors, said base terminals being said two input terminals and one of said collector terminals being said at least one output terminal, and further including clamping means coupled to the collector terminals of said two transistors for applying a clamping voltage thereto, and means connected to said clamping means for deriving a reference voltage from said single system power supply which causes said clamping means to change the clamping voltage at said collector terminals with a variation in temperature in the same direction as the input signal to said at least one of said at least two circuits cHanges with a variation in temperature.

Claim 33

In an integrated circuit having a transistor having an input terminal and an output terminal, supply voltage means, resistance means connecting said output terminal to said supply voltage means and means for applying an input signal to said input terminal for switching the voltage at said output terminal between first and second levels, the level of said input signal varying in accordance with temperature, the improvement comprising clamping means powered by said voltage supply means connected between said voltage supply means and said output terminal for limiting the difference between the voltages at said input and output terminals, said clamping means being operative to clamp the voltage at said output terminal to a value which changes in the same direction as said input signal changes with a variation in temperature, said transistor having emitter, base and collector terminals, said base terminal being said input terminal and said collector terminal being said output terminal, said clamping means including a clamping transistor having emitter, base and collector terminals, said emitter terminal being connected to said output terminal, circuit means including diode means and resistor means coupled to said voltage supply means, and means connecting said base terminal of said clamping transistor to said circuit means.

Claim 34

In an integrated circuit having a transistor having an input terminal and an output terminal, supply voltage means, resistance means connecting said output terminal to said supply voltage means and means for applying an input signal to said input terminal for switching the voltage at said output terminal between first and second levels, the level of said input signal varying in accordance with temperature, the improvement comprising clamping means powered by said voltage supply means connected between said voltage supply means and said output terminal for limiting the difference between the voltages at said input and output terminals, said clamping means being operative to clamp the voltage at said output terminal to a value which changes in the same direction as said input signal changes with a variation in temperature, said transistor having emitter, base and collector terminals, said base terminal being said input terminal and said collector terminal being said output terminal, said clamping means including a clamping transistor having emitter, base and collector terminals, said emitter terminal being connected to said output terminal, circuit means including diode means and resistor means coupled to said voltage supply means, and means connecting said base terminal of said clamping transistor to said circuit means.