Reset generator uses "fleapower"

Edited by Bill Travis

Philip Simpson, Maxim Integrated Products, Reading, UK -- EDN, 6/27/2002

When a processor-controlled device must operate reliably, designers often choose to periodically reset the processor rather than rely on a watchdog configuration. In low-power systems, this periodic-reset circuit can consume a large part of the system's current budget or may fail to operate at low voltages. The circuit in Figure 1 generates a low-going reset pulse of 100-µsec duration. The circuit consumes less than 1-µA operating current and operates from 1.8 to 5V supplies with little variation in the output period. The circuit is an adaptation of a normal relaxation oscillator. The circuit has a differentiator and diode clamp on the output to generate the 100-µsec low-going pulse. You can adjust the period of the output waveform by varying R₁, C₁, or both. You can adjust the pulse width of the low-going reset pulse by varying R_P, C_P, or both, or you can change the polarity by repositioning D₁. Figure 2a shows the comparator's output waveform, which has a period of approximately 1.3 sec. The period varies from 1.308 sec with a 4.5V supply to 1.306 sec with a 1.8V supply. Figure 2b shows details of the low-going reset pulse, which takes the shape of the output of a normal relaxation oscillator. The reset pulse is 100 µsec wide at its 30% point on the exponential curve.

The 350-nA supply current, the 1.8 to 5.5V supply range, and the SOT-23 package make the MAX919 ideal for this application. Measurements for the circuit reveal lower than 1-µA operating current. This low consumption would allow the circuit to operate from a single AA lithium cell for 250 years. With judicious component choice, the circuit can generate periods from milliseconds to minutes. To ensure good temperature stability, you should use metal-film types for R₁ and R_P and NP0 types for C₁ and C_P. Assuming a reset-logic threshold of 30% of the supply rail, you can use the following formulas to adjust the output pulse width and period: pulse width 0.36R_PC_P, and period 0.4R₁C₁.

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