Renesas Electronics announced yesterday that it has introduced the industry's first buck-boost battery charger, the ISL9241, which is suitable for reversible USB Type-CTM connector cables for narrow voltage DC charging (NVDC) and hybrid power buck-boost (HPBB) charging in notebook computers, tablets and mobile power supplies. In addition, the device controls the switching between NVDC and HPBB modes via firmware, providing a low-cost, small charging solution that efficiently handles a wide range of power levels. The device utilizes Renesas Electronics' advanced R3TM modulation technology for superior light load efficiency and ultra-fast transient response and extended battery life. The charger reconfigures internal registers to allow for smaller inductors in HPBB mode for increased efficiency at multiple power levels.

The ISL9241 features charging, system voltage regulation and protection, NFET for maximum efficiency and optimized bill of materials ( BOM) costs. The charger can be operated with battery only, adapter only, or both battery and adapter. It uses a traditional adapter, travel adapter and USB Type-C PD port as a DC input power source and safely charges up to four lithium battery packs. In NVDC mode, the ISL9241 automatically selects the adapter or battery as the system power. The NVDC operation also supports Turbo mode, which turns on the BGATE FET to limit the adapter current when the adapter current reaches the set point. NVDC is the initial startup state of the ISL9241 before the system controller firmware changes the configuration to HPBB. In high-power HPBB mode, the ISL9241 supports bypass, bypass plus charge, reverse Turbo boost mode, and reverse Turbo boost mode plus charge mode.

The ISL9241 can be used with the ISL95338 buck-boost regulator, the R9A02G011 USB PD controller or the R9J02G012 USB PD controller, and the RAJ240045 fuel gauge IC to form a complete USB-C PD3.0 and battery charger solution.

Andrew Cowell, vice president of battery and optical systems at Renesas Electronics, said: "The ISL9241 combo NVDC and HPBB battery chargers provide customers with maximum flexibility, optimized system performance and maximized efficiency. Renesas Electronics is pushing Power management innovations help mobile computing OEMs design products that are thin, battery life, and have a differentiated competitive advantage."

For more information on this product, please refer to the Renesas website: https://www.renesas.com/us/en/products/power-management/battery-management-systems/multiple-cell-battery-chargers/device/ISL9241.html