Analog Devices’ WLED Backlight Driver Reduces Power Consumption of Handheld Units

Supplier of semiconductors for digital and analog signal-processing applications, Analog Devices has unveiled the new ADP8870 WLED (White LED) charge-pump backlight driver that decreases the handheld devices’ power consumption by a maximum of 45%.

The ADP8870 backlight driver integrates the backlight LED charge-pump driver, which is programmable, with the pulse-width modulation (PWM) input and inputs needed for photo transistor. The PWM input is integrated for managing the output current, whereas inputs for photo transistor are integrated to control the brightness of the LED light automatically.

These features minimize the power consumption by changing the intensity of the light automatically, based on the white content of the image and the surrounding lighting levels. This automatic function eradicates the requirement for a processor to perform phototransistor monitoring, hence, further decreasing the power requirements.

The ADP8870 has the potential to control a maximum of seven LEDs, which are either grouped or used independently. The driver has an interrupt output feature that optimizes power savings by restricting the involvement of processor.

Analog Devices’ Product Line Director of Power Regulator Products, Dan Swan stated that the ADP8870 backlight driver uses content-adaptive backlight control and ambient light sensing techniques that would help in increasing the battery life.