POLA And The Power-Management Bus

Feb. 17, 2005

The Point of Load Alliance (POLA) comprises a number of leading companies, including Artesyn Technologies, Emerson's Astec Power Division, Ericsson Power Modules AB, and Texas Instruments. The organization's goal is to promote pin-compatible, advanced non-isolated, POL plug-in power modules. POLs offer pin-compatible footprints that provide the same functionality and form factors, ensuring full interoperability and true second sourcing.

In December 2004, POLA announced that it will jointly design and release products in accordance with the PMBus (Power Management Bus) digital interface and control specification during 2005. PMBus will permit flexibility in the digital control of power-conversion products.

The PMBus founding group consists of companies from POLA and the semiconductor industry, including Intersil Corp., Microchip Technology Inc., Summit Microelectronics, Volterra Semiconductor, and Zilker Labs Inc. Its goal is to release an open protocol supporting communication to power supplies via a digital bus. Implemented over the industry-standard I²C serial bus, this protocol will establish a common command set for configuring, controlling, and monitoring dc-dc converters. However, it will not dictate how those commands are generated.

About the Author

Sam Davis 2

Sam Davis was the editor-in-chief of Power Electronics Technology magazine and website that is now part of Electronic Design. He has 18 years experience in electronic engineering design and management, six years in public relations and 25 years as a trade press editor. He holds a BSEE from Case-Western Reserve University, and did graduate work at the same school and UCLA. Sam was the editor for PCIM, the predecessor to Power Electronics Technology, from 1984 to 2004. His engineering experience includes circuit and system design for Litton Systems, Bunker-Ramo, Rocketdyne, and Clevite Corporation. Design tasks included analog circuits, display systems, power supplies, underwater ordnance systems, and test systems. He also served as a program manager for a Litton Systems Navy program.

Sam is the author of Computer Data Displays, a book published by Prentice-Hall in the U.S. and Japan in 1969. He also authored the book Managing Electric Vehicle Power. He is also a recipient of the Jesse Neal Award for trade press editorial excellence, and has one patent for naval ship construction that simplifies electronic system integration.

You can also check out additional articles on his other author page.