The TPS2212 PC Card power-interface switch provides an integrated power-management solution for a single low power PC Card. All of the discrete power MOSFETs, a logic section, current limiting, and thermal protection for PC Card control are combined on a single integrated circuit, using the Texas Instruments LinBiCMOS™ process. The circuit allows the distribution of 3.3-V, 5-V, and/or 12-V card power, and is compatible with many PCMCIA controllers. The current-limiting feature eliminates the need for fuses, which reduces component count and improves reliability. Current-limit reporting can help the user isolate a system fault to the PC Card.

The TPS2212 features a 3.3-V low-voltage mode that allows for 3.3-V switching without the need for 5 V. Bias power can be derived from either the 3.3-V or 5-V inputs. This facilitates low-power system designs such as sleep mode and pager mode, where only 3.3 V is available.

End equipment for the TPS2212 includes notebook computers, desktop computers, personal digital assistants (PDAs), digital cameras, and bar-code scanners. This device is well suited for those applications that need to limit the power provided to the PC card because of power-supply constraints. In many applications, such as palm computers, the system cannot allocate more than 200 mA of current to a PC card slot. For these lower-power applications, the TPS2212 provides the same advanced level of protection that the TPS2211 provides for higher-power applications.Read more