TINY IC PROVIDES PRECISE FAN CONTROL AND MONITORING
SUNNYVALE, CA—August 3, 2000—Maxim Integrated Products introduces the MAX6650/MAX6651 fan controller ICs. These unique integrated fan controllers are the simplest and most complete way to regulate and monitor the speed of 5V/12V DC brushless fans with built-in tachometers. Communicating with the system over their I2C/SMBus interface, the MAX6650/MAX6651 automatically force the fan’s tachometer frequency (fan speed) to match the value selected and programmed by the system. Low-noise speed control is accomplished by linearly regulating the voltage across the fan with an external MOSFET or bipolar transistor.
The MAX6650 regulates the speed of a single fan by monitoring the fan’s tachometer output. The MAX6651 also regulates the speed of a single fan, but it contains additional tachometer inputs that allow the MAX6651 to monitor up to four fans and control them as a single unit when the fans are used in parallel.
The MAX6650/MAX6651 contain general-purpose input/output (GPIO) pins that serve various functions: digital inputs, digital outputs, or hardware interfaces. Capable of sinking 10mA, these open-drain inputs/outputs can drive an LED. In addition, one of the GPIO pins can be configured to fully turn on the fan in case of software failure. Besides controlling fan speed, the MAX6650/MAX6651 can monitor the fan’s behavior and generate an alert at one of the GPIO pins when a fault condition is detected.
The MAX6650 is available in the space-saving 10-pin µMAX package and is the smallest integrated fan controller available today. The MAX6651 is available in a small 16-pin QSOP package. Prices start from $2.03 (1000-up, FOB USA).
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