1. A photo controller, comprising:
a central processing unit (CPU);
a local area network (LAN) interface in communication with the CPU;
a wide area network (WAN) interface in communication with the CPU, wherein the WAN interface communicates directly with a WAN base station in a wide area network without first communicating with and by-passing a bridge or a gateway to receive a control signal and send monitoring information over a two-way communication path from a remote server for controlling a lighting device coupled to the photo controller, wherein the control signal comprises an on and off functionality of the lighting device, a control of a light intensity of the lighting device, scheduling information of the lighting device and a color mixing code of the lighting device, wherein the monitoring information comprises a power metering information of the lighting device, a temperature information of the lighting device and a diagnostic information of the lighting device; and
an electrical power control component in communication with the CPU to control the lighting device coupled to the photo controller in accordance with the control signal.
2. The photo controller of claim 1, wherein the photo controller is directly coupled to the lighting device.
3. The photo controller of claim 1, wherein the lighting device comprises a street light.
4. The photo controller of claim 1, wherein the lighting device comprises a light emitting diode (LED) based lighting device.
5. The photo controller of claim 1, wherein the LAN interface is in communication with a different lighting controller associated with each one of a different plurality of lighting devices.
6. The photo controller of claim 1, wherein the WAN interface is in communication with a server that is remotely located.
7. The photo controller of claim 6, wherein the WAN interface communicates with the server over a cellular network.
8. The photo controller of claim 1, wherein the LAN interface communicates using a Zigbee protocol.
9. A method for controlling a plurality of lighting devices, comprising:
receiving, at a wide area network (WAN) interface of a photo controller directly coupled to one of the plurality of lighting devices, a control signal to control another one of the plurality of lighting devices over a wide area network from a server, wherein the WAN interface communicates directly with a WAN base station in the WAN without first communicating with and by-passing a bridge or a gateway when receiving the control signal and when sending monitoring information over a two-way communication path from the server, wherein the control signal comprises an on and off functionality of the lighting device, a control of a light intensity of the lighting device, scheduling information of the lighting device and a color mixing code of the lighting device;
forwarding the control signal to a remaining one or more of the plurality lighting devices via a local area network (LAN) interface of the photo controller until the control signal reaches the another one of the plurality of lighting devices that the control signal is to control;
receiving the monitoring information from the another one of the plurality of lighting devices, wherein the monitoring information comprises a power metering information of the lighting device, a temperature information of the lighting device and a diagnostic information of the lighting device; and
sending the monitoring information to the server via the WAN interface.
10. The method of claim 9, wherein the WAN comprises a cellular network.
11. The method of claim 9, wherein the LAN interface communicates via a Zigbee protocol.
12. The method of claim 9, wherein the control signal comprises at least one of: an onoff command, a light intensity command, a scheduling information or a color mixing code.
13. The method of claim 9, wherein each one of the plurality of light devices comprises a street light.
14. The method of claim 9, wherein each one of the plurality of lighting devices comprises a light emitting diode (LED) based lighting device.
15. The method of claim 9, wherein the server is remotely located from the first one of the plurality of lighting devices.
16. The method of claim 9, further comprising:
receiving information from the remaining one or more of the plurality of lighting devices via the LAN interface of the photo controller; and
forwarding the information to the server over the WAN via the WAN interface of the photo controller.
17. The method of claim 16, wherein the information comprises at least one of: power metering information, temperature information or diagnostic information.
18. A lighting control communications network, comprising:
a plurality of lighting devices, wherein each one of the plurality of lighting devices comprises a photo controller having only a local area network (LAN) interface;
a main lighting device comprising a photo controller having a LAN interface and a wide area network (WAN) interface, wherein each one of the plurality of lighting devices is in communication with the main lighting device via the LAN interface; and
a server in communication with the main lighting device via the WAN interface via two way communication path, wherein the WAN interface communicates a control signal for controlling one of the plurality of lighting devices directly with a WAN base station in a wide area network without first communicating with and by-passing a bridge or a gateway when communicating with the server and receives a monitoring information via the WAN base station, wherein the control signal comprises an on and off functionality of the lighting device, a control of a light intensity of the lighting device, scheduling information of the lighting device and a color mixing code of the lighting device, wherein the monitoring information comprises a power metering information of the lighting device, a temperature information of the lighting device and a diagnostic information of the lighting device.
19. The lighting control communications network of claim 18, wherein the WAN comprises a cellular network.
20. The lighting control communications network of claim 18, wherein the LAN interface communicates via a Zigbee protocol.
The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.
1. An Electro-Static Discharge (ESD) protection circuit comprising:
a plurality of groups of p-type heavily doped semiconductor strips (p+ strips);
a plurality of groups of n-type heavily doped semiconductor strips (n+ strips), wherein the plurality of groups of p+ strips and the plurality of groups of n+ strips form an array having a plurality of rows and columns, and wherein in each of the rows and the columns, the plurality of groups of p+ strips and the plurality of groups of n+ strips are allocated in an alternating layout;
a plurality of gate stacks, each comprising:
a first edge aligned to an edge of a group in the plurality of groups of p+ strips; and
a second edge aligned to an edge of a group in the plurality of groups of n+ strips; and
a conductor electrically connecting a first one of the plurality of groups of p+ strips to a second one of the plurality of groups of n+ strips, wherein the first one and the second one are in a same column.
2. The ESD protection circuit of claim 1 further comprising:
an inputoutput pad;
a Vss node; and
a plurality of conductors comprising the conductor, wherein each of the plurality of conductors electrically connects one of the plurality of groups of p+ strips in a column to one of the plurality of groups of n+ strips in the column.
3. The ESD protection circuit of claim 2 comprising a plurality of diodes forming a diode string, wherein each of the plurality of diodes comprises one of the group in the plurality of groups of p+ strips as an anode and one of the group in the plurality of groups of n+ strips as a cathode, and wherein the plurality of diodes are serially connected between the inputoutput pad and the Vss node.
4. The ESD protection circuit of claim 3, wherein the cathode of each of the diodes in the diode string is between the Vss node and the anode of the each of the diodes in the diode string.
5. The ESD protection circuit of claim 3, wherein the plurality of diodes comprises two diodes.
6. The ESD protection circuit of claim 5, wherein the plurality of diodes comprises fourth diodes.
7. The ESD protection circuit of claim 1, wherein the array comprises at least four columns and at least two rows.
8. An Electro Static Discharge (ESD) protection circuit comprising:
a semiconductor substrate of a first conductivity type;
a first well region and a second well region of a second conductivity type opposite to the first conductivity type, wherein the first well region and the second well region are separated from each other by a portion of the semiconductor substrate;
a first semiconductor strip extending in a row direction and overlapping and contacting the first well region, wherein the first semiconductor strip comprises:
a first heavily doped portion of the first conductivity type;
a second heavily doped portion of the second conductivity type; and
a third portion of the second conductivity type connecting the first portion to the second portion;
a first gate stack overlapping the third portion of the first semiconductor strip; and
a second semiconductor strip extending in the row direction and overlapping and contacting the second well region, wherein the second semiconductor strip comprises:
a fourth heavily doped portion of the first conductivity type;
a fifth heavily doped portion of the second conductivity type; and
a sixth portion of the second conductivity type connecting the fourth portion to the fifth portion, wherein the first and the fifth portions are in a same first column, and wherein the second and the fourth portions are in a same second column;
a second gate stack overlapping the sixth portion of the second semiconductor strip; and
a first conductor electrically connecting the second portion to the fourth portion, wherein the first and the second gate stacks and the first and the second semiconductor strips are comprised in a first Silicon-Controlled Rectifier (SCR)diode-string unit.
9. The ESD protection circuit of claim 8 further comprising:
an inputoutput pad electrically connected to the first heavily doped portion; and
a Vss node electrically connected to the fifth heavily doped portion.
10. The ESD protection circuit of claim 8 further comprising:
a second SCRdiode-string unit having a structure identical to the first SCRdiode-string; and
a second conductor electrically connecting the fifth portion of the first SCRdiode-string unit to the first portion of the second SCRdiode-string unit.
11. The ESD protection circuit of claim 8 further comprising:
a second SCRdiode-string unit having a structure identical to, and connected to in parallel with, the first SCRdiode-string, wherein the first semiconductor strip of the first SCRdiode-string unit and the first semiconductor strip of the second SCRdiode-string unit are portions of a same straight and continuous semiconductor strip.
12. The ESD protection circuit of claim 8, wherein the first conductivity type is p-type, and the second conductivity type is n-type.
13. The ESD protection circuit of claim 8:
wherein the first semiconductor strip further comprises:
a seventh heavily doped portion of the first conductivity type;
an eighth heavily doped portion of the first conductivity type; and
a ninth portion of the first conductivity type connecting the seventh portion to the eighth portion;
wherein the second semiconductor strip further comprises:
a tenth heavily doped portion of the second conductivity type;
an eleventh heavily doped portion of the second conductivity type; and
a twelfth portion of the second conductivity type connecting the tenth portion to the eleventh portion, and wherein the ESD protection circuit further comprises:
a third gate stack over the ninth portion of the first semiconductor strip; and
a fourth gate stack over the twelfth portion of the second semiconductor strip, wherein the seventh and the twelfth portions are in a same third column, and wherein the eighth and the tenth portions are in a same fourth column.
14. The ESD protection circuit of claim 8 further comprising shallow trench isolation regions, and wherein the first and the second semiconductor strips comprise first portions extending between the shallow trench isolation regions, and second portions over top surfaces of the shallow trench isolation regions.
15. An Electro-Static Discharge (ESD) protection circuit comprising:
a p-type semiconductor substrate;
a diode string comprising a first, a second, a third, and a fourth diode, wherein the first, the second, the third, and the fourth diodes are aligned sequentially in a column, and wherein each of the first, the second, the third, and the fourth diodes comprises:
a p+ semiconductor strip as an anode;
an n-type semiconductor strip and a n+ semiconductor strip as a cathode, wherein the anodes and the cathodes of the first, the second, the third, and the fourth diodes form an array, and wherein in each of rows and columns of the array, the anodes and the cathodes are allocated in an alternating layout; and
a gate electrode overlapping the n-type semiconductor strip; and
four n-well regions, each overlapped by and in contact with one of the first, the second, the third, and the fourth diodes, wherein the four n-well regions are separated from each other by portions of the p-type semiconductor substrate.
16. The ESD protection circuit of claim 15 further comprising an inputoutput pad and a Vss node, wherein the first, the second, the third, and the fourth diodes are serially coupled between the inputoutput pad and the Vss node.
17. The ESD protection circuit of claim 16 further comprising an additional diode string having an identical structure as the diode string, wherein the additional diode string is connected in parallel with the diode string.
18. The ESD protection circuit of claim 15, wherein the first, the second, the third, and the fourth diodes are biased in a same direction.
19. The ESD protection circuit of claim 15, wherein the diode string comprises eight serially connected diodes.
20. The ESD protection circuit of claim 15 further comprising:
a first conductor connecting the cathode of the first diode to the anode of the second diode;
a second conductor connecting the cathode of the second diode to the anode of the third diode; and
a third conductor connecting the cathode of the third diode to the anode of the fourth diode.