USER’S MANUAL
ISL9238EVAL1Z
UG074
Rev.2.00
Nov 14, 2018
Evaluation Board User Guide
Description
Key Features
The ISL9238 is a buck-boost Narrow Output Voltage DC (NVDC)
charger that uses the Renesas advanced R3™ Technology to
provide high light-load efficiency, fast transient response, and
seamless DCM/CCM transitions for a variety of mobile and
industrial applications.
• Buck-boost NVDC charger for 1-, 2-, 3-, 4-cell Li-ion batteries
In Charge mode, the ISL9238 takes input power from a wide
range (4V to 20V) of DC power sources (conventional AC/DC
charger adapters, USB PD ports, travel adapters, etc.) and
safely charges battery packs with up to four cells in a series
configuration.
• Allows trickle charging of depleted battery
The ISL9238 has an On-the-Go (OTG) function for 2- and 4-cell
battery applications. When the OTG function is enabled, the
ISL9238 operates in Reverse Buck mode to provide 5V at the
USB port.
• Two-level adapter current limit available
The ISL9238 provides serial communication with SMBus/I2C
that allows programming of critical parameters to deliver a
customized solution. The programmable parameters include,
but are not limited to: adapter current limit, charger current
limit, system voltage setting, and trickle charging current limit.
Specifications
The ISL9238EVAL1Z evaluation board demonstrates the
performance of the ISL9238. The default value numbers of the
battery in series, switching frequency, and the adapter current
limit charging function can be programmed by the resistor
from the PROG pin to GND. The values also can be set by
SMBus.
• fSW = 1MHz maximum
• End of Charge (EOC) option
• System power monitor PSYS output, IMVP-8 compliant
• PROCHOT# open-drain output, IMVP-8 compliant
• Optional ASGATE FET control
• Ideal diode control in Turbo mode
• Reverse buck, boost, and buck-boost operation from battery
• Battery Ship mode option
• SMBus and auto-increment I2C compatible
• VIN = 3.8V to 24V (no dead zone)
• VOUT = 2.5V to 12.6V
• MAX Icharge up to 6A
Ordering Information
PART NUMBER
ISL9238EVAL1Z
Related Literature
DESCRIPTION
ISL9238 buck-boost charger evaluation board
For a full list of related documents, refer to our website:
• ISL9238 datasheet
VADP
Optional
Rs1
VSYS
Q1
Q4
L1
LGATE2
BOOT2
PHASE2
BOOT1
PHASE1
LGATE1
UGATE1
UGATE2
Q3
Q2
VSYS
CSIN
CSOP
CSIP
Rs2
ASGATE
CSON
ADP
ACIN
ISL9238
ACOK
BGATE
PROCHOT#
GND
AMON/BMON
VBAT
BATGONE
VBAT
OTGPG/CMOUT
OTGEN/CMIN
VDDP
VDD
DCIN
PROG
COMP
SCL
SDA
PSYS
FIGURE 1. BLOCK DIAGRAM
UG074 Rev.2.00
Nov 14, 2018
Page 1 of 17
ISL9238EVAL1Z
Recommended Equipment
• 0V to 25V power supply with at least 6A source current capability
• Electronic load capable of sinking current up to 6A
• Battery emulator capable of sinking and sourcing current up to
6A
• Digital Multimeters (DMMs)
• 100MHz quad-trace oscilloscope
NOTE: You can use a power supply (that can source current but cannot
sink current) in parallel with an e-load Constant Current (CC) mode to
emulate the battery. For example, to charge, set the charging current
command lower than the CC mode e-load. If the e-load CC mode current
is set to 3A, the charge current command is 2A, and the e-load takes 2A
from the charger and takes another 1A from the power supply in parallel
with it. To discharge, the power supply acts like the battery to discharge
current. You can also use the e-load Constant Voltage (CV) mode to
emulate the battery to take the charging current from the charger and set
the e-load CV voltage below the MaxSysV register setting; however, this
e-load CV mode cannot source current like a battery.
Functional Description
The ISL9238EVAL1Z provides all circuits required to evaluate the
features of the ISL9238. A majority of the features of the
ISL9238, such as adjustable output voltage, On-the-Go (OTG)
mode, Trickle Charging mode for depleted battery, and system
power monitor at Buck, Boost, and Buck-Boost modes are
available on this evaluation board.
The three LEDs indicate the ACOK, PROCHOT, and
OTGPG/CMOUT status, respectively. For more details about the
functions of these three pins, refer to the ISL9238 datasheet.
Complete the following steps to evaluate the ISL9238 key
functions,including system voltage regulation, input current limit
regulation, Charging mode, trickle Charging mode, and OTG
mode. Figure 3 shows the top view of the evaluation board and
highlights the key testing points and connection terminals. For
more information about the ISL9238, including other modes of
operation, refer to the ISL9238 datasheet.
System Voltage Regulation
1. Set the power supply to 5V. Disable the output and connect
the (+) end to J1 and the (-) end to J2.
2. Ensure jumpers JP3, JP4, and JP6 are shorted. SW1 and SW2
should switch to the low position.
3. Turn on the power supply and measure VSYS using the DMM
across (+) and (-) TP5. VSYS should read 8.38V. The current
meter on the supply should read
