The ICs enable a reduction of power consumption during standby periods after shipping and while the power is turned off, says the company. They also allow shutdown of the power supply in the event the system freezes.

Miniaturisation of battery‐equipped devices is increasingly used for wearable devices and internet of things (IoT) devices. There is also a need for power saving, and

lengthening battery life. The pushbutton load switch ICs turns off the main power in order to save energy, using the microcontroller’s deep sleep mode, and creating a power on/off switch using the microcontroller and external components (discretes).

The ICs enable on/off control of the power line by the IC itself with no need for

external components. In addition, by shutting down the power line of battery‐equipped devices after shipping testing, a significant reduction of power consumption during long‐term storage of the devices is now possible, reports the company. Quiescent current while the power is off is very low (10nA typical).

When a system freeze occurs and the power has to be forcefully turned off, the ICs enable operation independent of the system (microcontroller), allowing the power to be turned off.

The ICs use the pushbutton signal already provided on the device to realise power supply on/off. The number of pushbuttons on devices has been decreasing as cost and area reductions are required, together with strengthened water proofing. At the same time, functions that can be implemented using a single button are increasing, says the company. The ICs allow a power‐on delay time of 0.5, 1.0, 3.0, or 5.0 sec, and a power‐off time of 3.0, 5.0, 10 or 15 seconds. A variety of functions can be implemented as long as they are within the selected delay time. This makes it possible to add a power on/off function to a single, multi‐functionalised pushbutton.

These ICs are suitable for miniature, power saving applications, such as wireless earphones and hearing aids, and for IoT devices and security devices that must provide long usage times.

The low profile USP‐8B06 package measures 2.0 x 2.0 x h0.33mmi to save space through a reduced mounting area.