A constant voltage circuit is disclosed that includes an output control
transistor and an overcurrent protection circuit. The overcurrent
protection circuit includes a proportional current generation circuit
part, a current division circuit part, a division ratio control circuit
part, a current-voltage conversion circuit part, and an output current
control circuit part. When the output voltage of the current-voltage
conversion circuit part reaches a predetermined voltage, the output
current control circuit part prevents an increase in the output current
of the output control transistor so as to reduce a voltage output from an
output terminal. When the voltage output from the output terminal is
reduced to a predetermined limit voltage, the division ratio control
circuit part changes the division ratio of the current division circuit
part so that a current supplied to the current-voltage conversion circuit
part increases so as to reduce the output current of the output control
transistor.