Defining and using energy consumption points

Abstract

A mapping from one or more of a plurality of components in a device to an energy consumption point (ECP) is determined. Performing one or both of: in response to an input indicating that the component (s) of the ECP is to be placed in the energy saving mode, autonomously switching, by the device, the ECP to an associated energy saving mode to obtain an additional energy saving gain relative to only when the component (s) are switched to the energy saving mode, the autonomously switching being based at least on the mapping; or in response to an input indicating that the ECP should be placed in an energy saving mode, switching, by the device, an individual component of the determined component (s) to an associated energy saving mode.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] Example embodiments herein relate generally to devices used in communication systems and, more particularly, to power conservation in such devices. Background Art

[0002] Devices, especially battery-powered devices, often have power saving modes. For example, a device connected to a wireless network such as a cellular network will periodically enter a power saving mode in order to save battery power while still providing wireless communication capabilities.

[0003] As an example, DRX (discontinuous reception) is one of the many methods used to help UE (user equipment, a wireless device connected to a network) reduce power. During DRX, the UE takes specific steps such as turning off the transceiver, which reduces power.

[0004] As another example, consider a base transceiver unit. These devices typically operate at high power and consume a lot of energy. It is therefore important to ensure that the configuration of such devices is optimal from a power saving perspective, i.e., that power saving is applied as frequently and efficiently as possible.

[0005] Processes for reducing energy consumption of devices such as these and others may be improved. Summary of the invention

[0006] This section is intended to be illustrative rather than limiting.

[0007] In an exemplary embodiment, a method is disclosed, the method comprising: determining a mapping from one or more components of a plurality of components in a device to an energy consumption point. The method comprises performing one or both of the following: in response to an input indicating that one or more components of the energy consumption point are to be placed in an energy saving mode, the device autonomously switches the energy consumption point to an associated energy saving mode to obtain an additional energy saving gain relative to when only the one or more components are switched to the energy saving mode, the autonomous switching being based at least on the mapping; or in response to an input indicating that the energy consumption point should be placed in an energy saving mode, the device switches individual components of the determined one or more components to an associated energy saving mode.

[0008] Another exemplary embodiment includes a computer program comprising code for performing the method of the previous paragraph when the computer program is run on a processor. A computer program according to this paragraph, wherein the computer program is a computer program product comprising a computer readable medium carrying computer program code embodied therein for use by a computer. Another example is a computer program according to this paragraph, wherein the program is directly loadable into an internal memory of a computer.

[0009] An exemplary apparatus includes one or more processors and one or more memories including computer program code. The one or more memories and computer program code are configured to, together with the one or more processors, cause the apparatus to at least: determine a mapping from one or more of a plurality of components in a device to an energy consumption point; perform one or both of the following: in response to an input indicating that one or more components of the energy consumption point are to be placed in an energy saving mode, the device autonomously switches the energy consumption point to an associated energy saving mode to obtain an additional energy saving gain relative to when only one or more components are switched to the energy saving mode, the autonomous switching being based at least on the mapping; or in response to an input indicating that the energy consumption point should be placed in an energy saving mode, the device switches an individual component of the determined one or more components to an associated energy saving mode.

[0010] An exemplary computer program product includes a computer-readable storage medium carrying computer program code embodied therein for use by a computer. The computer program code includes: code for determining a mapping from one or more of a plurality of components in a device to an energy consumption point; code for performing one or both of the following: in response to an input indicating that one or more components of the energy consumption point are to be placed in an energy conservation mode, the device autonomously switches the energy consumption point to an associated energy conservation mode to obtain an additional energy conservation gain relative to when only the one or more components are switched to the energy conservation mode, the autonomous switching being based at least on the mapping; or in response to an input indicating that the energy consumption point should be placed in an energy conservation mode, the device switches individual components of the determined one or more components to an associated energy conservation mode.

[0011] In another exemplary embodiment, an apparatus includes components for performing the following: determining a mapping from one or more of a plurality of components in a device to an energy consumption point; performing one or both of the following: in response to an input indicating that one or more components of the energy consumption point are to be placed in an energy saving mode, the device autonomously switches the energy consumption point to an associated energy saving mode to obtain additional energy saving gains relative to when only one or more components are switched to an energy saving mode, the autonomous switching being based at least on the mapping; or in response to an input indicating that the energy consumption point should be placed in an energy saving mode, the device switches individual components of the determined one or more components to an associated energy saving mode. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0012] In the attached picture:

[0013] Figure 1 An apparatus according to an exemplary embodiment is shown, the apparatus consisting of six components with three energy consumption points within the apparatus;

[0014] Figure 2is a logic flow diagram for defining and using energy consumption points, and illustrates the operation of one or more exemplary methods according to exemplary embodiments, the result of execution of computer program instructions embodied on a computer readable memory, the functions performed by logic implemented in hardware, and / or interconnected components for performing the functions;

[0015] Figure 2A According to an exemplary embodiment Figure 2 A logical flow chart of a portion of ; and

[0016] Figure 3 is a block diagram of an apparatus in which an exemplary embodiment may be practiced. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0017] The word "exemplary" is used herein to mean "serving as an example, instance, or illustration." Any embodiment described herein as "exemplary" is not necessarily to be construed as preferred or advantageous over other embodiments. All of the embodiments described in this detailed description are exemplary embodiments provided to enable those skilled in the art to make or use the invention, rather than to limit the scope of the invention which is defined by the claims.

[0018] When more than one reference numeral, word, or acronym is used with " / " in this description, and as generally used in this description, " / " may be interpreted as "or", "and", or "both".

[0019] As used herein, the singular forms "a", "an", and "the" are intended to include their plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It will also be understood that the terms "comprising", "including", "having", etc., when used herein, specify the presence of features, elements, and / or components, etc., but do not exclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, elements, components, and / or combinations thereof.

[0020] Devices such as wireless devices consist of multiple components. Components are visible to the user and can be configured by the user to perform specific functions and are embodiments that can be controlled in terms of their power consumption. Components can be physical entities or logical entities. That is, components abstract physical entities (thus directly related to the underlying hardware) or logical entities (thus incorporating higher layers such as hardware and some vendor-specific invisible and uncontrollable logic) that can provide functionality to the customer.

[0021] A device also consists of HW (hardware) elements (e.g., power supply unit, power amplifier, processing unit, antenna) that are not visible or configurable to the user but serve as the basis for components. A device is a top-level implementation based on hardware or parts of hardware that groups at least one ECP. The device may also additionally (although not necessarily) group one or more components.

[0022] Components can be grouped by HW element or power dependency. For example, several components can be served by one HW element or a group (two or more) of HW elements.

[0023] From the perspective of energy saving, if components related to a particular HW element(s) do not perform any functions or are switched to energy saving mode by the user, the device may autonomously switch the HW element to energy saving mode to further reduce the energy consumed by the device.

[0024] Energy saving mode is a state of a HW element or component. When a HW element or component is switched to this mode, the energy consumption of the device is reduced. Switching to energy saving mode may include, but is not limited to, the following actions: shutting down a HW element; reducing the energy consumption of a HW element; stopping or deconfiguring the function of a component; switching a component to operate with reduced capacity or performance.

[0025] It is very beneficial for users to know such dependencies in order to perform configuration and management of devices in a power-efficient manner, such as maximizing the possibilities and opportunities to reduce device energy consumption by switching the device's HW elements to corresponding power-saving modes.

[0026] However, the vendor may not want to expose the HW architecture or the exact HW components to the user. That is, the vendor of the device may not want the user to be able to directly control the HW.

[0027] The examples herein are intended to resolve conflicts of interest between suppliers and users as a benefit. As an overview, the exemplary embodiments herein introduce the possibility for a device to display information about dependencies between components within a device or between components and HW elements to a user without displaying the actual HW architecture (such as the structure or number of HW elements). To achieve this, logical components, i.e., energy consumption points, are introduced that can be used to display such dependencies. Users can use this information to configure the device in a power-efficient manner. More details are now provided.

[0028] With regard to the logical components referred to herein as energy consumption points (ECPs), the following is considered. Through the model, equipment vendors can open the aggregation and / or grouping of components in power dependency, thereby allowing the energy consumption of the equipment to be optimized. This can be further improved by introducing the concept of energy consumption points (ECPs). ECP is an embodiment optimized for power consumption, which groups at least one component and / or at least one ECP. Suppliers can use ECPs to provide power dependencies between components in their equipment or between components and such (multiple) HW elements through the aggregation of components related to (multiple) HW elements in the model, without showing the exact (multiple) HW elements in the model. Components in power saving dependencies belong to the same ECP.

[0029] In one example, an ECP aggregates one or more components of a device. When all components of an ECP are configured and perform their corresponding functions, it can be assumed that the ECP consumes maximum energy. If a component of the ECP does not perform its function, the device can autonomously perform additional power saving functions by switching the HW elements associated with the component to an energy saving mode.

[0030] The concept of energy consumption points provides the device with the possibility to inform the user of such dependencies in a uniform way without describing the HW element(s).As a potential component aggregation, ECPs may also provide complementary information about the energy and power consumption and power savings of the ECPs and the ECP status.

[0031] The ECP may also provide a control interface that allows unified power management of components grouped / aggregated by the ECP. Such an interface, when used, may affect the state of all components within the ECP.

[0032] Now that the ECP has been defined, the use of the ECP is described. Knowing how to group components in an ECP, the user can configure his services so that in case the user wants to put the service in power saving mode, some components of a specific ECP will be disabled / not used, giving the device the possibility to reduce the power consumption within the ECP by switching the related (multiple) HW elements to power saving mode.

[0033] As an example, a supplier (e.g., a manufacturer selling a device) may decide to Figure 1Three ECPs 120 are introduced into the device shown consisting of six components 130. In this example, the device 110 has ECP #1 120-1, ECP #2 120-2, and ECP #3 120-3. ECP 120-1 includes component #1 130-1 and ECP #2 120-2 and #3 120-3. ECP #2 120-2 includes components #2 130-2, #3 130-3, and #4 130-4. ECP #3 120-3 includes components #5 130-5 and #6 130-6.

[0034] We now describe the configurability aspects of ECP. Figure 1 As shown, by indicating that there are three ECPs 120, the supplier can inform the user that to optimize energy consumption and allow energy conservation as much as possible, the configuration of the device should use, for example, components #2 130-2, #3 130-3 and #4 130-4 to serve function A 140-A, while components #5 130-5 and #6 130-6 should be configured to serve function B 140-B. In such a configuration, when one of those functions is not needed and the corresponding component does not need to perform an operation, the corresponding ECP can achieve maximum power reduction. If function A 140-A (and function B 140-B, etc.) uses components aggregated under different ECPs 120, then optimized energy conservation may not be possible. It should be noted that in this example, each function A 140-A and B 140-B corresponds to one ECP #2 120-2 or #3 120-3, respectively, although the user may only know that the function is related to the component 130. It is possible that a function (eg, function C) may correspond to multiple ECPs 120 (or functions 140), although a user may only know that a function corresponds to a component or another function. For example, function C 140-C may include functions A 140-A and B 140-B.

[0035] Regarding visibility, consider the following. By indicating the presence of (multiple) ECPs, the device can also provide the user with visibility into dependencies between components and possible energy savings. Figure 1 In the example of FIG. 1 , the user will clearly see that disabling components #4 and #5 will not provide the most efficient power savings because there are still other operating components in the corresponding ECP #2 120-2 and ECP #3 120-3.

[0036] It is also possible to have a hierarchical ECP. That is, the exemplary embodiments herein allow but do not mandate the ability to nest ECPs. Figure 1, there is an ECP hierarchy 150 in which ECP#2 and ECP#3 are nested under (or within) ECP#1. Many other options are possible, including multiple nestings (e.g., ECP#3 can be nested under ECP#2, which can be nested under ECP#1).

[0037] In the exemplary embodiment, an ECP is proposed that is visible, for example, as a component of a device and reported along with other components in the model. This means that ECPs can be aggregated within other ECPs. It is assumed that a parent ECP in the hierarchical structure 150 will only provide maximum power savings if all its child ECPs already provide maximum power savings.

[0038] exist Figure 1 In the example shown, ECP#1 120-1 is a parent of ECP#2 120-2 and ECP#3 120-3, particularly in the hierarchical structure 150. Furthermore, ECP#3 120-3 and ECP#2 120-2 are children of (and nested under) ECP#1 120-1.

[0039] Go to Figure 2 , which is a logic flow diagram for defining and using energy consumption points. The figure also illustrates the operation of one or more exemplary methods according to the exemplary embodiments, the results of executing computer program instructions implemented on a computer readable memory, the functions performed by logic implemented in hardware, and / or interconnected components for performing functions. The actions in this example are performed by device 110. Device 110 can be in control module 350 (see Figure 3 ) is under the control of.

[0040] In block 210, the device 110 determines the association of the components 130 in the device with the energy consumption points (ECPs) and the hierarchical structure of the ECPs 120 (if any). It is assumed that the association in block 210 is determined using an association input from the supplier of the device 110, see block 205. The association is related to the underlying HW architecture, which is known to the supplier and is not subject to change due to external factors. The association input can be a model 206 indicating the association of components with ECPs (and ECPs with other ECPs). The association in the model 206 can be performed by mapping from ECPs 120 to components 130. The component 130 can include a physical entity 130-1, such as a transceiver, or a logical entity 130-2, such as a higher-level entity (e.g., a schedule) that contains a transceiver.

[0041] Block 215 applies to some embodiments. In the model for these embodiments, the user configures the function 140 to the component 130s. In this example, the component is the component that has the actual ability to serve the function. Thus, the ECP does not have this ability in this example, but provides information about which components have a common HW platform that consumes power. This basically provides a mapping of how the components are related to the device structure and power consumption.

[0042] Thus, the focus can be placed on the components and the components can be moved to energy saving mode. Thus, when a specific function 140 is no longer needed, the relevant component is moved to energy saving mode. If those components happen to belong to the same ECP, the device can also decide to turn off some underlying (and invisible to the user) elements of the ECP and the HW platform to reduce energy consumption even more. However, the starting point is the fact that a specific function and therefore the services of a specific component are not needed.

[0043] In box 220, device 110 uses at least mapping and hierarchical structure 150 and input 235 to determine which ECP120 to switch to energy saving mode. Input 235 can be provided by the following technology. In box 236, device 110 outputs an indication of the mapping and hierarchical structure to the user (e.g., displays visualization). In box 238, device 110 allows the user to provide input by selecting one or more ECPs. Although the "user" can be a person, other examples can also be imagined. In more detail, the "user" is the entity that decides to switch. That is, the "user" can be any source that triggers the switch, as described in more detail below. Other inputs 235 may include the following: an application 239 running locally (e.g., running on device 110), a signal 241 received from any type of externally open interface, or an action 242 initiated by the user. For reference 242, this can be a person who can affect the state of the device, or an entity that can affect the state of the device.

[0044] For actions performed or initiated by a person, typically this will be a person who can affect the state of the device, for example by being able to trigger switching of an energy consumption point to an associated energy saving mode. This can be via a physical action of a person (user) on the device 110 (e.g., as in blocks 236 and 238, or in block 242), but can also be via an action initiated by a person through a remote (via another device) or local (via device 110) management system (e.g., block 241, which may be the result of running blocks 236 and 238 on the management system). Therefore, technically all actions can utilize some interface to affect the device. The triggering of an action requested through an interface can be either human-requested or machine-requested.

[0045] In another example applicable to block 215, consider the following. What may be of primary interest to a user is the functionality (e.g., A, B, C) that the device can provide to the user. The functionality may be, for example, providing coverage and services in a particular area via a mobile network. The functionality may be the user's primary business and the reason the user interacts with the device. For the entire power saving use case, the starting point of this example is that the user may no longer need a particular functionality (or only temporarily). The user intends and can afford to "switch" or "cancel configuration" or "stop" or "pause" the functionality, no matter how the configuration is described. To this end, in block 243, the user selects the functionality of the energy saving mode. This may be performed via any interface that the user can use to select something, such as a displayed user interface or a signal internally or from a management system, as further described herein. The device 110 maps (block 244) the functionality to components and then to ECPs. More specifically, based on the configuration provided in block 215, the functionality selected by the user in step 243 is mapped to components, and then based on the associations defined in block 210, those identified components are mapped to ECPs.

[0046] If ECP 120 is indicated, it will be mapped. For example, if Figure 1 140-A is indicated as being used in energy saving mode (e.g., no longer needed or to be turned off), components 130-2, 130-2, and 130-4 and the ECP 120-2 based on these components can be placed in energy saving mode. Figure 1 ) may be associated with component #1 130-1, and the component may be placed in a power saving mode.

[0047] Another example shows that the user selects one or more components 130 (block 246), and the device 110 may map these components to the ECP 120 (block 248). That is, block 248 may include mapping the components selected by the user in block 246 to the ECP based on the associations defined in block 210.

[0048] Block 246 may be performed via any interface by which a user may select something, such as a displayed user interface or a signal internal to or from a management system, as further described herein. If a component can be mapped (block 248) to an ECP and the ECP can be placed in an energy saving mode, device 110 may do so. For example, if a user selects Figure 1130-1, but all other components must be active, then even if component #1 130-1 is mapped to ECP 120-1, the device will keep ECP 120-1 in active mode despite placing component #1 130-1 in energy saving mode. As another example, the user may select one or more components 130-2, 130-3, or 130-4. Depending on how many components are selected and their relationship, device 110 may also place ECP #1 120-2 in its energy saving mode. This is particularly true if ECP #2 120-2 is associated with function A 140-A, and that function is not active.

[0049] The relationship between how many components need to be selected for the entire ECP 120 or which components 130 need to be selected to enter its energy saving mode can be predetermined, for example, the vendor can use the model 206 or other associated inputs in block 205. For example, the vendor can indicate that ECP 120-2 can be placed in its energy saving mode on one of the following: Figure 1 any component 130-2, 130-3, or 130-4 for ECP 120-2; if more than one but less than all components are selected; if specific components are selected; or if all components are selected.

[0050] These examples show that the techniques in this article do not force the selection of components outside of the ECP. On the contrary, both approaches are allowed. That is, intelligent switching of components can provide similar or the same benefits as switching of ECPs. Switching an entire ECP can sometimes be "too disruptive" for a service. SW can be deployed to components rather than ECPs, so control at the ECP level can bring such benefits: payoffs in flexibility of use cases. Therefore, both techniques are useful: switching ECPs, and switching atomic components. In addition, intelligently deployed applications can benefit from information about how equipment vendors group components into ECPs, allowing trade-offs between power consumption and service performance (which is not always necessary at the highest possible level).

[0051] In block 230, device 110 switches the determined ECP(s) to a power saving mode. An example of this technique is provided by Figure 2A , as shown in blocks 240 to 275 shown in .

[0052] In block 240, the device 110 begins by switching a selected one of the ECPs determined in the hierarchy to an energy saving mode (ESM). In block 250, for each ECP, the device 110 begins by switching a selected one of the corresponding component(s) to the ESM for that component. Examples of switching 260 are as follows, which may include one or more of the following:

[0053] 260-1: shut down the hardware (HW) elements forming the component;

[0054] 260-2: Stop and / or reconfigure the function corresponding to the component;

[0055] 260-3: Switch the component to operate at reduced capacity and / or performance.

[0056] 260-4: Reconfigure logical entities.

[0057] To stop and / or reconfigure the function 260-2, consider a software (SW) function such as a scheduler SW. The function of the SW program can be stopped, for example, the SW no longer performs the function, for example, all cells are removed from the scheduler SW schedule. To reconfigure the function, the scheduler SW can be reconfigured to schedule only some of the cells it can schedule.

[0058] To switch the component to operate with reduced capability and / or performance 260 - 3 , the example is to disable multithreading on the processor, resulting in a reduction in the processing capability (and performance) of the processor.

[0059] For 260-4, reconfigure logical entities, consider that a customer may use a logical entity called "preheat". This is a logical entity that occasionally and conditionally uses a physical heater. This logical entity may be reconfigured to switch to an energy-saving mode, which may result in, for example, shortening the preheat time or turning off preheat completely.

[0060] As previously described, the device 110 may autonomously switch (block 255) the HW elements 256 corresponding to the selected component to ESM, if applicable. For example, if the component is a transceiver and the transceiver has a power supply that can be switched to ESM, such as an off state, then in block 255, the device 110 switches the power supply (which may be part of a larger power supply) to the off state. That is, the HW elements that are autonomously switched are associated with the component, rather than being part of the component itself, and the device 110 makes the decision to switch these HW components 256 to ESM.

[0061] For components 130 and HW elements 256, an energy saving mode is a state of a component or HW element, but may be any mode that reduces power consumption compared to when the component or element is running at full power, with full processing capability.

[0062] In block 265, the device determines whether all components have been switched for the selected ECP. If not (block 265=No), the method returns to block 250, where another component 130 in the ECP is selected. If yes (block 265=Yes), in block 270, the device 110 determines whether all ECPs have been switched. If not (block 270=No), the flow proceeds to block 240, where another ECP in the hierarchy is selected. If yes (block 270=Yes), the flow proceeds to block 250, where the technique ends.

[0063] Although Figure 2 No indication is provided as to which ECP in the hierarchy may be placed in what order within the ECP, but this is achievable. In block 245, device 110 may first select the lowest ECP in the hierarchy and last select the highest ECP in the hierarchy. For example, in Figure 1 In the example of FIG. 1 , either ECP#2 120-2 or #3 120-3 may be selected and then switched to ECM, and then the other of ECP#2 120-2 or #3 120-3 may be selected and then switched to ECM. The final selection is ECP#1 120-1.

[0064] Figure 2 Exiting the energy saving mode is not shown. However, it is assumed that the ECP's exit from the energy saving mode is triggered by the user (e.g., by a person or other entity via a user interface, an administrative interface, etc.). Switching one of x (where x>1) components back to "full operational mode" means that the other components of the same ECP remain in the energy saving mode. However, the benefit is that energy is not consumed by other components that remain in the energy saving mode at this moment. The beneficial portion of the energy consumption (e.g., caused by cutting off the power supply or a portion of that power supply) is no longer retained (e.g., because enabling component x also requires enabling the power supply).

[0065] refer to Figure 3 , which is a block diagram of an apparatus in which an exemplary embodiment can be practiced. The device 110 includes a circuit system including one or more processors 352, one or more memories 355, one or more network interfaces (N / WI / F) 361, one or more user interfaces (UI) 320, and one or more transceivers 360 interconnected by one or more buses 357. This example also includes a display 330 as part of the device 110. Each of the one or more transceivers 360 includes a receiver Rx 362 and a transmitter Tx 363. The one or more transceivers 360 are connected to one or more antennas 358 and the device communicates with other devices via an RF link 311. The one or more memories 355 include computer program code 353.

[0066] Device 110 includes control module 350, which includes one or both of parts 350-1 and / or 350-2, which can be implemented in a variety of ways. Control module 350 can be implemented in hardware as control module 350-1, such as as part of one or more processors 352. Control module 350-1 can also be implemented as an integrated circuit or through other hardware such as a programmable gate array. In another example, control module 350 can be implemented as control module 350-2, which is implemented as computer program code 353 and executed by one or more processors 352. For example, one or more memories 355 and computer program code 353 are configured to work with one or more processors 352 to cause device 110 to perform such as Figure 2 One or more operations described.

[0067] UI I / F 320 includes circuitry that allows human user 300-1 to interface with device 110, such as display 330. In this example, display 330 is internal to device 110, such as if the device is a smart phone. Alternatively (or additionally), the display can be separate from device 110, such as if the display is one of multiple UI input devices 340, including one or more of the following: display, keyboard, mouse, camera, headset, or VR (virtual reality) glasses. Human user 300-1 can also or alternatively use UI input device 340 to interface with device 110. UI I / F 320 is connected to UI input device 340 via (multiple) links 331, which can be wired or wireless.

[0068] N / WI / F communicates via (multiple) links 376, which may be hardwired, such as USB (Universal Serial Bus), Ethernet or optical. As an example, N / WI / F may implement local area network communications or communications with a cellular network.

[0069] In other examples, human user 300-2 uses a management system 380 having a user interface (UI) 385 thereon. The actions of blocks 236 and 238 may be run on UI 385, which will allow a visual display of the mapping and hierarchical structure to be presented to the human user ( Figure 2 ), the human user will provide ( Figure 2 238) as to which ECP(s) are to be placed in energy saving mode, e.g., possibly with a schedule, a delay from the entry time, a time period to remain in energy saving mode, etc. As another example, Figure 2The output visualization of the mapping and hierarchical structure in block 236 may be submitted to management software 381, which may control multiple devices 110. The output may be in a format that management software 381 understands, and management software 381 may provide input as to which ECP(s) should be placed in energy conservation mode, such as perhaps with a schedule, a delay from the entry time, a time period to remain in energy conservation mode, etc. The provision of input may cause a signal 341 to be sent from management system 380 to device 110, and operate in accordance with blocks 241 and 220. Signal 341 may be sent via RF link 311 or wired link 376.

[0070] Without limiting the scope, interpretation or application of the claims appearing below in any way, the technical effects and advantages include the following. The concept of EPC allows suppliers to provide users with information about how to use the device in the most efficient way from the perspective of energy consumption, without revealing any underlying HW structure of the device. Imagine the following scenario from an open radio access network (O-RAN) environment. The open radio unit (O-RU) reports the presence of 16 identical components. The user wants to configure four cells, each of which needs to use four components. Assume that the HW of the O-RU includes a CPU (central processing unit) with four cores, each of which serves four specific components. Without the example of this article, the user will see 16 available components and will randomly assign cells to the components. As a result, the four cells will be randomly distributed between the cores of the CPU. In this deployment, if a cell is turned off, the CPU will most likely still work with four cores. For the embodiments here, the supplier can report the presence of four ECPs, each of which includes four components belonging to one core. The user can use this information to configure a cell in each ECP, which actually means to one core. In this way, if a cell is disabled during runtime (e.g.: not needed due to low load in the network), the entire core is not used and can be turned off, thereby reducing the energy consumption of the CPU and the device. Without the exemplary embodiments of this document, the chance of allocating cells to cores in an optimal manner is via a purely random manner. Therefore, the benefit to the user is the possibility to configure and manage devices (e.g., O-RUs) in an energy-efficient manner. Another benefit to the user is that in a multi-vendor environment (such as O-RAN, where each O-RU can come from a different vendor), the user does not have to follow vendor-specific configuration rules, but operates on the unified and standardized concept of ECP. An exemplary benefit to the vendor is that the HW architecture (1 CPU with 4 cores) is not revealed to the user.

[0071] An exemplary use case of the device 110 includes equipment required to serve the UE (such as cellular network infrastructure, e.g., base transceiver unit, remote radio head, distributed unit, etc.). However, this is just one of many uses. The concept can be directed to any other combination of hardware (HW) / software (SW), such as processing units, baseband blocks, SW components, which are not necessarily related to cellular networks.

[0072] The following are additional examples.

[0073] Example 1. A method comprising:

[0074] determining a mapping from one or more of a plurality of components in a device to energy consumption points;

[0075] Do one or both of the following:

[0076] In response to an input indicating that one or more components of the energy consumption point are to be placed in an energy conservation mode, autonomously switching, by the device, the energy consumption point to an associated energy conservation mode to obtain additional energy conservation gains relative to when only the one or more components are switched to the energy conservation mode, the autonomous switching being based at least on the mapping; or

[0077] In response to the input indicating that the energy consumption point should be placed in an energy conservation mode, individual components of the determined one or more components are switched by the device to an associated energy conservation mode.

[0078] Example 2. A method according to Example 1, wherein autonomous switching further includes: the device autonomously switches the element to an associated energy-saving mode to obtain additional energy-saving gains relative to only switching one or more components to the corresponding energy-saving mode, and the element is associated with the determined one or more components but is not part of the determined one or more components.

[0079] Example 3. The method of example 1 or 2, wherein switching individual components of the determined one or more components to an associated energy saving mode comprises one or more of the following:

[0080] Close the hardware elements that form the individual components;

[0081] Stop the function corresponding to the individual component, or reconfigure the function;

[0082] Switching individual components to operate with reduced capacity or performance, or with both reduced capacity and performance; or

[0083] Reconfigure the logical entities corresponding to individual components.

[0084] Example 4. According to the method of any one of Examples 1 to 3, the autonomous switching also includes: for at least one of the one or more components, autonomously switching one or more hardware elements corresponding to the at least one component to a power saving mode for these one or more hardware elements.

[0085] Example 5. A method according to any one of Examples 1 to 4, wherein there are multiple energy consumption points, and wherein determining a mapping from one or more of the multiple components to the energy consumption points is performed for all of the multiple energy consumption points.

[0086] Example 6. The method according to Example 5, wherein the plurality of energy consumption points are formed into a hierarchical structure having a parent point and child points, wherein one or more child energy consumption points are nested under a parent energy consumption point.

[0087] Example 7. The method of any one of Examples 1 to 6, wherein the mapping is defined by a vendor of the device.

[0088] Example 8. The method of any one of Examples 1 to 7, wherein the input indicating that the energy consumption point is to be placed in an energy saving mode, or the input indicating that the energy consumption point should be placed in an energy saving mode, comes from a user.

[0089] Example 9. The method according to Example 8, further comprising:

[0090] outputting to a user an indication of a hierarchical structure, the hierarchical structure comprising one or both of: one or more components, or a plurality of energy consumption points, and

[0091] Input is received from a user based on the indication of the output.

[0092] Example 10. A method according to any one of Examples 1 to 9, wherein the input indicating that an energy consumption point is to be placed in an energy saving mode, or the input indicating that an energy consumption point should be placed in an energy saving mode, comes from: an application running on the device, a signal received by the device from any type of externally open interface, or an action initiated by a user.

[0093] Example 11. The method according to any one of Examples 1 to 10, wherein:

[0094] There are a plurality of components for the energy consumption point, one or more of the plurality of components being indicated in the input;

[0095] The method further includes:

[0096] Mapping multiple components to energy consumption points;

[0097] performing switching the component indicated in the input to a power saving mode even if not all of the plurality of components are indicated in the input; and

[0098] Autonomous switching of individual energy consumption points of the determined one or more energy consumption points is performed even if not all components of the plurality of components of the individual energy consumption point are indicated in the input.

[0099] Example 12. The method according to any one of Examples 1 to 11, wherein:

[0100] The input indicates a function selected by a user for the energy saving mode, the function corresponding to one or more components; and

[0101] The method further includes:

[0102] mapping the functionality to the one or more components to determine the one or more components to be placed in an associated energy conservation mode;

[0103] mapping the determined one or more components to one or more energy consumption points;

[0104] Based on mapping the determined one or more components to one or more energy consumption points, performing autonomous switching; and

[0105] Based on the determined one or more components to be placed in the associated energy saving mode, switching individual components of the determined one or more components to the associated energy saving mode is performed.

[0106] Example 13. A computer program comprising code for executing the method of any one of Examples 1 to 12 when the computer program is run on a computer.

[0107] Example 14. The computer program according to example 13, wherein the computer program is a computer program product comprising a computer readable medium carrying computer program code embodied therein for use with a computer.

[0108] Example 15. The computer program according to example 13, wherein the computer program is directly loadable into an internal memory of a computer.

[0109] Example 16. An apparatus comprising means for performing:

[0110] determining a mapping from one or more of a plurality of components in a device to energy consumption points;

[0111] Do one or both of the following:

[0112] In response to an input indicating that one or more components of the energy consumption point are to be placed in an energy conservation mode, autonomously switching, by the device, the energy consumption point to an associated energy conservation mode to obtain additional energy conservation gains relative to when only the one or more components are switched to the energy conservation mode, the autonomous switching being based at least on the mapping; or

[0113] In response to the input indicating that the energy consumption point should be placed in an energy conservation mode, individual components of the determined one or more components are switched, by the device, to an associated energy conservation mode.

[0114] Example 17. An apparatus according to Example 16, wherein autonomous switching also includes: the device autonomously switches the element to an associated energy-saving mode to obtain additional energy-saving gains relative to only switching one or more components to the corresponding energy-saving mode, and the element is associated with the determined one or more components but is not part of the determined one or more components.

[0115] Example 18. The apparatus of example 16 or 17, wherein switching individual components of the determined one or more components to an associated energy saving mode comprises one or more of:

[0116] Close the hardware elements that form the individual components;

[0117] Stop the function corresponding to the individual component, or reconfigure the function;

[0118] Switching individual components to operate with reduced capacity or performance, or with both reduced capacity and performance; or

[0119] Reconfigure the logical entities corresponding to individual components.

[0120] Example 19. According to the device of any one of Examples 16 to 18, the autonomous switching also includes: for at least one of the one or more components, one or more hardware elements corresponding to the at least one component are autonomously switched to a power saving mode for these one or more hardware elements.

[0121] Example 20. An apparatus according to any one of Examples 16 to 19, wherein there are multiple energy consumption points, and wherein determining a mapping from one or more of the multiple components to the energy consumption points is performed for all of the multiple energy consumption points.

[0122] Example 21. The apparatus according to Example 20, wherein the plurality of energy consumption points are formed into a hierarchical structure having a parent point and child points, wherein one or more child energy consumption points are nested under a parent energy consumption point.

[0123] Example 22. The apparatus of any one of Examples 16 to 21, wherein the mapping is defined by a vendor of the device.

[0124] Example 23. An apparatus according to any one of Examples 16 to 22, wherein the input indicating that the energy consumption point is to be placed in an energy saving mode, or the input indicating that the energy consumption point should be placed in an energy saving mode, comes from a user.

[0125] Example 24. The apparatus of Example 23, wherein the component is further configured to perform:

[0126] outputting to a user an indication of a hierarchical structure, the hierarchical structure comprising one or both of: one or more components, or a plurality of energy consumption points, and

[0127] Input is received from a user based on the indication of the output.

[0128] Example 25. An apparatus according to any one of Examples 16 to 24, wherein an output indicating that an energy consumption point is to be placed in an energy saving mode, or an input indicating that an energy consumption point should be placed in an energy saving mode, comes from: an application running on the device, a signal received by the device from any type of externally open interface, or an action initiated by a user.

[0129] Example 26. The device according to any one of Examples 16 to 25, wherein:

[0130] There are a plurality of components for the energy consumption point, one or more of the plurality of components being indicated in the input;

[0131] The component is also configured to perform:

[0132] Mapping multiple components to energy consumption points;

[0133] performing switching the component indicated in the input to a power saving mode even if not all of the plurality of components are indicated in the input; and

[0134] Autonomous switching of individual energy consumption points of the determined one or more energy consumption points is performed even if not all components of the plurality of components of the individual energy consumption point are indicated in the input.

[0135] Example 27. The device according to any one of Examples 16 to 26, wherein:

[0136] The input indicates a function selected by a user for the energy saving mode, the function corresponding to one or more components; and

[0137] The component is also configured to perform:

[0138] mapping the functionality to the one or more components to determine the one or more components to be placed in an associated energy conservation mode;

[0139] mapping the determined one or more components to one or more energy consumption points;

[0140] Based on mapping the determined one or more components to one or more energy consumption points, performing autonomous switching; and

[0141] Based on the determined one or more components to be placed in the associated energy saving mode, switching individual components of the determined one or more components to the associated energy saving mode is performed.

[0142] Example 28. An apparatus according to any of the preceding apparatus examples, wherein the components include:

[0143] at least one processor; and

[0144] At least one memory including computer program code, the at least one memory and the computer program code being configured to, together with at least one processor, cause execution of the apparatus.

[0145] Example 29. An apparatus comprising:

[0146] one or more processors; and

[0147] one or more memories including computer program code,

[0148] The one or more memories and the computer program code are configured to, together with the one or more processors, cause the apparatus to:

[0149] determining a mapping from one or more of a plurality of components in a device to energy consumption points;

[0150] Do one or both of the following:

[0151] In response to an input indicating that one or more components of the energy consumption point are to be placed in an energy conservation mode, autonomously switching, by the device, the energy consumption point to an associated energy conservation mode to obtain additional energy conservation gains relative to when only the one or more components are switched to the energy conservation mode, the autonomous switching being based at least on the mapping; or

[0152] In response to the input indicating that the energy consumption point should be placed in an energy conservation mode, individual components of the determined one or more components are switched, by the device, to an associated energy conservation mode.

[0153] Example 30. The apparatus of Example 29, wherein the one or more memories and the computer program code are configured to, together with the one or more processors, cause the apparatus to perform the method of any one of Examples 2 to 12.

[0154] As used in this application, the term "circuitry" may refer to one, more, or all of the following:

[0155] (a) hardware circuit implementation only (e.g., implementation only in analog and / or digital circuitry) and

[0156] (b) a combination of hardware circuitry and software, such as (where applicable): (i) a combination of analog and / or digital hardware circuitry and software / firmware, and (ii) any portion of a hardware processor(s) and software (including digital signal processor(s), software and memory(s) working together to enable a device such as a mobile phone or server to perform various functions), and

[0157] (c) Hardware circuit(s) and / or processor(s), such as microprocessor(s) or portion(s) of microprocessor(s), that require software (e.g., firmware) in order to operate, but where the software is not required for operation, the software may not be present.

[0158] This definition of circuitry applies to all uses of the term in this application, including in any claims. As another example, as used in this application, the term circuitry also covers an implementation of only a hardware circuit or processor (or multiple processors) or a portion of a hardware circuit or processor and its (or their) accompanying software and / or firmware. For example and if applicable to a particular claim element, the term circuitry also covers a baseband integrated circuit or processor integrated circuit for a mobile device, or a similar integrated circuit in a server, cellular network device, or other computing or network device.

[0159] The embodiments herein may be implemented in software (executed by one or more processors), hardware (e.g., application specific integrated circuits), or a combination of software and hardware. In an exemplary embodiment, the software (e.g., application logic, instruction set) is maintained on any of a variety of conventional computer-readable media. In the context of this document, a "computer-readable medium" may be any medium or component that can contain, store, communicate, propagate, or transport instructions for use by or in connection with an instruction execution system, apparatus, or device (such as a computer). An example of a computer is a computer program that can be stored in a computer program. Figure 3 The computer-readable medium may include a computer-readable storage medium (e.g., memory 355 or other device), which may be any medium or component that can contain, store, and / or transmit instructions for use by or in connection with an instruction execution system, apparatus, or device (e.g., a computer). Computer-readable storage does not include propagating signals.

[0160] If desired, the different functions discussed herein may be performed in different orders and / or simultaneously with each other. In addition, if desired, one or more of the above functions may be optional or may be combined.

[0161] While various aspects are set forth above, other aspects include other combinations of features from the described embodiments, not just the combinations described above.

[0162] It should also be noted here that although the exemplary embodiments of the present invention are described above, these descriptions should not be considered to have a limiting meaning. On the contrary, various changes and modifications may be made without departing from the scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A method comprising: determining a mapping from one or more of a plurality of components in a device to energy consumption points; Do one or both of the following: In response to an input indicating that one or more components of the energy consumption point are to be placed in an energy conservation mode, autonomously switching, by the device, the energy consumption point to an associated energy conservation mode to obtain an additional energy conservation gain relative to when only the one or more components are switched to the energy conservation mode, the autonomous switching being based at least on the mapping; or In response to input indicating that the energy consumption point should be placed in an energy conservation mode, the device switches, by the device, individual components of the determined one or more components to an associated energy conservation mode.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the autonomous switching further comprises: The device autonomously switches the element to the associated energy-saving mode to obtain additional energy-saving gains relative to merely switching the one or more components to the corresponding energy-saving mode, and the element is associated with the one or more components determined but is not a part of the one or more components determined.

3. The method of claim 1 or 2, wherein switching individual components of the determined one or more components to an associated energy saving mode comprises one or more of the following: closing hardware elements forming the individual components; stopping the function corresponding to the individual component or reconfiguring the function; switching the individual components to operate with reduced capacity or performance, or both; or The logical entities corresponding to the individual components are reconfigured.

4. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the autonomous switching further comprises: For at least one of the one or more components, one or more hardware elements corresponding to the at least one component are autonomously switched to a power saving mode for the one or more hardware elements.

5. A method according to one of claims 1 to 4, wherein there are multiple energy consumption points, and wherein determining the mapping from the one or more components of the multiple components to the energy consumption points is performed for all energy consumption points of the multiple energy consumption points. 6 . The method according to claim 5 , wherein the plurality of energy consumption points are formed into a hierarchical structure having a parent point and child points, wherein one or more child energy consumption points are nested under a parent energy consumption point.

7. The method according to one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the mapping is defined by a supplier of the device.

8. The method according to one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the input indicating that the energy consumption point is to be placed in energy saving mode, or the input indicating that the energy consumption point should be placed in energy saving mode, comes from a user.

9. The method according to claim 8, further comprising: outputting to the user an indication of a hierarchical structure, the hierarchical structure comprising one or both of: the one or more components, or a plurality of energy consumption points, and Input is received from the user based on the indication of the output.

10. A method according to one of claims 1 to 9, wherein the input indicating that the energy consumption point is to be placed in energy saving mode, or the input indicating that the energy consumption point should be placed in energy saving mode, comes from an application running on the device, a signal received by the device from any type of externally open interface, or an action initiated by a user.

11. The method according to claim 1, wherein: There are a plurality of components for the energy consumption point, one or more of the plurality of components being indicated in the input; The method further comprises: mapping the plurality of components to the energy consumption points; performing switching the component indicated in the input to the energy saving mode even if not all of the plurality of components are indicated in the input; and The autonomous switching of the determined individual energy consumption points of the one or more energy consumption points is performed even if not all of the plurality of components of the individual energy consumption point are indicated in the input.

12. The method according to claim 1, wherein: the input indicates a function selected by a user for an energy saving mode, the function corresponding to the one or more components; as well as The method further comprises: mapping the functions to the one or more components to determine the one or more components to be placed in an associated energy conservation mode; mapping the determined one or more components to the one or more energy consumption points; performing said autonomously switching based on mapping said determined one or more components to said one or more energy consumption points; and Based on the determined one or more components to be placed in the associated energy saving mode, switching individual components of the determined one or more components to the associated energy saving mode is performed.

13. A computer program comprising codes, wherein the codes are configured to: when the computer program is run on a computer, execute the method according to any one of claims 1 to 12.

14. The computer program of claim 13, wherein the computer program is a computer program product comprising a computer readable medium carrying computer program code embodied therein for use with the computer.

15. The computer program according to claim 13, wherein the computer program is directly loadable into the internal memory of the computer.

16. An apparatus comprising means for performing: determining a mapping from one or more of a plurality of components in a device to energy consumption points; Do one or both of the following: In response to an input indicating that one or more components of the energy consumption point are to be placed in an energy conservation mode, autonomously switching, by the device, the energy consumption point to an associated energy conservation mode to obtain an additional energy conservation gain relative to when only the one or more components are switched to the energy conservation mode, the autonomous switching being based at least on the mapping; or In response to input indicating that the energy consumption point should be placed in an energy conservation mode, the device switches, by the device, individual components of the determined one or more components to an associated energy conservation mode.

17. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the autonomously switching further comprises: The device autonomously switches the element to the associated energy-saving mode to obtain additional energy-saving gains relative to merely switching the one or more components to the corresponding energy-saving mode, and the element is associated with the one or more components determined but is not a part of the one or more components determined.

18. The apparatus of claim 16 or 17, wherein switching the determined individual components of the one or more components to an associated energy saving mode comprises one or more of: closing hardware elements forming the individual components; stopping the function corresponding to the individual component or reconfiguring the function; switching the individual components to operate with reduced capacity or performance, or both; or The logical entities corresponding to the individual components are reconfigured.

19. The apparatus according to one of claims 16 to 18, wherein the autonomous switching further comprises: For at least one of the one or more components, one or more hardware elements corresponding to the at least one component are autonomously switched to a power saving mode for the one or more hardware elements.

20. An apparatus according to one of claims 16 to 19, wherein there are multiple energy consumption points, and wherein determining the mapping from the one or more components of the multiple components to the energy consumption points is performed for all energy consumption points of the multiple energy consumption points.

21. The apparatus according to claim 20, wherein the plurality of energy consumption points are formed into a hierarchical structure having a parent point and child points, wherein one or more child energy consumption points are nested under a parent energy consumption point.

22. The apparatus according to one of claims 16 to 21, wherein the mapping is defined by a vendor of the device.

23. The apparatus of one of claims 16 to 22, wherein the input indicating that the energy consumption point is to be placed in an energy saving mode, or the input indicating that the energy consumption point should be placed in an energy saving mode, comes from a user.

24. The apparatus of claim 23, wherein the component is further configured to perform: outputting to the user an indication of a hierarchical structure, the hierarchical structure comprising one or both of: the one or more components, or a plurality of energy consumption points, and Input is received from the user based on the indication of the output.

25. An apparatus according to one of claims 16 to 24, wherein the output indicating that the energy consumption point is to be placed in an energy saving mode, or the input indicating that the energy consumption point should be placed in an energy saving mode, comes from an application running on the device, a signal received by the device from any type of externally open interface, or an action initiated by a user.

26. The device according to one of claims 16 to 25, wherein: There are a plurality of components for the energy consumption point, one or more of the plurality of components being indicated in the input; The component is also configured to perform: mapping the plurality of components to the energy consumption points; performing switching the component indicated in the input to the energy saving mode even if not all of the plurality of components are indicated in the input; as well as The autonomous switching of the determined individual energy consumption points of the one or more energy consumption points is performed even if not all of the plurality of components of the individual energy consumption point are indicated in the input.

27. The device according to one of claims 16 to 26, wherein: the input indicates a function selected by a user for an energy saving mode, the function corresponding to the one or more components; and The component is also configured to perform: mapping the functions to the one or more components to determine the one or more components to be placed in an associated energy conservation mode; mapping the determined one or more components to the one or more energy consumption points; performing said autonomously switching based on mapping said determined one or more components to said one or more energy consumption points; as well as Based on the determined one or more components to be placed in the associated energy saving mode, switching individual components of the determined one or more components to the associated energy saving mode is performed.

28. The device of any preceding device claim, wherein the component comprises: at least one processor; as well as At least one memory, the at least one memory comprising computer program code, the at least one memory and computer program code being configured to, with the at least one processor, cause said execution of said apparatus.

29. An apparatus comprising: one or more processors; as well as one or more memories including computer program code, wherein the one or more memories and the computer program code are configured to, together with the one or more processors, cause the apparatus to: determining a mapping from one or more of a plurality of components in a device to energy consumption points; Do one or both of the following: In response to an input indicating that one or more components of the energy consumption point are to be placed in an energy conservation mode, autonomously switching, by the device, the energy consumption point to an associated energy conservation mode to obtain an additional energy conservation gain relative to when only the one or more components are switched to the energy conservation mode, the autonomous switching being based at least on the mapping; or In response to input indicating that the energy consumption point should be placed in an energy conservation mode, the device switches, by the device, individual components of the determined one or more components to an associated energy conservation mode.

30. The apparatus of claim 29, wherein the one or more memories and the computer program code are configured to, together with the one or more processors, cause the apparatus to perform the method of any one of claims 2 to 12.

Images