Information processing device

Abstract

One aspect of an information processing device according to the present invention comprises: a hard disk drive; a processing device that accesses the hard disk drive; a plurality of fan devices that cool the processing device; and a control device that controls the plurality of fan devices. The control device acquires an error rate of the hard disk drive while changing the number of rotations of the plurality of fan devices under a condition in which the average air volume of the plurality of fan devices is a first air volume, and controls the number of rotations of the plurality of fan devices on the basis of a first combination which, among combinations of the number of rotations of the plurality of fan devices, makes the error rate equal to or less than a threshold value.

Description

Information processing device

[0001] This application claims priority to Japanese Patent Application No. 2024-089473, filed May 31, 2024, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

[0002] A hard disk drive (HDD) is a storage device with a complex internal structure that is vulnerable to vibration and shock. For example, in a server device, a fan unit for cooling the central processing unit (CPU) may be installed adjacent to the HDD. In this case, if the frequency of vibrations generated by the fan unit and applied to the HDD housing matches the natural frequency of the HDD, a resonance phenomenon may occur, causing a deterioration in the HDD's error rate.

[0003] As a measure to suppress the occurrence of the above-mentioned resonance phenomenon in HDDs, it is generally known to suppress the occurrence of vibrations that coincide with the natural frequency of the HDD by reviewing the vibration-proof rubber used to secure the HDD, the vibration-proof structure of the HDD housing, the head structure, etc. Also, as a measure on the fan device side, it is generally known to review the fan shape to change the noise frequency and reduce the noise level.

[0004] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2020-42883

[0005] To take the above measures, it is necessary to know in advance the natural frequency of the HDDs installed in the server equipment. The natural frequency of an HDD varies subtly not only depending on the size (number of inches) of the HDD, but also on the model of the HDD. However, since the natural frequency of an HDD is not listed on the HDD's spec sheet, it is necessary to measure the natural frequency individually for each HDD size and model.

[0006] One aspect of the information processing device of the present invention comprises a hard disk drive, a processing device that accesses the hard disk drive, a plurality of fan devices that cool the processing device, and a control device that controls the plurality of fan devices, wherein the control device acquires an error rate of the hard disk drive while changing the rotation speed of the plurality of fan devices under the condition that the average air volume of the plurality of fan devices is a first air volume, and controls the rotation speed of the plurality of fan devices based on a first combination among the combinations of rotation speeds of the plurality of fan devices that makes the error rate below a threshold value.

[0007] According to the above aspect of the present invention, an information processing device is provided that can suppress the occurrence of resonance in a hard disk drive without revising the structure of the hard disk drive.

[0008] FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a server device in this embodiment. FIG. 2 is a plan view showing a schematic arrangement of each device inside the server device. FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing a first process executed by the control device. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of setting data. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of an HDD error rate obtained by the control device executing the first process. FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing a second process executed by the control device. FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing a third process executed by the control device.

[0009] An embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a block diagram schematically illustrating the configuration of a server device 1 according to this embodiment. As shown in FIG. 1, the server device 1 includes a HDD 10, a CPU 20, a temperature sensor 30, multiple fan devices 40, and a communication bus 60. The HDD 10, the CPU 20, the temperature sensor 30, and the multiple fan devices 40 communicate with each other via the communication bus 60. The server device 1 is an example of an information processing device. In reality, the HDD 10, the CPU 20, the temperature sensor 30, and the multiple fan devices 40 communicate via multiple communication buses, rather than a single communication bus 60. For simplicity of explanation, the multiple communication buses are represented in FIG. 1 as a single communication bus 60.

[0010] The HDD 10 is an auxiliary storage device that has one or more magnetic disks and stores data on the magnetic disks. The HDD 10 writes data to the magnetic disks and reads data from the magnetic disks in accordance with instruction signals from the CPU 20.

[0011] The CPU 20 controls the overall operation of the server device 1. For example, the CPU 20 is a multi-core CPU equipped with multiple processor cores. The CPU 20 accesses the HDD 10. For example, when the CPU 20 stores data in the HDD 10, it transmits the data to be stored and a write instruction signal to the HDD 10. When the CPU 20 retrieves data from the HDD 10, it transmits a read instruction signal to the HDD 10. The CPU 20 is an example of a processing device. The temperature sensor 30 detects the temperature of the CPU 20 and transmits temperature data indicating the temperature of the CPU 20 to the CPU 20.

[0012] The multiple fan devices 40 cool the CPU 20 by sending cooling air to the CPU 20. In this embodiment, for convenience of explanation, a server device 1 including three fan devices 40 is illustrated as an example, but the number of fan devices 40 is not limited to three. In the following explanation, when it is necessary to distinguish between the three fan devices 40, the three fan devices 40 may be referred to as fan device 40A, fan device 40B, and fan device 40C, respectively.

[0013] The server device 1 further includes a control device 50 that controls the multiple fan devices 40. Although not shown, each fan device 40 includes a motor, an impeller attached to the shaft of the motor, and a processor such as an MCU (Microcontroller Unit) that controls the motor and communicates with the motor via a communication bus 60. In this embodiment, the control device 50 is a processor mounted on the fan device 40A. In other words, the processor of the fan device 40A not only directly controls the rotation speed of the motor of the fan device 40A, but also indirectly controls the rotation speed of the motors of the fan devices 40B and 40C by sending rotation speed command values ​​to the processors of the fan devices 40B and 40C.

[0014] FIG. 2 is a plan view schematically illustrating the arrangement of each device within the server device 1. As shown in FIG. 2, the HDD 10 is disposed in a region of the mounting area on the motherboard 70 that is located on one side of the motherboard 70 in the longitudinal direction. The CPU 20 is disposed in a region of the mounting area on the motherboard 70 that is located on the other side of the motherboard 70 in the longitudinal direction. The temperature sensor 30 may be disposed on the CPU 20 as shown in FIG. 2, or may be disposed in a region of the mounting area on the motherboard 70 adjacent to the CPU 20. The three fan units 40 are disposed in a region of the mounting area on the motherboard 70 that is located between the HDD 10 and the CPU 20. The three fan units 40 are disposed at predetermined intervals along the short side of the motherboard 70.

[0015] As described above, in the server device 1, the fan device 40 for cooling the CPU 20 may be located adjacent to the HDD 10. In this case, if the frequency of vibrations applied to the housing of the HDD 10 due to noise generated by the fan device 40 matches the natural frequency of the HDD 10, a resonance phenomenon occurs, causing the error rate of the HDD 10 to worsen.

[0016] As already explained, one possible measure to suppress the occurrence of the above-described resonance phenomenon in HDD 10 is to review the vibration-isolating rubber used to secure HDD 10, the vibration-isolating structure of the HDD 10 casing, and the head structure, but in order to take such measures, it is necessary to measure the natural frequency individually according to the size and model of HDD 10.

[0017] In this embodiment, on the premise that the fan shape of each fan device 40 is reviewed depending on the size and model of the HDD 10, the control device 50 executes the following process, thereby making it possible to suppress the occurrence of resonance in the HDD 10 without having to review the structure of the HDD 10. In other words, according to this embodiment, there is no need to measure the natural frequency individually depending on the size and model of the HDD 10.

[0018] 3 is a flowchart showing a first process executed by the control device 50. As shown in Fig. 3, the control device 50 first acquires the error rate of the HDD 10 while changing the rotation speeds of the three fan devices 40 under the condition that the average airflow rate of the three fan devices 40 is a first airflow rate (step S1).

[0019] Specifically, the control device 50 reads out setting data that has been stored in advance in the memory of the fan device 40A. Fig. 4 is a diagram showing an example of the setting data. As shown in Fig. 4, for example, the setting data is data that indicates a combination of rotation speeds that satisfies the condition that the average airflow rate of the three fan devices 40 is a first airflow rate, and a correspondence relationship between the total power consumption of the three fan devices 40 and noise frequencies.

[0020] The setting data includes N combinations of rotation speeds, where N is an integer equal to or greater than 2. The N combinations of rotation speeds are associated one-to-one with setting numbers 1 through N. The control device 50 acquires the error rate of the HDD 10 while controlling the rotation speeds of the fan devices 40A, 40B, and 40C based on the combination of rotation speeds associated with setting number 1. When the CPU 20 measures the error rate of the HDD 10, the control device 50 acquires the error rate of the HDD 10 from the CPU 20.

[0021] Next, the control device 50 acquires the error rate of the HDD 10 while controlling the rotation speeds of the fan devices 40A, 40B, and 40C based on the combination of rotation speeds associated with setting number 2. The control device 50 performs the same process as above for the combinations of rotation speeds associated with the remaining setting numbers, thereby acquiring the error rates of the HDD 10 corresponding to the N combinations of rotation speeds included in the setting data.

[0022] The control device 50 obtains the error rate of the HDD 10 corresponding to the N combinations of rotation speeds included in the setting data, and then controls the rotation speeds of the three fan devices 40 based on the first combination of the rotation speeds of the three fan devices 40 that results in the error rate of the HDD 10 being below a threshold value (step S2).

[0023] For example, if there is only one first combination among the combinations of rotation speeds of three fan devices 40 that results in the error rate of HDD 10 being below a threshold, the control device 50 controls the rotation speeds of the three fan devices 40 based on that one first combination.

[0024] Also, for example, if there are multiple first combinations among the combinations of rotation speeds of the three fan devices 40 that result in the error rate of the HDD 10 being below a threshold, the control device 50 controls the rotation speeds of the three fan devices 40 based on the first combination among the multiple first combinations that has the most optimal airflow.

[0025] 5 , assume that the error rate obtained for the rotation speed combination associated with setting number 5 and the error rate obtained for the rotation speed combination associated with setting number 6 are equal to or lower than a threshold. In this case, for example, the control device 50 controls the rotation speeds of the three fan devices 40 based on the combination of the rotation speeds associated with setting number 5 and the combination of the rotation speeds associated with setting number 6 that results in the smallest total power consumption of the three fan devices 40. In this way, the first combination may be the combination of the rotation speeds of the three fan devices 40 that results in an error rate equal to or lower than a threshold and also results in the smallest total power consumption of the three fan devices 40.

[0026] By having the control device 50 execute the first process described above, the rotation speeds of the three fan devices 40 are controlled based on the first combination, among the combinations of rotation speeds of the three fan devices 40, that results in the error rate of the HDD 10 being equal to or lower than the threshold. Therefore, according to this embodiment, it is possible to suppress the occurrence of resonance in the HDD 10 without having to redesign the HDD 10 according to the size and model of the HDD 10. In other words, according to this embodiment, there is no need to measure the natural frequency individually for each size and model of the HDD 10.

[0027] The control device 50 may execute the following second process instead of the first process described above. Fig. 6 is a flowchart showing the second process executed by the control device 50. As shown in Fig. 6, the control device 50 first acquires the error rate of the HDD 10 while changing the rotation speeds of the three fan devices 40 under the condition that the average airflow rate of the three fan devices 40 is a first airflow rate (step S11).

[0028] Step S11 included in the second process is the same as step S1 included in the first process, and therefore a detailed description thereof will be omitted. In step S11, the control device 50 performs the same process as step S1 to obtain the error rate of the HDD 10 corresponding to the combination of N rotation speeds included in the setting data.

[0029] Next, the control device 50 acquires the error rates of the HDDs 10 corresponding to the N combinations of rotation speeds included in the setting data, and then controls the rotation speeds of the three fan devices 40 based on a first combination of the rotation speeds of the three fan devices 40 that results in an error rate of the HDDs 10 that is equal to or lower than a threshold value (step S12). Step S12 included in the second process is the same as step S2 included in the first process, and therefore a detailed description thereof will be omitted.

[0030] Next, the control device 50 acquires temperature data indicating the temperature of the CPU 20 (step S13). As described above, the temperature sensor 30 transmits temperature data indicating the temperature of the CPU 20 to the CPU 20, and therefore the control device 50 acquires the temperature data from the CPU 20. Alternatively, the control device 50 may acquire the temperature data directly from the temperature sensor 30.

[0031] The control device 50 determines whether the temperature of the CPU 20 is equal to or higher than the upper limit based on the acquired temperature data (step S14). If the temperature of the CPU 20 is equal to or higher than the upper limit (step S14: YES), the control device 50 controls the rotation speed of the three fan devices 40 to a rotation speed that results in a second airflow rate that is greater than the first airflow rate (step S15). After step S15, the control device 50 returns to step S13.

[0032] On the other hand, if the temperature of the CPU 20 is below the upper limit (step S14: NO), the control device 50 determines whether the temperature of the CPU 20 is below the lower limit based on the acquired temperature data (step S16). If the temperature of the CPU 20 is below the lower limit (step S16: YES), the control device 50 controls the rotation speed of the three fan devices 40 to a rotation speed that results in a third airflow rate that is lower than the first airflow rate (step S17). After step S17, the control device 50 returns to step S13. On the other hand, if the temperature of the CPU 20 is higher than the lower limit (step S16: NO), the control device 50 returns to step S12.

[0033] As described above, the control device 50 acquires the temperature of the CPU 20 while controlling the rotation speeds of the three fan devices 40 based on the first combination. Then, when the temperature of the CPU 20 is equal to or higher than the upper limit, the control device 50 controls the rotation speeds of the three fan devices 40 to a rotation speed that results in a second airflow rate that is greater than the first airflow rate. On the other hand, when the temperature of the CPU 20 is equal to or lower than the lower limit, the control device 50 controls the rotation speeds of the three fan devices to a rotation speed that results in a third airflow rate that is less than the first airflow rate. By having the control device 50 perform the second process described above, the CPU 20 can be cooled with an appropriate airflow rate that corresponds to the temperature of the CPU 20.

[0034] The control device 50 may execute the following third process instead of the first and second processes. Fig. 7 is a flowchart showing the third process executed by the control device 50. As shown in Fig. 7, the control device 50 first acquires the error rate of the HDD 10 while changing the rotation speeds of the three fan devices 40 under the condition that the average airflow rate of the three fan devices 40 is a first airflow rate (step S21).

[0035] Step S21 included in the third process is the same as step S1 included in the first process, and therefore a detailed description thereof will be omitted. In step S21, the control device 50 performs the same process as step S1 to obtain the error rate of the HDD 10 corresponding to the combination of N rotation speeds included in the setting data.

[0036] Next, the control device 50 acquires the error rates of the HDDs 10 corresponding to the N combinations of rotation speeds included in the setting data, and then controls the rotation speeds of the three fan devices 40 based on a first combination of the rotation speeds of the three fan devices 40 that results in an error rate of the HDDs 10 that is equal to or lower than a threshold value (step S22). Step S22 included in the third process is the same as step S2 included in the first process, and therefore a detailed description thereof will be omitted.

[0037] Next, the control device 50 controls the rotation speeds of the three fan devices 40 based on a second combination, which is different from the first combination and which reduces the error rate of the HDD 10 to a threshold value or less, from among the combinations of the rotation speeds of the three fan devices 40 (step S23). After step S23, the control device 50 returns to step S22.

[0038] As described above, the control device 50 has a first mode in which the rotation speeds of the three fan devices 40 are controlled based on a first combination, and a second mode in which the rotation speeds of the three fan devices 40 are controlled based on a second combination, among the combinations of the rotation speeds of the three fan devices 40, that is different from the first combination and that results in an error rate below a threshold. The control device 50 alternates between the first mode and the second mode at predetermined time intervals. Referring to FIG. 5 , for example, the first combination is a combination of rotation speeds associated with setting number 5, and the second combination is a combination of rotation speeds associated with setting number 6. By having the control device 50 perform the third process described above, it is possible to suppress a decrease in cooling performance due to uneven airflow.

[0039] The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and the configurations described herein can be combined as appropriate within a range consistent with each other. For example, the above-described embodiment illustrates an example in which the control device 50 alternately switches between a first mode and a second mode at predetermined time intervals, but the present invention is not limited to this. The control device of the present invention may switch between a first mode, which controls the rotation speed of multiple fan devices based on a first combination, and a mode different from the first mode, under predetermined conditions. Furthermore, the above-described embodiment illustrates an example in which the processor of the fan device 40A is the control device 50 that controls multiple fan devices 40, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, a processor installed in the HDD 10 may be provided with the functionality of the control device 50 that controls multiple fan devices 40. Alternatively, the CPU 20, which is a processing device, may be provided with the functionality of the control device 50 that controls multiple fan devices 40.

[0040] The present technology may be configured as follows: (1) An information processing device including a hard disk drive, a processing device that accesses the hard disk drive, multiple fan devices that cool the processing device, and a control device that controls the multiple fan devices, wherein the control device acquires an error rate of the hard disk drive while changing the rotation speed of the multiple fan devices under a condition where an average airflow of the multiple fan devices is a first airflow rate, and controls the rotation speeds of the multiple fan devices based on a first combination of combinations of rotation speeds of the multiple fan devices that makes the error rate equal to or less than a threshold. (2) The information processing device described in (1), wherein the control device acquires temperatures of the processing device while controlling the rotation speeds of the multiple fan devices based on the first combination, and when the temperature is equal to or greater than an upper limit, controls the rotation speeds of the multiple fan devices to a rotation speed at which the average airflow is a second airflow rate greater than the first airflow rate. (3) The information processing device described in (2), wherein the control device, when the temperature is equal to or less than a lower limit, controls the rotation speeds of the multiple fan devices to a rotation speed at which the average airflow is a third airflow rate less than the first airflow rate. (4) The information processing device according to (1), wherein the control device switches between a first mode in which the rotation speeds of the plurality of fan devices are controlled based on the first combination and a mode different from the first mode, according to a predetermined condition. (5) The information processing device according to any one of (1) to (4), wherein the first combination is a combination of the rotation speeds of the plurality of fan devices that has the error rate equal to or less than a threshold and has the smallest total power consumption of the plurality of fan devices.

[0041] According to an aspect of the present invention, an information processing device is provided that can suppress the occurrence of resonance in a hard disk drive without revising the structure of the hard disk drive. Therefore, the present invention has industrial applicability.

[0042] REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 Server device 10 HDD 20 CPU 30 Temperature sensor 40, 40A, 40B, 40C Fan device 50 Control device 60 Communication bus 70 Motherboard

Claims

1. An information processing device comprising: a hard disk drive; a processing device that accesses the hard disk drive; a plurality of fan devices that cool the processing device; and a control device that controls the plurality of fan devices, wherein the control device acquires an error rate of the hard disk drive while changing the rotation speed of the plurality of fan devices under the condition that the average airflow of the plurality of fan devices is a first airflow, and controls the rotation speed of the plurality of fan devices based on a first combination of the rotation speeds of the plurality of fan devices that makes the error rate below a threshold.

2. The information processing device described in claim 1, wherein the control device acquires the temperature of the processing device while controlling the rotation speed of the multiple fan devices based on the first combination, and if the temperature is above an upper limit value, controls the rotation speed of the multiple fan devices to a rotation speed at which the average air volume becomes a second air volume that is greater than the first air volume.

3. The information processing device according to claim 2, wherein when the temperature is equal to or lower than a lower limit, the control device controls the rotation speed of the plurality of fan devices to a rotation speed at which the average air volume becomes a third air volume that is smaller than the first air volume.

4. The information processing device according to claim 1, wherein the control device switches between a first mode in which the rotation speeds of the plurality of fan devices are controlled based on the first combination and a mode different from the first mode according to predetermined conditions.

5. An information processing device described in any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the first combination is a combination of the rotation speeds of the plurality of fan devices in which the error rate is below a threshold and the total power consumption of the plurality of fan devices is the smallest.

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