Hardware Power Management Circuit for Bus Frequency Transition
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current power management systems in electronic devices face challenges in reducing system latency and power consumption, particularly in mobile devices and wireless technologies, due to high energy dissipation and system latency, which limits battery life and user experience.
Innovation Solution
The implementation of a hardware-based power management system that uses shadow registers and automatic shadow promotion to dynamically adjust bus frequency and voltage, allowing for rapid and efficient power transitions without stalling the system, thereby reducing latency and improving power efficiency.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of energy
If traditional power management systems are used to reduce power consumption, then energy dissipation is reduced, but system latency increases and battery life is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by pre-configuring shadow registers with parameter settings for future power states before transitions are needed. This allows the system to rapidly switch between power states without computation delays, reducing system latency while maintaining energy efficiency. The shadow registers are prepared in advance with all necessary configuration data, enabling immediate activation when power state changes are required.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent segments the power management system into distinct functional components: shadow registers for parameter storage, supervision circuits for monitoring transition conditions, and control logic for orchestrating state changes. This segmentation allows independent optimization of each component and enables parallel processing of multiple power management tasks, thereby reducing overall system latency while maintaining energy efficiency.
2Loss of energy
If frequent power transitions are implemented to optimize power consumption, then energy efficiency improves, but system latency and operational disruptions increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements self-service through automatic supervision circuits that continuously monitor system conditions and autonomously determine when power transitions should occur. These circuits evaluate pre-defined criteria and automatically initiate transitions without requiring software intervention or complex decision-making processes, thereby minimizing transition latency and enabling frequent power state changes to optimize power consumption.
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs preliminary configuration of shadow registers with all possible power state parameters before transitions are needed. This pre-preparation eliminates computation and configuration delays during actual transitions, allowing the system to frequently switch between power states with minimal latency overhead, thus optimizing power consumption without sacrificing operational continuity.
3Speed
If hardware-based power management with shadow registers is used, then transition speed improves and latency reduces, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses shadow registers as simplified copies of the actual power management control structures. These shadow registers contain replicated parameter data that can be quickly switched without affecting the main system state until transitions are complete. This copying approach enables fast transitions while keeping the hardware implementation relatively simple, as the shadow registers are basic storage elements rather than complex processing units.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent manages complexity by changing parameters in a controlled manner: shadow registers store parameter sets for different power states, and transitions involve swapping these parameter sets rather than reconfiguring complex circuitry. This parameter-based approach allows fast transitions while maintaining manageable device complexity, as the hardware structure remains constant and only the operational parameters change.
4Speed
If power transitions are implemented without supervision, then transition speed improves, but system reliability and stability deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The patent incorporates supervision circuits that provide continuous feedback on system conditions during power transitions. These circuits monitor critical parameters and can detect anomalies or failure conditions, providing feedback signals that allow the system to adjust or abort transitions as needed. This feedback mechanism maintains system reliability and stability while preserving the speed benefits of hardware-based transitions, as the supervision operates in parallel with the transition process.
Data Source
AI summary
An electronic circuit including a bus (3521), a peripheral (3510.i/3552.1) coupled to the bus (3521), the peripheral having a storing circuit (3620.i, 3625.i) for a succession-presetting and a parameter setting currently-effective for peripheral operation on the bus (3521); and a power management circuit (3570) operable in response to a power management transition request (GO_bit) to send a first signal (START_bit_i) to the peripheral, and to initiate a bus frequency transition, and to send a second signal (PER_ENABLE_i) to the peripheral after the bus frequency transition; and the peripheral is responsive to the first signal (START_bit_i) to stall peripheral operation on the bus (3521), the peripheral operable to automatically promote the succession pre-setting to currently-effective status for the peripheral after peripheral operations on the bus (3521) are stalled and responsive to the second signal (PER_ENABLE_i) to re-enable peripheral operation on the bus (3521). Other circuits, devices, systems, apparatus, and processes are disclosed.