Timer Interrupt Synchronizer for CPU Power Management
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Solution Overview
Problem
Software timer interrupts frequently cause CPU to transition out of low-power modes, preventing it from entering deep sleep states due to unsynchronized and frequent requests from multiple software components.
Innovation Solution
A timer interrupt synchronizer functions as an intermediary to synchronize timer interrupts across software components, ensuring they occur at the same frequency and offset relative to a baseline time, thereby minimizing CPU state transitions.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If multiple software components use independent timer interrupts to perform periodic tasks, then each component can execute its scheduled actions independently, but the CPU experiences frequent C-state transitions and cannot enter deep sleep modes
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges multiple independent timer interrupt requests into a single synchronized interrupt event. The timer interrupt synchronizer consolidates timing requests from multiple software components and coordinates them to occur simultaneously, allowing the CPU to enter low-power C-states more frequently while still servicing all components' periodic tasks through the synchronized interrupt mechanism.
Solution Approach 2:
The timer interrupt synchronizer acts as an intermediary layer between software components and the CPU timer interrupt architecture. It receives independent timer requests from multiple components, calculates appropriate offsets to synchronize them, and manages the coordination without requiring changes to the components themselves, thus preserving their independence while enabling energy-efficient CPU operation.
2Loss of energy
If timer interrupts are synchronized to occur at the same time, then the CPU can enter low-power modes more frequently, but the coordination complexity between multiple software components increases
Solution Approach 1:
The timer interrupt synchronizer serves as a centralized intermediary that absorbs the coordination complexity, shielding software components from the intricacies of synchronization. It implements the offset calculation and timing coordination logic internally, presenting a simple interface to components while managing the complex synchronization requirements behind the scenes.
Solution Approach 2:
The synchronizer dynamically adjusts the timing parameters (offsets) of individual timer interrupts based on their frequencies and relative priorities. By changing these temporal parameters, it aligns multiple interrupt streams to occur simultaneously or in optimized sequences, enabling CPU power savings without requiring structural changes to the components.
3Loss of energy
If the CPU transitions to deep sleep states frequently, then power efficiency is improved, but timer interrupts must be carefully managed to avoid excessive wake-ups
Solution Approach 1:
The timer interrupt synchronizer mediates between the CPU's power management needs and the software components' timing requirements. It manages the timer interrupt schedule, calculating offsets and coordinating wake-up times to minimize CPU wake-ups while ensuring all components receive their required timer services, thus simplifying the overall management burden.
Solution Approach 2:
The synchronizer performs preliminary calculations of timer offsets and synchronization schedules before executing the actual timer interrupts. By pre-computing the optimal timing arrangement for multiple interrupts, it prepares a coordinated schedule that enables the CPU to enter low-power modes confidently, reducing the operational complexity of managing frequent state transitions.
Data Source
AI summary
C-state transitions due to software timer interrupts can be minimized. A timer interrupt synchronizer can be deployed on a computing device to function as an intermediary between software components that rely on timer interrupts and a timer interrupt architecture of the computing device. When the software components request timer interrupts, the timer interrupt synchronizer can ensure that timer interrupts having the same frequency can be synchronized to occur at the same time. As a result of this synchronization, a CPU can experience fewer C-state transitions due to the timer interrupts.