Dynamic Power Allocation in Multiport USB-C PD Systems
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing USB-C/PD power sharing techniques lack adaptability and fairness, often leaving power unallocated or failing to redistribute unused power among ports, and are limited in scalability and communication resilience.
Innovation Solution
A firmware-based method that dynamically allocates power among USB-C/PD ports by sensing device power requirements, using a master controller to manage power distribution independently of connection sequence, and incorporating mechanisms for fault detection and communication failure handling to ensure fair and intelligent power redistribution.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If existing USB-C/PD power sharing techniques are used, then power can be distributed among ports, but power allocation is not adaptive and leaves power unallocated
Solution Approach 1:
The master controller continuously monitors power consumption at each port and uses this feedback to dynamically adjust power allocation. The controller receives power consumption data from slave controllers and reallocates power budgets based on actual usage, ensuring adaptive power distribution that eliminates unallocated power while preventing overallocation.
Solution Approach 2:
The power allocation system transitions from static to dynamic operation, where power budgets are continuously adjusted based on real-time port connection status and power consumption. The master controller can increase or decrease power allocation to individual ports as devices are connected or disconnected, making the system adaptable to changing conditions.
2Productivity
If existing power sharing techniques are used, then power distribution is implemented, but unused power cannot be redistributed among ports
Solution Approach 1:
The system recovers unused power from ports with lower consumption needs and reallocates it to ports with higher demands. When a device consumes less power than its allocated budget, the surplus power is not wasted but is instead made available for redistribution to other active ports, maximizing overall power utilization efficiency.
Solution Approach 2:
The master controller monitors power consumption in real-time and identifies unused power capacity at each port. Based on this feedback, the controller dynamically redistributes power from underutilized ports to ports with higher demand, ensuring that total system power is fully utilized without exceeding any individual port's requirements.
3Reliability
If existing power sharing techniques are used, then power management is implemented, but the system lacks communication resilience against failures
Solution Approach 1:
The master controller acts as an intermediary that manages all power delivery decisions and coordinates communication between ports. This centralized mediation simplifies fault detection and handling, as the master controller can identify communication failures and implement recovery strategies without requiring complex distributed consensus mechanisms among multiple controllers.
Solution Approach 2:
The system implements preemptive fault detection and recovery mechanisms that prepare for potential communication failures before they occur. The master controller continuously monitors port status and has pre-planned recovery procedures ready to execute immediately upon detecting a failure, minimizing the impact of communication breakdowns on power delivery.
4Adaptability or versatility
If existing power sharing techniques are used, then power distribution is implemented, but scalability to more than two ports is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The system segments power management into modular components: a master controller that handles high-level allocation decisions and slave controllers that manage individual port operations. This segmentation allows the system to scale to any number of ports by simply adding more slave controllers, as each operates independently under the coordination of the master controller without requiring complex inter-port communication.
Solution Approach 2:
The master controller implements a universal power management architecture that can handle any number of ports through a standardized interface and allocation algorithm. The same core logic and communication protocol used for two-port systems naturally extends to multi-port configurations, making the system highly scalable without requiring fundamental redesign for different port counts.
Data Source
AI summary
Technology to dynamically share system power among charging ports of a multiport power delivery (PD) system is described. In one embodiment, a multiport PD system includes a master controller associated with a master port, and one or more slave controllers associated with one or more slave ports. The master controller determines a port connection status of a set of multiple ports. The port connection status indicates that multiple devices are connected. The master controller determines a power requirement of each of the devices. The master controller dynamically allocates a system power between each of the ports, independent of a connection sequence of the devices.