USB Protocol-Aware Modules for xHCI Host Controller

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Solution Overview

Problem

Current USB 3.0 host controllers based on the xHCI architecture require significant software overhead for translating low-level protocols into higher-level protocols, leading to reduced throughput and increased power usage, especially in virtual machine environments, due to the need for data encapsulation and decoding.

Innovation Solution

Incorporating protocol-aware modules within the xHCI host controller that emulate a register-based interface, allowing direct fetching and delivery of higher-level protocol data, and processing data in hardware or firmware to reduce the need for software marshaling and demarshaling.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Use of energy by moving object

If software-based protocol translation and data encapsulation/decoding is used in xHCI host controllers, then USB 3.0 can provide superior power management and high-speed data transfer capability, but CPU overhead increases and throughput decreases due to marshaling and demarshaling operations

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvepower managementVSAvoidthroughput

Core Design Contradiction:

Use of energy by moving objectVSProductivity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent introduces protocol-aware modules as intermediary components between the xHCI host controller and USB devices. These modules handle protocol translation, data encapsulation, and decoding operations in hardware or firmware, acting as a mediator that offloads CPU-intensive marshaling and demarshaling operations from the system software, thereby reducing CPU overhead while maintaining USB 3.0's power management capabilities

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

Solution Approach 2:

The patent replaces software-based protocol processing with hardware or firmware-based protocol-aware modules. This substitution eliminates the need for software marshaling and demarshaling operations, significantly reducing CPU cycles required for data transfer while preserving the high-speed capability and power management features of USB 3.0

Inventive Principle:

Principle #28Mechanics substitution (Replace mechanical system)

2Productivity

If protocol-aware modules are added to the xHCI host controller, then data transfer efficiency increases and CPU usage decreases, but device complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvedata transfer efficiencyVSAvoidhost controller complexity

Core Design Contradiction:

ProductivityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent segments the host controller functionality by introducing separate protocol-aware modules for different USB device classes (storage, network, audio/video, etc.). Each module handles specific protocol requirements independently, allowing the system to enable only the necessary modules for connected devices, thereby managing complexity through functional segmentation while improving data transfer efficiency for supported device types

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Data Source

PatentUS9053246B2USB class protocol modules

Publication Date: 2015.06.09 MCCI CORP

AI summary

A computer system includes USB class protocol-aware modules for USB devices as part of a xHCI host controller. The protocol-aware modules serve as accelerators by implementing critical portions of the device class protocols, which includes fetching higher level protocol data directly from client buffers for transmission and delivering decoded data to client buffers on receipt; and emulating a register-based interface for the benefit of system software on the host computer.