ELECTRONIC APPARATUS AND POWER SAVING CONTROL METHOD

• US 20140215249A1
• Filed: 08/29/2013
• Published: 07/31/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 01/31/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Toshiba Client Solutions CO., Ltd. (Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Inventors: Kawakami, Hosui
• Granted Patent: US 9,164,571 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 713/323
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/3215 Monitoring of peripheral devices
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/3228 Monitoring task completion, e.g. by use of idle timers, stop commands or wait commands
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/3256 Power saving in optical drive
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 10/00 Energy efficient computing, e.g. low power processors, power management or thermal management

Abstract

According to one embodiment, an electronic apparatus includes a first device, a first controller, and a second controller. The first controller transits the apparatus between a working state and a hibernation or stand-by state. The second controller shifts the first device from an ordinary operation mode to a power saving mode when a first condition is established while the apparatus is in the working state. The second controller shifts the first device to the power saving mode without waiting that the first condition is satisfied when the apparatus returns to the working state in which the first device is set to the ordinary operation mode after the apparatus shifted to the hibernation state or to the stand-by state in a state that the first device is in the power saving mode.

Claims

1. An electronic apparatus comprising:

a first device;

a first controller configured to transit the apparatus between a working state and a hibernation or stand-by state; and

a second controller configured to shift the first device from an ordinary operation mode to a power saving mode when a first condition is established while the apparatus is in the working state, wherein the second controller is configured to shift the first device to the power saving mode without waiting that the first condition is satisfied when the apparatus returns to the working state in which the first device is set to the ordinary operation mode after the apparatus shifted to the hibernation state or to the stand-by state in a state that the first device is in the power saving mode.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein

the first condition comprises a condition that an access request to the first device is not issued for a predetermined period, and

the second controller is configured to shift the first device to the power saving mode before the predetermined period passes after the apparatus returned to the working state.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein

the second controller is configured to store information showing whether the first device is in the power saving mode, and

the second controller is configured to determine, based on the stored information, whether a state of the first device just before the apparatus shifts to the hibernation or stand-by state is the power saving mode when the apparatus returned from the hibernation or stand-by state to the working state.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the first device is an optical disc drive capable of driving an optical disc.

5. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein the first condition comprises a condition that an access request to the optical disc drive is not issued for a predetermined period.

6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the second controller is configured to return the first device to the ordinary operation mode when a predetermined event for returning the first device to the ordinary operation mode is generated while the first device is in the power saving mode.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the second controller is configured to display that the first device is in the power saving mode while the first device is in the power saving mode.

8. A power saving control method comprising:

shifting a first device in an electronic apparatus from an ordinary operation mode to a power saving mode when a first condition is established while the electronic apparatus is in a working state; and

shifting the first device to the power saving mode without waiting that the first condition is satisfied when the apparatus returns to the working state in which the first device is set to the ordinary operation mode after the apparatus shifted to a hibernation or stand-by state in a state that the first device is in the power saving mode.

9. A computer-readable, non-transitory storage medium having stored thereon a computer program which is executable by a computer, the computer program controlling the computer to execute functions of:

shifting a first device in an electronic apparatus from an ordinary operation mode to a power saving mode when a first condition is established while the electronic apparatus is in a working state; and

shifting the first device to the power saving mode without waiting that the first condition is satisfied when the apparatus returns to the working state in which the first device is set to the ordinary operation mode after the apparatus shifted to a hibernation or stand-by state in a state that the first device is in the power saving mode.