Method and apparatus for periodic low power data exchange

• US 6,631,469 B1
• Filed: 07/17/2000
• Issued: 10/07/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 07/17/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Intel Corporation
• Original Assignee: Intel Corporation
• Inventors: Silvester, Kelan C.
• Primary Examiner(s): BUTLER, DENNIS
• Application Number:
  US09/617,364
• Time in Patent Office: 1,177 Days
• Field of Search: 713/1, 713/2, 713/300, 713/310, 713/320, 713/323, 713/502
• US Class Current: 713/2
• 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 1/3287 by switching off individual functional units in the computer system
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/329 by task scheduling
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/3293 by switching to a less power-consuming processor, e.g. sub-CPU
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/4418 Suspend and resume; Hibernate and awake
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 10/00 Energy efficient computing, e.g. low power processors, power management or thermal management

Abstract

A computer system user programs a periodic interval into a computer system and subsequently places the computer system into a sleep mode. A wakeup alarm is triggered in the computer system according to the periodic interval, and, in response, the computer system automatically exits the sleep mode and enters a wake mode. The computer system then automatically exchanges data, such as email, with a host and returns to the sleep mode. The operating system that may be booted on, the computer system in response to the wakeup alarm may be a smaller, lower-power operating system than the operating system the user uses to program the periodic interval.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

enabling a computer system to enter a sleep mode;

enabling a wakeup alarm to be triggered in the computer system according to a periodic interval;

enabling, via a first processor, a first operating system to automatically be booted onto the computer system in response to the wakeup alarm, the first operating system being a lower power operating system than the second operating system;

enabling the computer system to automatically exchange data with a host in response to the wakeup alarm;

enabling the computer system to automatically re-enter the sleep mode after exchanging the data;

enabling, via a second processor, the second operating system to be booted.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising enabling the computer system to automatically connect to the host in response to the wakeup alarm.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising enabling a user of the computer system to set the periodic interval.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising enabling a user of the computer system to set the periodic interval using the second operating system running on the computer system.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the first operating system is a non graphical user interface (GUI) operating system and the second operating system is a GUI operating system.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein automatically exchanging data with the host includes automatically downloading email from the host and storing it in a non volatile memory location within the computer system.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein automatically exchanging data with the host includes automatically uploading to the host email stored in a non-volatile memory location within the computer system.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein enabling the computer system to automatically exchange data with the host includes enabling the computer to automatically connect to the host according to a hierarchy of connection options.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising enabling a user of the computer system to set the hierarchy of connection options.

10. The method of claim 8, further comprising enabling a user of the computer system to set the hierarchy of connection options using the second operating system running on the computer system.

11. A computer system programmed to implement the method of claim 1.

12. A computer system programmed to implement the method of claim 4.

13. A computer system comprising:

a full operating system;

a mini operating system;

a communication device;

a clock to trigger a wakeup alarm;

a first processor to automatically boot up the mini operating system, exchange data with a host via the communication device, and place the computer system into a sleep mode in response to the wakeup alarm; and

a second processor to run the full operating system.

14. The computer system of claim 13, further comprising volatile and non-volatile memory, the volatile memory to be used as the primary memory of the computer system when the full operating system is running on the system, and the non-volatile memory to be used as the primary memory of the system when the mini operating system is running on the system.

15. The computer system of claim 13, wherein the full operating system is used to allow a user to preset a time at which the wakeup alarm is triggered.

16. The computer system of claim 13, wherein the full operating system is used to allow a user to determine the communication device, of a plurality of communication devices, via which the first processor automatically exchanges data with the host.

17. A computer-readable medium including a plurality of instructions readable therefrom, the instructions, when executed by a computer system, cause the computer system to perform operations comprising:

triggering a wakeup alarm;

booting a first operating system, via a first processor, onto the computer system in response to the wakeup alarm;

exchanging data with a host in response to the wakeup alarm;

automatically re-entering a sleep mode after exchanging the data; and

booting a second operating system, via a second processor, the first operating system being a lower power operating system than the second operating system.

18. The medium of claim 17, wherein the operations further comprise enabling a user of the computer system to set the periodic interval using the second operating system running on the computer system, the first operating system being a lower power operating system than the second operating system.

19. The medium of claim 17, wherein the first operating system is a non-graphical user interface (GUI) operating system and the second operating system is a GUI operating system.

20. The medium of claim 17, wherein exchanging data with the host includes automatically downloading email from the host and storing it in a non-volatile memory location within the computer system.

21. The medium of claim 17, wherein the operations further comprise enabling a user of the computer system to set a hierarchy of connection options for the exchanging of the data with the host wherein the enabling uses the second operating system running on the computer system, the first operating system taking less than one third as much time to boot up as the second operating system.