Method and apparatus for controlling cooling fan

• US 6,735,499 B2
• Filed: 03/05/2002
• Issued: 05/11/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 03/06/2001
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Lenovo PC International Limited (Lenovo Group Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Kida, Minoru, Ohki, Yasuyuki
• Primary Examiner(s): Picard, Leo
• Assistant Examiner(s): RODRIGUEZ, PAUL L
• Application Number:
  US10/090,664
• Publication Number:
  US 20020140389A1
• Time in Patent Office: 798 Days
• Field of Search: 700/9, 700/28, 700/32-34, 700/275, 700/276, 700/278, 700/280, 700/299, 700/300, 702/99, 702/132, 165/244, 165/247, 361/687, 361/688, 361/695
• US Class Current: 700/299
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/206 comprising thermal management

Abstract

According to the present invention, it is possible to reduce the fan noise taking the human sense into consideration. Specifically, it is possible to ergonomically mitigate the discomfort due to the short-term variation of the working rate of the CPU by increasing the rotational frequency gradually and by decreasing the rotational frequency with the temperature fall taking the human sense of noise into account. The present invention reduces noise produced by a cooling fan by controlling the fan rotation to a minimum rotational frequency in accordance with the specification and performance of the heat source. Additionally, an embodiment of the present invention controls a cooling fan to a minimum allowable rotational frequency within a rated temperature range of the object to be cooled, thereby controlling the internal temperature of a computer system in such a way to minimize noise generation.

Claims

1. A method for controlling a cooling fan in a computer system, wherein a plurality of temperature ranges are defined as not exceeding a predetermined allowable operating temperature of an object to be cooled in the computer system, and an allowable minimum rotational frequency of the fan is preset for each of said temperature ranges as an initial value, said method comprising the steps of:

(a) detecting a current temperature of said object to be cooled at a predetermined time interval and storing its value in a memory;

(b) determining variation in temperature by the current temperature detected in said step (a) with comparing a previously stored temperature value; and

(c) setting the rotational frequency of said cooling fan to an initial value corresponding to the temperature range of the current temperature, or to one of predetermined values within the current temperature range, a change range of which is smaller than a preset range of said initial values, in accordance with details of the variation determined in step (b) and said current temperature range,

wherein setting the rotational frequency to one of said predetermined values in said setting step, further includes a plurality of set levels so that the change range is smaller in lower temperature ranges and is larger in higher temperature ranges.

2. The method for controlling a cooling fan according to claim 1, wherein a PWM scheme is employed in said setting step.

3. A control apparatus for a cooling fan in a computer system, comprising:

a cooling fan to cool an object to be cooled in said computer system;

a temperature sensor to detect a current temperature of said object to be cooled;

a memory to store temperature value detected by said temperature sensor; and

a control module to compare the current temperature value detected by said temperature sensor with a temperature value previously stored in said memory and to control rotational frequency of the cooling fan in accordance with the comparison result, wherein said control module includes;

(a) an initial value setting module for storing a plurality of temperature ranges defined as not exceeding a predetermined allowable operating temperature of the object to be cooled, and initial values each of which defines an allowable minimum rotational frequency of the fan for each of said temperature ranges; and

(b) a rotational frequency determination module for determining variation in temperature of said object to be cooled from the comparison results, and for setting said rotational frequency of the fan to a corresponding initial value defined in said setting module, or to one of predetermined values within the temperature range of the current temperature, a change range of which is smaller than a preset range of said initial values, in accordance with details of the variation and the current temperature range, wherein setting to one of predetermined values in said rotational frequency determination module further includes a plurality of set levels so that the change range is smaller in lower temperature ranges and is larger in higher temperature ranges.

4. The control apparatus for a cooling fan according to claim 3, wherein a PWM scheme is employed in said rotational frequency determination module.

5. The control apparatus for a cooling fan according to claim 3, wherein the processing in said control module is performed as one of the functions of said object to be cooled.