Data access device for working with a computer of power off status

• US 7,509,444 B2
• Filed: 09/14/2005
• Issued: 03/24/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 03/29/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Industrial Technology Research Institute
• Original Assignee: Industrial Technology Research Institute
• Inventors: Chiu, Chih-Yang, Huang, Ching-Chin, Hsiao, Li-Hao, Huang, Yang-Chih, Chang, Tsahn-Yih, Yang, Teng-Chieh
• Primary Examiner(s): Tsai; Henry W. H.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Tseng; Cheng-Yuan
• Application Number:
  US11/225,030
• Publication Number:
  US 20060224801A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,287 Days
• Field of Search: 710/70, 710/14, 710/36, 710/74, 710/62, 710/315, 707/1, 711/163, 361/685
• US Class Current: 710/51
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/3203 Power management, i.e. event-based initiation of a power-saving mode
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/3287 by switching off individual functional units in the computer system
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 10/00 Energy efficient computing, e.g. low power processors, power management or thermal management

Abstract

This invention discloses a data access device for using in computer of power off status, which comprises a power multiplexer, a DC to DC converter, a serial bus signal to storage interface signal controller, a data storage interface signal multiplexer, and a controller. Therefore, if controller detects an external device wants to access data storage device of computer at power off, it will control power multiplexer to retrieve the standby power of the power device and process power transformation to provide a required power for driving the storage device, and by using serial bus signal to storage interface signal controller, external device can access the data from storage device at power off.

Claims

1. A data access device for working with a computer, the computer having a power supply device, a motherboard, and a data storage device, the data access device being fixedly implemented between the power supply device and the motherboard and the data storage device in the computer and comprising:

a power multiplexer, connected between the power supply device and the data storage device for establishing power channels according to a control signal to supply power to the data storage device;

a DC to DC converter, connected to the power multiplexer for converting standby power provided by the power supply device and applying the converted power to the data storage device via the power multiplexer;

a serial bus signal to storage interface signal controller, for converting a storage interface signal of the data storage device into a serial bus signal, or converting the serial bus signal inputted from an external device into the storage interface signal of the data storage device;

a data storage interface signal multiplexer, for establishing a data transmitting channel according to the control signal, so as to select the motherboard or external device to access the data storage device; and

a path controller electrically connected to the power supply device, the power multiplexer, the serial bus signal to storage interface signal controller, and the data storage interface signal multiplexer, the path controller is located within the data access device;

wherein, the path controller is based on a power good signal of the power supply device to determine whether the computer is at power on, and when the computer is at power off and the path controller detects that an external serial bus signal is inputted to the serial bus signal to storage interface signal controller, the path controller outputs the control signal to control the power multiplexer for providing the established power channels to supply power to the data storage device and to control the data storage interface signal multiplexer to switch the data transmitting channel.

2. The data access device as claimed in claim 1, further being embedded into the motherboard of the computer.

3. The data access device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the external serial bus signal is inputted by an external device.

4. The data access device as claimed in claim 3, wherein the external device is a digital device.

5. The data access device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the data storage device includes a hard disk drive.

6. The data access device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the data storage device includes a CD-ROM drive.

7. The data access device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the data storage device includes a flash memory.

8. The data access device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the serial bus signal to storage interface signal controller includes a serial bus.

9. The data access device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the storage interface signal of the data storage device includes an IDE interface signal.

10. The data access device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the storage interface signal of the data storage device includes a SCSI interface signal.

11. The data access device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the storage interface signal of the data storage device includes a Serial IDE interface signal.

12. The data access device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the storage interface signal of the data storage device includes a CompactFlash interface signal.