Smart batteryless backup device and method therefor

• US 7,908,504 B2
• Filed: 03/23/2007
• Issued: 03/15/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 03/23/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Alexander Feldman, Boris Feldman, Michael Feldman
• Original Assignee: Alexander Feldman, Boris Feldman, Michael Feldman
• Inventors: Feldman, Michael, Feldman, Alexander, Feldman, Boris
• Primary Examiner(s): Lee; Thomas
• Assistant Examiner(s): Abbaszadeh; Jaweed A
• Application Number:
  US11/726,751
• Publication Number:
  US 20080235471A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,453 Days
• Field of Search: 713/300, 713/340, 714/15, 714/22, 711/100, 711/162
• US Class Current: 713/340
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/30 Means for acting in the event of power-supply failure or interruption, e.g. power-supply fluctuations for resetting only G06F1/24
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/1441 Resetting or repowering
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/1456 Hardware arrangements for backup
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/1458 Management of the backup or restore process

Abstract

A proposed smart batteryless backup device is designed for the reception of data transmitted by controlled equipment, backing up said data in the case of the controlled equipment power failure or in accordance with several program requirements, and also for the subsequent restoration. Proposed device improves trust level of the backup if device is powered by interface signal lines and doesn'"'"'t have batteries and electrical characteristics of the backup device fluctuating due to humidity and temperature influences as well as during device lifetime.

Claims

1. A smart batteryless emergency backup device, comprising:

a control block (CB),

a volatile random access memory block (VMB),

a data array of non-volatile memory cells for data storing (DNVM),

a parameter array of non-volatile memory cells for parameter storing (PNVM),

a non-volatile memory block (NVMB), comprising at least one (DNVM) array of non-volatile memory cells,

at least one external interface port for connection between external equipment, including external computerized apparatus, and said backup device by an external interface bus,

an interface conversion block,

a power conversion block,

an electricity accumulating block, comprising at least one capacitor, one terminal of which is grounded,

an element of unidirectional conductivity,

means for power failure detecting having one or more outputs,

means for backup controlling having one or more outputs;

said backup device, wherein;

said interface and power conversion blocks are connected to one or more external interface ports,

said control block includes one or more control inputs, a power supply input, an internal interface port that couples said interface conversion block and said control block one to another, two memory interface ports that couple said control block to said volatile memory block (VMB) and said non-volatile memory block (NVMB),

said power conversion block outputs are coupled via said element of unidirectional conductivity to a first ungrounded terminal of said accumulating block and to a power supply input of the control block,

one or more inputs of said means for power failure event detecting are coupled to corresponding outputs of said power conversion block,

one or more inputs of said means for backup controlling are coupled to the ungrounded terminal of said accumulating block;

said backup device, wherein further;

each of said means has at least one output, said outputs are coupled to corresponding inputs of said control block, said parameter array includes at least a size of information that has been written to said DNVM, said control block and said memories have minimum operating voltages that are designated as VminCB, VminVMB, VminPNVM and VminDNVM correspondingly.

2. The backup device according to claim 1, wherein:

a capacitance of said accumulating block, a power consumption and minimum operating voltage of all the blocks of said backup device, including CB, VMB and NVMB, that is powered by said accumulating block, and a voltage bias Δ

V are chosen to satisfy the following conditions;

(1) a time interval between the time when the power conversion block output voltage drops below said first predetermined threshold Vdown, where Vdown is chosen as an indicator of a lower boundary below which normal operation of said external computerized apparatus and said external bus(es) is disrupted,

and the time when the voltage across said accumulating block drops below the second predetermined threshold Vs=VminDNVM+Δ

V, Δ

V≧

0 is sufficient to copy said backup information from the VMB into the DNVM, and

(2) a time interval between the time when the voltage across said accumulating block drops below the second predetermined threshold and the time when said voltage drops below said fourth threshold VminPNVM is sufficient to write said parameter to the PNVM, and both said time intervals are determined with regards to possible variations in electrical characteristics.

3. The backup device according to claim 2, wherein said data array of non-volatile memory cells and said parameter array of non-volatile memory cells are implemented in the form that is chosen from the group including the following embodiments:

(a) said data array of non-volatile memory cells is implemented as separate non-volatile block NVMB, and said parameter array of non-volatile memory cells is integrated together with said control block, and said voltage values are satisfied to the following relations;

VminCB≦

VminVMB≦

Vs=VminDNVM+Δ

V;

VminCB≦

VminPNVM<

Vs=VminDNVM+Δ

V and

(b) said data array of non-volatile memory cells and said parameter array of non-volatile memory cells are implemented together as non-volatile block NVMB, and said voltage values are satisfied to the following relations;

VminCB≦

VminVMB≦

Vs=VminDNVM+Δ

V, and

VminCB≦

VminPNVM=VminDNVM and

said time intervals and said relationships are determined with regards to possible variations in electrical characteristics.

4. The backup device according to claim 2, wherein said means for power failure event detecting comprise at least one first voltage detector which detects condition when output voltage of said power conversion block falls below said first predetermined threshold Vdown;

said means for backup controlling comprises at least one second voltage detector which detects condition when voltage across said accumulating block falls below said second predetermined threshold Vs.

5. The backup device according to claim 1, wherein said accumulating block comprises a double layer capacitor.

6. The backup device according to claim 1, wherein said non-volatile array of memory cells are EEPROM cells.

7. The backup device according to claim 1, wherein one or more said external interface ports are chosen from the interface ports corresponding to the external interfaces that don'"'"'t have dedicated power supply lines.

8. The backup device according to claim 1, wherein said control block comprises means for dividing information streams, that are generated by said external computerized apparatus coupled to said backup device via one or more said external interface buses, into two substreams:

(a) commands for controlling said backup device, and

(b) data that passes through said control block.

9. The backup device according to claim 1, wherein said element of unidirectional conductivity is chosen from the group including:

uncontrollable element of unidirectional conductivity implemented as a diode, and

controllable element of unidirectional conductivity with an additional controlling input,

that is coupled to an output of said control block or to the ungrounded terminals of said accumulating block.

10. The backup device according to claim 1, comprising an embedded energy-independent indicator of status of the backup device like piezoelectronic buzzer that is connected to said control block.

11. A method for backing up using the smart batteryless emergency backup device having a control block (CB) coupled to a volatile memory block (VMB), a data array of non-volatile memory cells (DNVM), and a parameter array of non-volatile memory cells (PNVM), having minimum operating voltages the same polarity and their absolute values are designated as VminCB, VminVMB, VminDNVM and VminPNVM correspondingly, a power conversion block and an interface conversion block coupled via an external interface port to an external computerized apparatus (ECA), an accumulating block, including at least one capacitor, and said power conversion block is connected via an element of unidirectional conductivity to said accumulating block that is coupled to said power input of said control block and via said control block to power inputs of NVMB, comprising at least said DNVM, and said VMB;

said method, comprising four parallel processes;

(A) monitoring a voltage drop across an output of the power conversion block for detecting at least the time of a power failure event when said voltage drops below a first predetermined threshold Vdown that is chosen as an indicator of a lower boundary below which normal operation of said external computerized apparatus and said external bus(es) is disrupted,

(B) recharging the electricity accumulating block when the voltage across power conversion block output that is connected to said element of unidirectional conductivity ((that)) is greater than the sum of Vd and the voltage across said accumulating block, where Vd is the voltage drop across said element of unidirectional conductivity, and discharging of the electricity accumulating block the rest of the time,

(C) monitoring a voltage drop across said accumulating block for detecting at least the time when said voltage drops below a second predetermined threshold Vs,

(D) backup processing; and

said method, wherein said backup processing comprises the following procedures;

(1) power on and waiting the following condition when the voltage drop across an output of the power conversion block will be greater than the first predetermined threshold Vdown and the voltage drop across said accumulating block will be greater than the second predetermined threshold Vs,

(2) receiving information stream from said external computerized apparatus (ECA) via said external interface port,

(3) storing said information in said volatile memory block (VMB) according to a cyclic access mode,

(4) copying at least a part of the contents of said VMB to said data array of non-volatile memory cells (DNVM) in reverse sequence when the latest stored data are copied first together with simultaneous calculating of the size (N) of this written information,

(5) storing the calculated size (N) as the part of the parameter array into said parameter array of non-volatile memory cells (PNVM),

(6) waiting the following condition when the voltage drop across an output of the power conversion block will be greater than the first predetermined threshold Vdown and the voltage drop across said accumulating block will be greater than the second predetermined threshold Vs,

(7) reads said parameter array from said PNVM, and this parameter array includes at least the size of information that has already been written into said DNVM, and compares said size (N) value with zero,

(8) copying information from said DNVM to said VMB;

said method comprising further;

terminating said procedure (4) by the event that occurs first from the following events;

dropping said voltage across said accumulating block below said predetermined threshold Vs, or

completing write of all contents of VMB to DNVM.

12. The method according to claim 11, wherein said Vs is equal to VminDNVM+Δ

V,

said VminCB, VminVMB, VminDNVM and VminPNVM, the first predetermined threshold Vdown, an additional voltage bias Δ

V, a power consumption of all the blocks of said backup device, that are powered by said accumulating block, and capacitance of said accumulating block are chosen so that;

(a) a first time interval between the time when the power conversion block output voltage drops below said first predetermined threshold Vdown and the time when the voltage across said accumulating block drops below the second predetermined threshold Vs is sufficient to copy at least a part of the contents of said VMB to said DNVM, and this first interval corresponds to said procedure (4),

(aa) a second time interval between the time when the voltage across said accumulating block drops below the second predetermined threshold Vs and the time when said voltage drops below said value VminPNVM is sufficient to write said parameter array to said PNVM, and this second interval corresponds to said procedure (5);

said method, wherein said minimal operating voltages are ordered so that they satisfy the following relationships;

VminVMB≦

Vs, VminCB≦

VminPNVM<

Vs, VminPNVM≦

VminDNVM+Δ

V, and

said time intervals and said relationships are determined with regards to possible electrical characteristics variations.

13. The method according to claim 11, wherein the condition for switching:

(b) from said procedure (1) to said procedure (7) and

(bb) from said procedure (6) to said procedure (2), is

such condition when the voltage drop across an output of the power conversion block will be greater than the first predetermined threshold Vdown and the voltage drop across said accumulating block will be greater than the second predetermined threshold Vs.

14. The method according to claim 11, wherein the following conditions for switching from one procedure to another are:

(i) from (4) to (5)—

after terminating said procedure (4),

(ii) from (5) to (6)—

after finishing (5),

(iii) from (7) to (2)—

automatically after finishing (7) if N=0,

(iv) from (7) to (8)—

automatically after finishing (7) if N>

0,

(v) from (8) to (2)—

automatically after finishing (8).

15. The method according to claim 11, wherein dropping the voltage across said accumulating block below the first predetermined threshold Vdown interrupts the current procedure and starts the procedure (4).

16. The method according to claim 11, wherein said method comprises between procedure (2) and (3) includes additional procedure (9), said procedure (9) includes:

dividing said information stream into two parts;

(b) commands for controlling said backup device and (bb) data that passes through the control block,

decoding said commands in case that information stream includes command;

in case there is no command in said information stream, said method switches from said procedure (9) to said procedure (3);

in case that said information stream includes command, said method executes said command and switches after from said procedure (9) to said procedure (2).

17. The method according to claim 16, wherein a collection of supported commands includes the following groups:

(c) operation commands that are executed once,

(cc) setting commands that define said backup device operation.

18. The method according to claim 17, wherein said group of operation commands comprises the following procedures:

(d) blocking writing received information from said external computerized apparatus to said VMB until a dedicated command is received,

(dd) cleaning said VMB and blocking cycled overwrite to the VMB until receiving a dedicated command,

(ddd) reading data from said VMB to the ECA.

19. The method according to claim 17, wherein said group of setting commands comprises the following procedure:

e) blocking the next operation of copying any data to said data array of non-volatile memory cells (DNVM) and to said parameter array of non-volatile memory cells (PNVM).