Intelligent selection of operating state upon change of power state

• US 9,116,698 B2
• Filed: 06/07/2011
• Issued: 08/25/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 06/07/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Google Inc. (Alphabet Inc.)
• Inventors: Nanda, Sameer, James, David
• Primary Examiner(s): Yanchus, III, Paul
• Assistant Examiner(s): Neveln, Joshua
• Application Number:
  US13/155,171
• Publication Number:
  US 20150198998A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,540 Days
• Field of Search: 713/323
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/3203 Power management, i.e. event-based initiation of a power-saving mode
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/3234 Power saving characterised by the action undertaken
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/4418 Suspend and resume; Hibernate and awake

Abstract

A method includes operating a computing device in a first power mode and a first operating state. The first operating state includes first operating state information stored in a volatile memory. The method includes receiving a first request to change the power mode from the first power mode to a second power mode. In response to receiving the first request, a sub-portion of the first operating state information that includes less than all of the first operating state information is stored in a non-volatile memory. The method includes receiving a second request to change the power mode from the second power mode to the first power mode. In response to receiving the second request, the computing device is restored to the first power mode, and is placed in a second operating state, by re-creating a portion of the first operating state information.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

operating a computing device in a first power mode and in a first operating state, wherein the first operating state comprises first operating state information stored in a volatile memory of the computing device;

receiving a first request to change the power mode of the computing device from the first power mode to a second power mode;

in response to receiving the first request, storing in a non-volatile memory of the computing device a sub-portion of the first operating state information that includes preserved state information as indicated by at least one application being executed by the computing device, the preserved state information including non-recreate information and re-create information, the re-create information indicating information, separate from the non-recreate information, used to re-create a portion of the first operating state information;

receiving a second request to change the power mode of the computing device from the second power mode to the first power mode; and

in response to receiving the second request;

restoring the computing device to the first power mode, and

placing the computing device in a second operating state based upon the stored sub-portion of the first operating state information and unpreserved state information associated with the at least one application.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein placing the computing device in the second operating state comprises:

creating operating state information that was not included in the sub-portion of the first operating state information, wherein the creation of the operating state information is based on the stored sub-portion of the first operating state information; and

loading at least some of the sub-portion of the first operating state information and at least some of the created operating state information into the volatile memory.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

storing an operating state of a network interface associated with the computing device within the non-volatile memory, such that the operating state of the network interface may be restored once the computing device returns to the first power state.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein selecting the sub-portion of the first operating state information includes selecting operating state information that includes a filename of a document open during the first operating state, and an unsaved data entered by a user and associated with the document.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the first power mode includes a Working power mode, and wherein the second power mode includes a Hibernate power mode.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein selecting the a sub-portion of the first operating state information includes receiving, from a program executed by the computing device, an indication of which sub-portion of the operating state information associated with the program is to be included in the selected sub-portion.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the selected sub-portion includes operating state information selected from the group consisting of:

a resource locator of a document that was accessed while in the first operating state,

an indicator of which position of the document was most recently accessed in the first operating state, and

data associated with the document and entered by a user.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein placing the computing device in the second operating state includes:

loading a document indicated by the stored selected sub-portion of operating state information;

retrieving the values of one or more text fields associated with the document, wherein the retrieved values are stored in the saved sub-portion of the first operating state information; and

entering the retrieved values into the one or more text fields of the document.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein placing the computing device in the second operating state includes:

loading a document indicated by the saved sub-portion of first operating state information;

restoring a Document Object Model (DOM) state of the loaded document to the first operating state based upon operating state information included by the saved sub-portion of first operating state information.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein placing the computing device in the second operating state includes:

determining that a program was being executed by the computing device while in the first operating state;

determining that operating state information associated with the program is not included by the saved sub-portion of first operating state information; and

executing the program, but not restoring the operating state of the program to the first operating state.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein returning the computing device to a first power mode includes:

placing the computing device in a default operating state; and

wherein placing the computing device in a second operating state includes;

modifying the default operating state of the computing device based upon the saved sub-portion of the first operating state information.

12. An apparatus comprising:

a volatile memory to store a first operating state information associated with a first operating state;

a non-volatile memory; and

a processor to;

operate the apparatus in a first power mode and with the first operating state,

change the power mode of the apparatus from the first power mode to a second power mode,

execute at least one application;

select a sub-portion of the first operating state information stored within the volatile memory, wherein

the sub-portion includes preserved state information as indicated by the at least one application, and

the preserved state information including non-recreate information and re-create information, the re-create information indicating information, separate from the non-recreate information, used to re-create a portion of the first operating state information, and

store the selected sub-portion of the first operating state information in the non-volatile memory.

13. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the processor is further configured to:

return the apparatus to the first power mode; and

place the apparatus in a second operating state based on the saved sub-portion of the first operating state information and unpreserved state information associated with the at least one application.

14. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein the processor when placing the apparatus in the second operating state:

loads a document indicated by the stored selected sub-portion of the first operating state information;

retrieves the values of one or more text fields associated with the document, wherein the retrieved values are stored in the saved sub-portion of the first operating state information; and

enter the retrieved values into the one or more text fields of the document.

15. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the non-volatile memory further stores an operating state of a network interface, such that the operating state of the network interface may be restored once the apparatus returns to the first power state.

16. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the processor selects operating state information associated with one or more non-re-creatable values of one or more documents accessed by the apparatus.

17. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the processor is configured to receive, from a program executed by the processor, an indication of which sub-portion of the operating state information associated with the program are to be included in the selected sub-portion.

18. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the selected sub-portion includes operating state information selected from the group consisting of:

a resource locator of a document that was displayed in the first operating state,

a position of the document displayed in the first operating state, and

data associated with the document and entered by a user.

19. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the processor is configured to discard operating state information that exceeds a threshold number of bytes.

20. A non-transitory computer-readable medium including executable code that causes an apparatus to:

operate the apparatus in a first power mode and in a first operating state, wherein the first operating state comprises first operating state information stored in a volatile memory of the apparatus;

receive a first request to change the power mode of the apparatus from the first power mode to a second power mode;

in response to receiving the first request, store in a non-volatile memory of the apparatus a sub-portion of the first operating state information that includes preserved state information as indicated by at least one application being executed by the apparatus, the preserved state information including non-recreate information and re-create information, the re-create information indicating information, separate from the non-recreate information, used to re-create a portion of the first operating state information;

receive a second request to change the power mode of the apparatus from the second power mode to a first power mode; and

in response to receiving the second request;

restore the apparatus to the first power mode operating state, and

place the apparatus in a second operating state based upon the stored sub-portion of the first operating state information and unpreserved state information associated with the at least one application.