POWER MANAGEMENT IN A DATA PROCESSING APPARATUS

• US 20110099394A1
• Filed: 10/22/2009
• Published: 04/28/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 10/22/2009
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Brown, Joe N.
• Application Number:
  US12/604,158
• Publication Number:
  US 20110099394A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 713/310
• 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

Abstract

In a data processing apparatus, a power mode is selected based on data regarding an operating status of a power utility powering the apparatus. The data is transmitted via power supply lines and includes information on timing/duration of present or anticipated brown-out and/or black-out conditions of the power utility. Power management functions can be performed, for example, using a BIOS of the apparatus or a power management application program.

Claims

1. A data processing apparatus, comprising:

a processor;

data storage coupled to the processor;

a decoder of data transmitted via power supply lines of the apparatus; and

a controller coupled to the decoder that, responsive to the data, changes power modes of the data processing apparatus.

2. The data processing apparatus of claim 1, wherein the data indicates a power disruption at a power utility powering the data processing apparatus.

3. The data processing apparatus of claim 1, and further comprising a power supply of the data processing apparatus, wherein the decoder is a portion of the power supply.

4. The data processing apparatus of claim 1, wherein the controller comprises a hardware device.

5. The data processing apparatus of claim 1, wherein the controller is a portion of a Basic Input/Output System (BIOS) of the data processing apparatus.

6. The data processing apparatus of claim 1, wherein the controller comprises an application program executable by the data processing apparatus.

7. The data processing apparatus of claim 1, wherein the data processing apparatus comprises a computer.

8. A method of selecting a power mode of a data processing apparatus, the method comprising:

receiving, via power supply lines connecting the data processing apparatus to a power utility, data indicating an operating status of the power utility; and

in response to receiving the data, the data processing apparatus selecting a particular power mode among a plurality of power modes of the data processing apparatus based on the operating status of the power utility; and

invoking entry into the particular power mode.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the data indicates a power disruption at the power utility powering the data processing apparatus.

10. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

decoding the received data; and

transmitting the decoded data via a system bus of the data processing apparatus.

11. The method of claim 8, wherein said selecting step includes a Basic Input/Output System (BIOS) of the data processing apparatus selecting the particular power mode.

12. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

transmitting the data to at least one data processing system communicatively coupled to the data processing apparatus.

13. A program product, comprising:

computer readable storage medium; and

program code stored within the computer readable storage medium, wherein the program code when processed by a data processing apparatus causes the data processing apparatus to perform a process including;

receiving, via power supply lines connecting the data processing apparatus to a power utility, data indicating an operating status of the power utility; and

in response to receiving the data, the data processing apparatus selecting a particular power mode among a plurality of power modes of the data processing apparatus based on the operating status of the power utility; and

invoking entry into the particular power mode.

14. The program product of claim 13, wherein the data indicates a power disruption at the power utility powering the data processing apparatus.

15. The program product of claim 13, wherein the process further includes:

decoding the received data; and

transmitting the decoded data via a system bus of the data processing apparatus.

16. The program product of claim 13, wherein said selecting includes a Basic Input/Output System (BIOS) of the data processing apparatus selecting the particular power mode.

17. The program product of claim 13, wherein the process further includes:

transmitting the data to at least one data processing system communicatively coupled to the data processing apparatus.