COMPUTER SYSTEM AND CONTROL METHOD THEREOF CAPABLE OF CHANGING PERFORMANCE MODE USING DEDICATED BUTTON

• US 20140082543A1
• Filed: 11/21/2013
• Published: 03/20/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 09/11/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: KIM, Kyoung-youl, CHO, Keon-young, PARK, Min-sun
• Granted Patent: US 10,101,875 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/771
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/3203 Power management, i.e. event-based initiation of a power-saving mode
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/4818 Priority circuits therefor
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/4831 with variable priority
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/485 Task life-cycle, e.g. stopping, restarting, resuming execution G06F9/4881 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/4893 taking into account power or heat criteria power management in computers in general G06F1/3203; thermal management in computers in general G06F1/206
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 10/00 Energy efficient computing, e.g. low power processors, power management or thermal management

Abstract

An electronic apparatus comprising is provided. The electronic apparatus includes a keyboard to receive a user input to switch from a normal performance mode to a high performance mode, a processor to reassign a higher priority to a program, which has been active with a priority in the normal performance mode, such that the program is executed with the higher priority in the high performance mode that otherwise would have been executed with the priority previously assigned, and a display screen to display a mode indication visibly indicating at least one of the normal performance mode or the high performance mode.

Claims

1. An electronic apparatus comprising:

a keyboard to receive a user input to switch from a normal performance mode to a high performance mode;

a processor to reassign a higher priority to a program, which has been active with a priority in the normal performance mode, such that the program is executed with the higher priority in the high performance mode that otherwise would have been executed with the priority previously assigned; and

a display screen to display a mode indication visibly indicating at least one of the normal performance mode or the high performance mode,

wherein a user is able to select the normal performance mode or the high performance mode with one or more keystroke input through the keyboard without calling for a task manager dialog box, which is provided from an Operating System (OS) of the electronic apparatus, on the display screen, the task manager dialog box being used together with a selection window having one or more selectable options for the user to switch from the normal performance mode to the high performance mode, the selection window being provided from the OS of the electronic apparatus.

2. The electronic apparatus according to claim 1, wherein, if the mode indication displayed on the display screen shows that the selected performance mode is the normal performance mode and a predetermined keystroke input is received via the keyboard within a predetermined period of time, a mode indication corresponding to the high performance mode is displayed on the display screen and the high performance mode is selected to operate the processor at a processor operating speed corresponding to the high performance mode.

3. The electronic apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the selected performance mode is associated with an operation of an Optical Disk Drive (ODD).

4. The electronic apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a controller to control the increases or decreases a priority order for processes being performed by the processor according to the selected performance mode.

5. The electronic apparatus according to claim 4, wherein:

if the selected performance mode is the normal performance mode, the controller controls the processor to perform the processes according to a normal priority order in which threads of the processes are performed in a normal order,

if the selected performance mode is another performance mode, the controller controls the processor to perform the processes according to another priority order in which threads of the processes are performed in an order other than the normal order.

6. A method comprising:

receiving user input through a user input unit to change from a normal performance mode to a high performance mode such that a currently active program among a plurality of programs is executed at a priority order higher than the normal mode, wherein the user input unit for selecting a plurality of performance modes comprises a keyboard;

displaying a graphic image corresponding to the selected performance mode on a display in response to a determined keystroke input received via the keyboard; and

executing a plurality of computer programs in the selected performance mode.

7. The method according to claim 6, wherein, if the graphic image displayed on the display shows that the selected performance mode is the normal performance mode and the predetermined keystroke input is received via the keyboard within a predetermined period of time, and

wherein the displaying of the graphic image comprises displaying a graphic image corresponding to the high performance mode on the display and the high performance mode is selected to operate the processor at a processor operating speed corresponding to the high performance mode.

8. The method according to claim 6, wherein the selected performance mode is associated with an operation of an Optical Disk Drive (ODD).

9. The method according to claim 6, wherein the executing of the plurality of computer programs further comprises increasing or decreasing a priority order for processes being performed.

10. The method according to claim 6, wherein the executing of the plurality of computer programs comprises running the process by executing an Operating System (OS) providing an Application Programming Interface (API) that allows changing a priority order of the programs, and executing an application program to change the priority order of one of the programs using the API.

11. The method according to claim 6, wherein the displaying of the graphic image comprises displaying the graphic image showing a current performance mode of the plurality of performance modes if the button is pushed and displaying the graphic image showing the plurality of performance modes being changed one by one whenever the button is pushed again.

12. The method according to claim 6, further comprising adjusting at least one level between over-clocking of a CPU and throttling of a CPU according to the selected performance mode.

13. The method according to claim 6, wherein:

the receiving of the user input comprises receiving a command including a set of system control information capable of indicating a plurality of system performance parameters in addition to the performance mode, and

the executing of the plurality of computer programs comprises changing system elements according to the set of system control information.

14. The method according to claim 13, wherein the set of system control information indicates a setting for a central processing unit, a system environmental control, and a drive speed.