Wireless temperature monitoring for an electronics system

• US 7,336,153 B2
• Filed: 06/30/2005
• Issued: 02/26/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 06/30/2005
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Round Rock Research LLC
• Original Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. (HP Inc.)
• Inventors: Malone, Christopher Gregory, Larson, Thane Michael
• Primary Examiner(s): Hofsass; Jeffery
• Assistant Examiner(s): LAI, ANNE VIET NGA
• Application Number:
  US11/170,875
• Publication Number:
  US 20070001850A1
• Time in Patent Office: 971 Days
• Field of Search: 340/572.1, 340/572.4, 340/10.1, 340/10.51, 340/584, 340/653, 455/558, 702/183, 702/186
• US Class Current: 340/10.1
• CPC Class Codes: G01K 1/024 for remote indication

Abstract

A method of monitoring an electronics system comprises obtaining temperature information via at least one component of the electronics system, and communicating the temperature information from the at least one component to a manager of the electronics system via a wireless communication pathway independent of the components of electronics system.

Claims

1. A computer comprising:

a computer frame;

a RFID transceiver disposed on the frame;

at least one computer component disposed on the frame, the at least one computer component comprising at least one of a central processing unit, a memory unit, and a circuit board;

a temperature sensor disposed on the at least one computer component;

a RFID transponder removably secured, as a label, relative to the at least one computer component, the RFID transponder being independent of circuitry of the at least one computer component and the RFID transponder comprising a memory configured to store a temperature sensed via the temperature sensor and to store an origin identifier of the at least one computer component; and

a manager configured to obtain, via the origin identifier of the at least one computer component, a temperature performance specification of the at least one component, wherein the manager is also configured to affect a target temperature of the at least one computer component of the computer based on the sensed temperature and on the temperature performance specification of the at least one computer component, respectively,

wherein the RFID transceiver and the RFID transponder are configured for wireless communication with each other, without communication between the RFID transponder and the circuitry of the at least one computer component, regarding the sensed temperature and the origin identifier of the at least one computer component.

2. The computer of claim 1 wherein the circuit board comprises a peripheral component interface card and the RFID transponder is disposed on at least one of a memory and a controller on the peripheral component interface card.

3. The computer of claim 1 wherein the RFID transponder comprises a sensor for detecting the temperature parameter of the at least one component as at least one of a surface temperature of the at least one component and an air temperature adjacent the at least one component within the electronics system.

4. The computer of claim 1 and further comprising:

a temperature monitor configured to monitor the temperature parameter of the at least one component of the electronics system wherein the temperature monitor comprises at least one of;

a component type module;

a conditions module;

a specifications module;

a comparator module; and

an activator module.

5. The computer of claim 4 wherein the conditions module comprises at least one of:

a surface temperature parameter; and

an air temperature parameter.

6. The computer of claim 4 wherein the specifications module comprises at least one of:

an origin identifier parameter;

a database of information regarding the at least one component and the electronics system;

a protocol parameter; and

a configuration parameter.

7. The computer of claim 1, and further comprising:

an external computer system in communication with the electronics system and configured to monitor the electronics system including monitoring the temperature parameter via the RFID transponder of the electronics system.

8. The computer of claim 1 wherein the electronics system comprises a computer system, and the at least one component comprises a computer system component.

9. A method of monitoring a computer, the method comprising:

providing a plurality of computer components of a computer;

removably securing a temperature sensor and a RFID transponder onto each respective computer component;

sensing temperature information via the sensor of each respective computer component and storing the sensed temperature information in a memory of the RFID transponder of each respective computer component; and

communicating the temperature information from the RFID transponder to a RFID transceiver adjacent a position of the manager of the computer via a wireless communication pathway independent of communication with each respective computer component of the computer;

evaluating a temperature distribution, via the stored temperature information for each respective computer component, of the respective computer components of the computer relative to a thermal design parameter of the computer, wherein the thermal design parameter of the computer includes a temperature performance specification of each respective computer component; and

modifying a thermal design of the computer, via replacing one of the respective computer components, based on the evaluated temperature distribution of the respective components of the computer.

10. The method of claim 9 wherein sensing the temperature information comprises sensing at least one of a surface temperature of the respective computer component and an air temperature within the computer.

11. The method of claim 9 wherein communicating the temperature information comprises:

identifying, via the manager, the temperature performance specification of each respective computer component via an origin identifier of each respective computer component; and

controlling operation of the computer, including each respective computer component, via the manager to affect a temperature of the computer based on the identified temperature performance specification and the sensed temperature information.

12. The method of claim 11 and further comprising:

repeating sensing the temperature information and communicating the temperature information.

13. A server comprising:

a plurality of server components arranged in a predetermined configuration on a chassis as a server;

a RFID transceiver disposed on the chassis;

an array of RFID transponders in wireless communication with the RFID transceiver with at least one RFID transponder of the array mounted on each respective server component of the plurality of server components, wherein each RFID transponder comprises a memory and a temperature sensor, the memory configured to store a temperature measured by the temperature sensor and to store an origin identifier of each respective server component; and

a server manager in communication with the RFID transceiver and including a temperature monitor configured to monitor a temperature of each respective server component of the server system, via wireless communication between the RFID transceiver and the at least one RFID transponder of the respective server components, without communication between the at least one RFID transponder and the respective server component on which the at least one RFID transponder is mounted,

wherein the server manager is configured to obtain, via the origin identifier of the respective server component, a temperature parameter of the respective server component, and wherein the server manager is also configured to affect a target temperature of the respective server component based on the sensed temperature and the temperature parameter of the each respective server component.

14. The server of claim 13 wherein at least one of the respective server components comprise at least one of a central processing unit, a memory unit, and a circuit board.

15. The server of claim 13 wherein the at least one parameter comprises:

a conditions module configured to provide information about a current condition of the at least one server component, the information including at least one of a surface temperature parameter, an air temperature parameter, and a location parameter.

16. The server of claim 13 wherein the temperature monitor comprises:

a specifications module configured to provide information about a specification of the at least one server component and of the server system, the specifications module including at least one of;

a database of information about the at least one server component and the server system;

a protocol parameter; and

a configuration parameter.