Power buffering for rotating media storage devices
AssigneeMicrosoft Corporation
InventorsWilliam Westerinen, Stephen Drake
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A method and system for buffering power for rotating media devices. A power management circuit includes a power augmentation circuit and a power storage device. The power augmentation circuit is arranged to sense when the storage device motor is accelerating and to supply additional power to the storage device motor in response thereto. The power storage device is arranged to store the additional power. The power storage device may be trickle charged from the system power supply and may also be charged as power is recaptured from the storage device motor as it decelerates.
Claims20
A power management circuit for buffering power associated with a storage device motor, comprising:
- a power augmentation circuit arranged to sense when the storage device motor is accelerating and to supply additional power to the storage device motor in response thereto;
- and
- a power storage device arranged to store the additional power.
A computer-readable media having computer-executable instructions, comprising:
- sensing when a motor of a storage device of a computer is being activated;
- and
- determining whether enough charge exists in a power storage device to guarantee that a system power supply need supply no more than a selected amount of power to the storage device.
A method for powering a storage device motor, comprising:
- charging a power storage device when doing so does not cause a power supply to supply more than a predetermined amount of power;
- detecting when the storage device motor is activated;
- and
- supplying additional power from the power storage device in response thereto.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.