# US 7,412,351 B2 · Correlating power signatures with automated equipment > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 7,412,351 B2 - Document ID: US7412351B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 11/686,044 - Filed: 2007-03-14 - Published: 2007-07-19 - Granted: 2008-08-12 - Earliest claimed: 2003-01-08 - Assignees: International Business Machines Corporation - Inventors: Douglas Wallace Todd; Diana Joyce Hellman; Michael Philip McIntosh; Jason Lee Peipelman - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US7412351B2 ## CPC - G11B 15/689: {Control of the cassette changing arrangement} - G06F 1/3215: Monitoring of peripheral devices - G06F 1/3221: of disk drive devices - G06F 1/325: {Power saving in peripheral device} - G06F 1/3268: {Power saving in hard disk drive} - G11B 15/026: {by using processor, e.g. microcomputer} - G11B 15/18: Driving; Starting; Stopping; Arrangements for control or regulation thereof {(G11B15/56 takes precedence)} - Y02D 10/00: Energy efficient computing, e.g. low power processors, power management or thermal management - G11B: INFORMATION STORAGE BASED ON RELATIVE MOVEMENT BETWEEN RECORD CARRIER AND TRANSDUCER (recording measured values in a way that does not require playback through a transducer G01D9/00; recording or playback apparatus using mechanically marked tape, e.g. punched paper tape, or using unit records, e.g. punched or magnetically marked cards G06K; transferring data from one type of record carrier to another G06K1/18; circuits for coupling output of reproducer to radio receiver H04B1/20; gramophone pick-ups or like acoustic electromechanical transducers or circuits therefor H04R) - G06F: ELECTRIC DIGITAL DATA PROCESSING (computer systems based on specific computational models G06N) - Y02D: CLIMATE CHANGE MITIGATION TECHNOLOGIES IN INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGIES [ICT], I.E. INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGIES AIMING AT THE REDUCTION OF THEIR OWN ENERGY USE ## Abstract A method for monitoring the activity of a tape drive system having one or more electro-mechanical components that receive electrical current from a power supply. The method includes sampling an actual current supplied to an electro-mechanical component of a tape drive system from a power supply during an activity; reading a theoretical current for said activity from a memory; calculating a statistical value for said actual current and said theoretical current; comparing said statistical value to at least one threshold value; and outputting information to at least one of a user, another system, and another process based on said comparison of said statistical value to said at least one threshold value. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A method for monitoring an activity of a tape drive system having one or more electro-mechanical components, said electro-mechanical components receiving electrical current from a power supply, the method comprising: sampling an actual current supplied to said electro-mechanical component of said tape drive system from said power supply during said activity; reading a theoretical current for said activity from a memory; calculating a statistical value for said actual current and said theoretical current; comparing said statistical value to at least one threshold value; and outputting information to at least one of a user, another system, and another process based on said comparison of said statistical value to said at least one threshold value. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, further comprising: comparing said statistical value to a first threshold value; and outputting a diagnostic message that said activity occurred correctly when said statistical value passes said first threshold value. ### Claim 3 (depends on 2) The method of claim 2, further comprising: comparing said statistical value to a second threshold value; and outputting a diagnostic message that said activity is degraded when said statistical value fails said first threshold value but passes said second threshold value. ### Claim 4 (depends on 3) The method of claim 3, further comprising: shutting down said electro-mechanical component when said statistical value fails said second threshold value; and outputting a diagnostic message that said activity failed when said statistical value fails said second threshold value. ### Claim 5 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein said statistical value is at least one of a mean, a variance, and a correlation. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein the theoretical current varies with time based on an amount of tape on a reel. ### Claim 7 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein the electromechanical component is a motor of the tape drive, wherein the actual current is sampled at the motor of the tape drive. ### Claim 8 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein the electromechanical component is a motor of the tape drive, wherein the actual current is sampled at a power supply of the tape drive. ### Claim 9 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein the electromechanical component is a tape threader of the tape drive. ### Claim 10 A method for monitoring activity of a tape-based storage system having a plurality of tape drives and a robotic picker, the method comprising: sampling an actual current supplied from a power supply to at least one of a robotic picker and electro-mechanical components of a plurality of the tape drives during an activity; determining a theoretical current for said activity; calculating a statistical value for said actual current and said theoretical current; comparing said statistical value to at least one threshold value; and outputting information to at least one of a user, another system, and another process based on said comparison of said statistical value to said at least one threshold value. ### Claim 11 (depends on 10) The method of claim 10, further comprising sampling an actual current supplied to said robotic picker and said electro-mechanical components of the plurality of tape drives, wherein the theoretical current includes theoretical currents used by the components of the plurality of tape drives and the picker, wherein the statistical value is calculated for said actual currents and said theoretical current. ### Claim 12 (depends on 10) The method of claim 10, wherein the theoretical current varies with time based on operations being performed by the tape drives. ### Claim 13 (depends on 10) The method of claim 10, wherein the theoretical current is retrieved from memory. ### Claim 14 (depends on 10) The method of claim 10, wherein the theoretical current is calculated in real time.