US 7,689,842 B2Granted

Always ready computing device

AssigneeMicrosoft Corporation

InventorsJason Michael Anderson, William Jefferson Westerinen, Tony Dwayne Pierce, Allen Marshall, Peter Viscaraola

Life of this patent

Estimating the term…

Loading patent…

Abstract

Systems and methods for producing a simulated off condition in a computing device using a set of software drivers that interact with a system service and the device BIOS. The computing device includes system components such as a power supply, processors and fans that are put into a low power state upon receiving a signal to power off the device. This provides the appearance to users that the computing device is off. The system components, however, remain enabled to run applications when the computing device is in the simulated off condition. If necessary, the device can be returned to a fully on condition to process applications that require the system components to be brought out of the low power state to execute.

Claims10

Dependent claims

A method of providing a simulated off condition in a computing device via a set of software extensions, said method comprising:

providing a device driver for each component to be managed;
providing a policy driver to coordinate information from device drivers to determine a power state of said computing device;
receiving a signal to change the power state of said computing device;
instructing system components to change their respective power states in accordance with said signal;
if said signal is representative of a request to enter a low power state, reducing power consumption of said system components such that said computing device enters a simulated off state, wherein said computing device remains at a fully on and said system components remain enabled to run applications when the computing device is in the simulated off condition;
if said signal is representative to a request to enter a fully on power state, returning said system components to said fully on power state;
locking human interface devices by discarding inputs;
and
detecting a predefined input sequence, said predefined sequence being said signal.

6 more elements

A method of producing a simulated off condition in a computing device when the computing device is in an ACPI S0 state, the method comprising:

providing a device driver for each component to be managed;
providing a policy driver to coordinate information from device drivers to determine a power state of said computing device;
receiving a signal to change the power state of said computing device;
instructing system components to change their respective power states in accordance with said signal;
if said signal is representative of a request to enter a low power state, reducing power consumption of said system components using ACPI methods such that said computing device enters a simulated off state, wherein said computing device at a fully on and said system components remain enabled to run applications when the computing device is in the simulated off condition;
if said signal is representative to a request to enter a fully on power state, returning said system components to said fully on power state using ACPI methods;
locking human interface devices by discarding inputs;
and
detecting a predefined input sequence, said predefined sequence being said signal.

6 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 12/017,155Filed 21 Jan 2008 · continuation
Priority: 17 Feb 2004
Published: US 2008/0178022 A124 Jul 2008
Granted: 30 Mar 2010
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification6 codes

G06F 1/3234
Power management, i.e. event-based initiation of a power-saving mode: power saving characterised by the action undertaken
G06F 1/3287
Power saving characterised by the action undertaken: by switching off individual functional units in the computer system
Y02D 10/00
Energy efficient computing
Y02D 30/50
Reducing energy consumption in communication networks: in wire-line communication networks, e.g. low power modes or reduced link rate

Family

Application10/780,039Parent of this continuation-in-part · filed 17 Feb 2004
Application10/837,728Parent of this continuation · filed 3 May 2004
US 2008/0178022 A1Pre-grant publication · published 24 Jul 2008
US 7,321,974 B2Parent of this continuation
Application10/837,728Parent of this continuation-in-part
US 2005/0182612 A1Published application
US 2005/0182978 A1Published application
US 7,689,842 B2This patent

From the US filing history. Foreign family members aren’t listed.