US6665802B1 — Power management and control for a microcontroller

Claim 1

Independent Claim 148 words

A microcontroller management system, comprising: a bus; a power management subsystem configured to send a global power management command to one or more microcontroller subsystems through the bus, the global power management command to control power modes of the one or more microcontroller subsystems; one or more bus interfaces corresponding to the one or more microcontroller subsystems, each bus interface coupling a corresponding microcontroller subsystem to the bus, each bus interface to receive the global power management command, each bus interface including a register for configuring a response of a corresponding microcontroller subsystems to the global power management commands, the response of a corresponding microcontroller subsystem being independent of responses of other ones of the one or more microcontroller subsystems to the global power management command; and an application to configure each register to optimize the response of a corresponding microcontroller subsystem to the global power management command.

Claim 2

Dependent Claim 148 words

A microcontroller management system, comprising: a bus; a power management subsystem configured to send a global power management command to one or more microcontroller subsystems through the bus, the global power management command to control power modes of the one or more microcontroller subsystems; one or more bus interfaces corresponding to the one or more microcontroller subsystems, each bus interface coupling a corresponding microcontroller subsystem to the bus, each bus interface to receive the global power management command, each bus interface including a register for configuring a response of a corresponding microcontroller subsystems to the global power management commands, the response of a corresponding microcontroller subsystem being independent of responses of other ones of the one or more microcontroller subsystems to the global power management command; and an application to configure each register to optimize the response of a corresponding microcontroller subsystem to the global power management command.

Claim 3

Dependent Claim 34 words

The microcontroller management system of claim 1 , wherein the power management subsystem includes a state machine for generating the power management command to control power modes of the one or more microcontroller subsystems.

Claim 4

Dependent Claim 19 words

The microcontroller management system of claim 1 , wherein the application is an application program or an operating system.

Claim 5

Dependent Claim 39 words

The microcontroller management system of claim 2 , wherein the power management command generated by the state machine is a SLEEP command, the SLEEP command being an assertion to a microcontroller subsystem to switch to a sleep mode configuration.

Claim 6

Dependent Claim 92 words

A microcontroller, comprising: a CPU core; a bus; a plurality of peripheral devices, each peripheral device including a bus interface and configured to communicate with the CPU core through the bus; and a management subsystem configured to generate and provide power management controls to each of the plurality of peripheral devices through the bus and a corresponding bus interface, the power management controls to control power modes of each of the peripheral devices, wherein the power modes for each of the plurality of peripheral devices is configurable through each corresponding bus interfaces.

Claim 7

Dependent Claim 92 words

A microcontroller, comprising: a CPU core; a bus; a plurality of peripheral devices, each peripheral device including a bus interface and configured to communicate with the CPU core through the bus; and a management subsystem configured to generate and provide power management controls to each of the plurality of peripheral devices through the bus and a corresponding bus interface, the power management controls to control power modes of each of the peripheral devices, wherein the power modes for each of the plurality of peripheral devices is configurable through each corresponding bus interfaces.

Claim 8

Dependent Claim 39 words

The microcontroller of claim 5 , wherein the management subsystem is a modular management subsystem, the modular management subsystem to support addition of additional subsystems without a need for a new integrated circuit for the microcontroller to be designed.

Claim 9

Dependent Claim 35 words

The microcontroller of claim 5 , wherein each bus interfaces includes a power management configuration registers, each power management configuration register to allow a corresponding peripheral device to respond independently to the power management controls.

Claim 10

Dependent Claim 27 words

The microcontroller of claim 7 , wherein the management subsystem includes a state machine for controlling the power mode of each of the plurality of peripheral devices.

Claim 11

Dependent Claim 25 words

The microcontroller of claim 8 , wherein the power mode comprises a SLEEP mode, a RUN mode, an IDLE mode, and a DEEP SLEEP mode.

Claim 12

Dependent Claim 28 words

The microcontroller of claim 9 , wherein each of the plurality of peripheral devices is fully operational as enabled by a corresponding configuration register during the RUN mode.

Claim 13

Dependent Claim 27 words

The microcontroller of claim 10 , wherein the CPU core is stopped but local memory is accessible to one or more peripherals devices during the IDLE mode.

Claim 14

Dependent Claim 41 words

The microcontroller of claim 11 , wherein the CPU core is stopped and may be unpowered, the local memory is accessible to enabled ones of the plurality of peripheral devices, and a clock PLL may be disabled during the SLEEP mode.

Claim 15

Dependent Claim 31 words

The microcontroller of claim 12 , wherein the CPU core is stopped and may be unpowered, the local memory is unaccessible, and the PLL is disabled during the DEEP SLEEP mode.

Claim 16

Dependent Claim 28 words

The microcontroller of claim 8 , wherein the state machine includes a configurable register to enable the state machine to be configured for device and application specific applications.

Claim 17

Independent Claim 131 words

A method of providing power management functions in a microcontroller having one or more subsystems and a CPU core, the method comprising: generating a global power management command in a power management subsystem, the global power management command to control power modes of each of the one or more subsystems; sending the global power management command to each of the one or more subsystems through a bus; individually configuring a response of each of the one or more subsystems to the global power management command through a corresponding registers in each of the one or more subsystems, and configuring each of the one or more subsystems to support one of RUN, IDLE, SLEEP, and DEEP SLEEP power modes based on the individual response of each of the one or more subsystems.

Claim 18

Independent Claim 131 words

A method of providing power management functions in a microcontroller having one or more subsystems and a CPU core, the method comprising: generating a global power management command in a power management subsystem, the global power management command to control power modes of each of the one or more subsystems; sending the global power management command to each of the one or more subsystems through a bus; individually configuring a response of each of the one or more subsystems to the global power management command through a corresponding registers in each of the one or more subsystems, and configuring each of the one or more subsystems to support one of RUN, IDLE, SLEEP, and DEEP SLEEP power modes based on the individual response of each of the one or more subsystems.

Claim 19

Dependent Claim 33 words

The method of claim 15 , wherein the response of each of the one or more subsystems to the global power management command is individually configured by an application program or operating system.

Claim 20

Dependent Claim 39 words

The method according to of claim 15 , wherein generating a global power management command comprises generating a global power management command through a power management state machine for controlling the power mode of the one or more subsystems.

Claim 21

Dependent Claim 47 words

The method according to of claim 17 , wherein configuring each of the one or more subsystems to support one of RUN, IDLE, SLEEP, and DEEP SLEEP power modes comprises configuring each of the one or more subsystems independently of others of the one or more subsystems.

Claim 22

Independent Claim 161 words

A System-on-Chip, comprising: a modular power management system, the modular power management system including: a bus; a power management subsystem configured to send a global power management command to one or more microcontroller subsystems through the bus, the global power management command to control power modes of the one or more microcontroller subsystems; and one or more bus interfaces corresponding the one or more microcontroller subsystems, each bus interface coupling a corresponding microcontroller subsystem to the bus, each bus interface to receive the global power management command, each bus interface including a register for configuring a response of a corresponding microcontroller subsystem to the global power management command, the response of a corresponding microcontroller subsystem being independent of responses of other ones of the one or more microcontroller subsystems to the global power management command; wherein the modular power management system can support addition of additional subsystems without a need for a new integrated circuit for the System-on-Chip to be designed.

Claim 23

Independent Claim 161 words

A System-on-Chip, comprising: a modular power management system, the modular power management system including: a bus; a power management subsystem configured to send a global power management command to one or more microcontroller subsystems through the bus, the global power management command to control power modes of the one or more microcontroller subsystems; and one or more bus interfaces corresponding the one or more microcontroller subsystems, each bus interface coupling a corresponding microcontroller subsystem to the bus, each bus interface to receive the global power management command, each bus interface including a register for configuring a response of a corresponding microcontroller subsystem to the global power management command, the response of a corresponding microcontroller subsystem being independent of responses of other ones of the one or more microcontroller subsystems to the global power management command; wherein the modular power management system can support addition of additional subsystems without a need for a new integrated circuit for the System-on-Chip to be designed.

Claim 24

Dependent Claim 28 words

The System-on-Chip of claim 19 , wherein an application program configures each register to optimize the response of a corresponding microcontroller subsystem to the global power management command.

Claim 25

Dependent Claim 28 words

The System-on-Chip of claim 19 , wherein an operating system configures each register to optimize the response of a corresponding microcontroller subsystem to the global power management command.

Claim 26

Dependent Claim 129 words

A power management subsystem for use in a microcontroller or System-on-Chip having one or more subsystems, the power management subsystem comprising: a configuration unit configured to send a global power management command to a CPU and the one or more subsystems through a bus, the global power management command to control power modes of the CPU and the one or more subsystems, each of the one or more subsystems to respond independently to the global power management command; and a register adapted to configure the configuration unit to support a specific application. 23 .The power management subsystem of claim 22 , wherein the power management subsystem includes a state machine for generating the power management command to control power modes of the CPU and the one or more subsystems.

Claim 27

Dependent Claim 27 words

The power management subsystem of claim 23 , wherein the power modes include a RUN mode, an IDLE mode, a SLEEP mode, and a DEEP SLEEP mode.

Annuity Stage	Window Opens	Payment Deadline	Surcharge Period Until	Estimated Fee	Status
3.5 Years (Year 4)	2006-12-15	2007-06-16	2007-12-16	$2000.00	Window Closed / Lapsed
7.5 Years (Year 8)	2010-12-15	2011-06-16	2011-12-16	$3760.00	Window Closed / Lapsed
11.5 Years (Year 12)	2014-12-15	2015-06-16	2015-12-16	$7700.00	Window Closed / Lapsed

Power management and control for a microcontroller

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