TW201820137A - Device having restarting function - Google Patents

Abstract

A device having restarting function includes an operation system, an information communication interface and a motherboard. The operation system implements an application. The motherboard exchanges communication information with the application via the information communication interface. The motherboard monitors the exchange of the communication information. When the motherboard exchanges the communication information with the application unsuccessfully and exceeds a predetermined period, the motherboard generates a reset signal. The reset signal is configured to restart the device. In the operation of the device having restarting function, the device can be reset selectively through monitoring a status of the exchange of the communication information via the motherboard.

Description

Device with restart function

The invention relates to a device with a restart function, in particular to a device for achieving a restart function through a communication interface between a firmware and a software.

As technology develops more and more mature, computers are no longer limited to the use of specific professionals, but become one of the indispensable tools in people's lives. However, during the operation of the computer, the computer system is often down or abnormally unstable due to some factors, and the user cannot operate normally. At this time, in order to restore the computer from the crash or abnormal state to the normal operating state, it is usually necessary to restart the computer system through the restart mechanism provided in the computer, for example, the blue screen of Death provided by Microsoft Corporation (Blue Screen of Death) , BSOD). However, with the current computer restart mechanism, it can only prevent the computer hardware from crashing, and it cannot provide protection against the crash or abnormal state generated during the operation of the computer operating system or the application software.

The invention provides a device with a restart function, which can start the restart function of the device by using the communication interface between the firmware and the software for the state of the application software in the computer operating system, thereby not only protecting the device but also protecting the operating system and the application software. The effect of the layer.

An apparatus having a restart function includes an operating system, an information communication interface, and a main board according to an embodiment of the present invention. The operating system executes the application. The motherboard exchanges information with the application through the information communication interface. The main board monitors the exchange of communication information. When the motherboard exchanges information with the application is unsuccessful and exceeds the predetermined time, the motherboard generates a reset signal and restarts the device according to the reset signal.

According to another embodiment of the present invention, a device with a restart function includes an operating system, an information communication interface, a microcontroller, and a motherboard. The operating system executes the application. The microcontroller is set on the motherboard. The microcontroller exchanges information with the application through the information communication interface. The microcontroller monitors the exchange of communication information. When the microcontroller exchanges information with the application unsuccessfully and exceeds a predetermined time, the microcontroller generates a reset signal and transmits the reset signal to the motherboard. The motherboard restarts the device according to the reset signal.

According to another embodiment of the present invention, a device with a restart function includes an operating system, an information communication interface, a microcontroller, and a motherboard. The operating system executes the application, and the microcontroller exchanges the first communication information with the application through the first information communication interface. The motherboard exchanges the second communication information with the application through the first information communication interface. When the first communication information is exchanged between the microcontroller and the application is unsuccessful, and the predetermined time is exceeded, the microcontroller generates a first reset signal. When the motherboard and the application exchange the second communication information, the communication information is unsuccessful and exceeds the predetermined time. The motherboard generates a second reset signal. The main board restarts the device according to the first reset signal or the second reset signal.

According to another embodiment of the present invention, a system with a restart function includes a central control host, a remote management interface, and a device having a restart function. The central control host is used to provide control commands. The device with the restart function communicates with the central control host through the remote management interface. The device with restart function includes operating system, information communication interface, motherboard and microcontroller. The operating system executes the application and is used to receive control commands. The microcontroller is electrically connected to the motherboard and communicates with the application through the information communication interface. The microcontroller selectively generates a reset signal according to the control command, and the motherboard restarts the device with the restart function according to the reset signal.

In summary, in the device with the restart function provided by the present invention, the application communicates with the microcontroller and the main board through the information communication interface, and the communication information is exchanged by the microcontroller to communicate. If the exchange of information is unsuccessful and exceeds the predetermined time, the microcontroller determines that the device is down and generates a reset signal to restart the device, thereby achieving the protection effect.

The above description of the disclosure and the following description of the embodiments of the present invention are intended to illustrate and explain the spirit and principles of the invention, and to provide further explanation of the scope of the invention.

The detailed features and advantages of the present invention are set forth in the Detailed Description of the Detailed Description of the <RTIgt; </ RTI> <RTIgt; </ RTI> </ RTI> </ RTI> <RTIgt; The objects and advantages associated with the present invention can be readily understood by those skilled in the art. The following examples are intended to describe the present invention in further detail, but are not intended to limit the scope of the invention.

Please refer to FIG. 1. FIG. 1 is a diagram of a device with a restart function according to an embodiment of the invention. As shown in FIG. 1, the device 1 having a restart function includes an operating system 10, an information communication interface 12, and a main board 14. In this embodiment, the application 101 is installed in the operating system 10, and the operating system 10 can execute the application 101. In practice, the operating system 10 is the core of the computer system, and is mainly used to be responsible for the basic operations in the system, such as managing memory, configuring system resources, controlling the network, or managing the file system. For example, the operating system 10 may be a commonly used operating system Windows, Mac OSX, Linux, etc., and the present invention is not limited to the type of operating system. The main board 14 exchanges communication information with the application 101 through the information communication interface 12. The information communication interface 12 is configured to provide a path for information exchange, so that information can be transmitted between the application 101 and the main board 14. In one example, the information communication interface 12 is Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI). Windows Management Monitoring (WMI) provides a consistent communication path through programming and scripting language to enable application 101 and microcontroller 14 to communicate with each other.

The main board 14 monitors the exchange of communication information. When the main board 14 exchanges communication information with the application 101 is unsuccessful and exceeds a predetermined time, the main board 14 generates a reset signal for restarting the device 1 having the restart function. In one embodiment, as shown in FIG. 1, the main board 14 includes a timer 16, which monitors the entire communication information exchange process when the application 101 exchanges information with the timer 16 of the main board 14. If the exchange information of the two parties is unsuccessful and the unsuccessful state lasts longer than the predetermined time, the timer 16 of the main board 14 determines that the device 1 having the restart function has an abnormality, thereby generating a reset signal. In one example, the motherboard 14 can be a motherboard in a computer hardware architecture. In one embodiment, the communication information exchanged between the main board 14 and the application 101 includes the first information and the second information. The first information is transmitted from the application 101 to the main board 14 through the information communication interface, and the second information is transmitted from the main board 14 to the application 101 through the information communication interface 12. When the main board 14 does not receive the first information from the application 101, or the main board 14 cannot transmit the second information to the application 101, the main board 14 generates a reset signal and restarts the device having the restart function according to the reset signal. 1.

In a practical example, the device 101 with the restart function in the normal running state, the application 101 in the operating system 10 transmits information (such as the first information mentioned above) to the main board 14, and the main board 14 also Information (such as the second information described above) will be transmitted to the application 101 to complete the exchange of communication information. However, when an abnormality occurs in the application 101 executed by the operating system 10, for example, the amount of data processed by the application program is too large, which may cause the application 101 to generate an abnormality while running, and lose the function of transmitting information, thereby causing the motherboard 14 to fail to receive the information. Information from the application 101. At this time, by monitoring the exchange of communication information, the main board 14 can know that the communication information of the two parties is abnormal, and the exchange of communication information is unsuccessful. If the main board 14 continues to receive the information from the application 101, and exceeds For a preset time value, the main board 14 judges that the device 1 having the restart function is down or abnormal, thereby generating a reset signal, so that the device 1 having the restart function can be restarted by the reset signal.

In another example, when an abnormality occurs in the application 101, the application 101 may lose the function of receiving information, and the information sent by the motherboard 14 may not be transmitted to the application 101. If the information cannot be continuously transmitted to the application 101, indicating that the exchange of communication information is unsuccessful, if the unsuccessful state exceeds a preset time value, the main board 14 determines that the device 1 having the restart function is down, thereby generating a heavy A signal is asserted to restart device 1 with a restart function. The device 1 with a restart function can be applied to a large electronic device (such as a video wall or an electronic billboard) installed on a wall surface. Usually these large electronic devices are mainly used to spread public information (such as advertising information) to the public. When the device is down or abnormal, the reset signal can be generated by the operation of the device 1 having the restart function to restart the electronic device to prevent the propagation of the message from being affected.

Please refer to FIG. 2. FIG. 2 is a diagram of a device with a restart function according to another embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 2, the device 2 having a restart function includes an operating system 20, an information communication interface 22, a microcontroller 24, and a main board 26. The operating system 20 executes the application 201 as in the embodiment of FIG. The microcontroller 24 is disposed on the main board 26. The microcontroller 24 exchanges communication information with the application 201 via the information communication interface 22. The microcontroller 24 monitors the exchange of communication information. When the microcontroller 24 exchanges the communication information with the application 201 unsuccessfully and exceeds a predetermined time, the microcontroller 24 generates a reset signal. In the embodiment of FIG. 2, the reset signal is first transmitted to the main board 26, and the device 2 having the restart function is further restarted according to the reset signal via the main board 26. In one example, the motherboard 26 has a General-Purpose Output (GPO). The main board 26 receives the reset signal through the universal output pin, thereby resetting and starting the device 2 having the restart function.

In one embodiment, the communication information exchanged between the microcontroller 24 and the application 201 includes third information and fourth information. The third information is transmitted by the application 201 to the microcontroller 24 via the information communication interface 22. The fourth information is transmitted by the microcontroller 24 to the application 201 via the information communication interface 22. When the predetermined time is exceeded, the microcontroller 24 does not receive the third information from the application 201, or the microcontroller 24 cannot transmit the fourth information to the application 201, the microcontroller 24 generates a reset signal. The motherboard 26 can be caused to restart the device according to the reset signal. For example, when the application 201 may be in an abnormal state due to excessive load during operation, the application 201 loses the function of transmitting information, so that the microcontroller 24 cannot receive information from the application 201. By monitoring the exchange of communication information, the microcontroller 24 can know that the communication information of the two parties has an abnormal situation, and the exchange of communication information is unsuccessful. If the microcontroller 24 continues to receive no information from the application 101 and exceeds a preset time value, the microcontroller 24 determines that the device 2 with the restart function has a crash or an abnormal condition, thereby generating a reset. The signal is such that the motherboard 26 restarts the device in response to the reset signal. In another example, when an abnormality occurs in the application 201, the application 201 loses the function of receiving information, and the information sent by the microcontroller 24 cannot be transmitted to the application 201. If the information cannot be continuously transmitted to the application 201, the exchange of communication information is unsuccessful. If the unsuccessful state exceeds a preset time value, the microcontroller 24 determines that the device 2 having the restart function is down, thereby generating a reset signal. And the reset signal is further transmitted to the main board 26 to restart the device 2 having the restart function.

Please refer to FIG. 3. FIG. 3 is a diagram of a device with a restart function according to another embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 3, the device 3 having a restart function includes an operating system 30, an information communication interface 32, a microcontroller 34, and a main board 36. The operating system 30 executes the application 301. The microcontroller 34 is disposed on the main board 36. The microcontroller 34 exchanges first communication information with the application 301 through the information communication interface 32, and the main board 36 exchanges the second communication information with the application 301 through the information communication interface 32. When the microcontroller 34 exchanges the first communication information with the application 301 unsuccessfully and the unsuccessful state exceeds the predetermined time, the microcontroller 34 generates a first reset signal. Similarly, when the motherboard 36 exchanges the second communication information with the application 301 unsuccessfully, and the unsuccessful state exceeds the predetermined time, the main board 36 generates a second reset signal. The main board 36 can restart the device 3 having the restart function according to the first reset signal or the second reset signal. In an embodiment, as shown in FIG. 3, the main board 36 includes the second communication information exchanged with the application 301 through the information communication interface 32. The timer 38 of the main board 36 is used to monitor the second communication information. When the timer 38 of the main board 36 exchanges the second communication information with the application 301, and the unsuccessful state exceeds the predetermined time, the timer 38 of the main board 36 generates the second reset signal for restarting. Device 3 with a restart function.

More specifically, compared with the embodiment of FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, in the embodiment of FIG. 3, the microcontroller 34 and the motherboard 36 exchange information with the application 301 through the information communication interface 32. When at least one of the microcontroller 34 or the motherboard 36 is unable to successfully exchange communication information with the application 301, the main board 36 restarts the device 3 having the restart function according to the first reset signal or the second reset signal. In one embodiment, the first communication information includes the fifth information and the sixth information. The fifth information is transmitted by the application 301 to the microcontroller 34 via the information communication interface 32. The sixth information is transmitted by the microcontroller 34 to the application 301 via the information communication interface 32. In one example, when an abnormality occurs in the application 301, the application 301 may lose the function of receiving information, so that the microcontroller 34 cannot transmit information to the application 301, or the application 301 loses the function of transmitting information. Controller 34 does not receive the information.

The microcontroller 34 generates a first reset signal when at least one of the two abnormal conditions described above continues for more than a predetermined time. Based on the same principle, in another embodiment, the second communication information includes the seventh information and the eighth information. The seventh information is transmitted by the application 301 to the main board 36 through the information communication interface 32. The eighth information is transmitted by the main board 36 to the application 301 through the information communication interface 32. When the application 301 is abnormal, the application 301 may lose the function of receiving information, so that the motherboard 36 cannot transmit information to the application 301, or the application 301 loses the function of sending information, so that the motherboard 36 does not receive the information. The main board 36 generates a second reset signal when at least one of the two abnormal conditions described above continues for more than a predetermined time.

Please refer to FIG. 4. FIG. 4 is a diagram of a system with a restart function according to an embodiment of the invention. As shown in FIG. 4, the system 4 with a restart function includes a central control host 40, a remote management interface 42, and a plurality of devices 44 to 48 having a restart function. The central control host 40 is used to provide control commands. The devices 44 to 48 having the restart function communicate with the central control host 40 through the remote management interface 42. In this embodiment, the control commands sent by the central control host 40 are transmitted to the devices 44 to 48 having the restart function through the remote management interface 42. In one example, the remote management interface 42 can be Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI), with its specific syntax enabling devices 44-48 with restart functionality to receive consistent control commands. The device 44 with the restart function has an operating system 440, an information communication interface 444, a microcontroller 446, and a main board 448. Operating system 440 executes application 442 and is configured to receive control instructions. The microcontroller 446 is electrically connected to the motherboard 448 and communicates with the application 442 through the information communication interface 444. When the application 442 executed by the operating system 440 receives the control command, the microcontroller 446 selectively generates a reset signal in accordance with the control command.

Specifically, if the control command issued by the central control host 40 includes reset information, the microcontroller 446 can generate a reset signal according to the control command. The main board 448 further restarts the device 4 having the restart function in accordance with the reset signal. Similarly, the device 46 having the restart function has an operating system 460, an information communication interface 464, a microcontroller 466, a main board 468, and an application 462 executed by the operating system 460. The device 48 with the restart function has an application system 480, an information communication interface 484, a microcontroller 486, a motherboard 488, and an application 482 executed by the operating system 480. The connection and actuation modes are the same as those of the device 44 having the restart function, and will not be described again.

In a practical example, when any of the devices 44 to 48 having the restart function is down, it can generate a reset signal by the microcontroller of the device itself, thereby causing the motherboard to restart the device according to the reset signal. . In another example, when any of the devices 44 to 48 having the restart function is down, the central control host 40 can issue a control command including the reset information and transmit it to the restart through the remote management interface 42. The operating systems 440-480 of the functional devices 44-48 further transmit control commands to the microcontrollers 446-486 via their information communication interfaces 444-484. The microcontrollers 446~486 can generate a reset signal according to the control command, and respectively cause the main boards 448~488 to restart the devices 44~48 with the restart function.

In a practical example, the system 4 with restart function proposed by the present invention can be applied to a plurality of large electronic devices or kanbans disposed on a wall surface. Generally speaking, a large electronic device or a kanban placed on a wall is used to play a message (such as advertising information). When an electronic device or a kanban is down or abnormal and cannot be played, if the electronic device or the kanban cannot be timely Automatically restart, but must wait until the person finds it to restart the action, which may cause inconvenience, but also waste the time of the advertisement. Therefore, through the application of the system 4 with the restart function of the present invention, a plurality of large-scale electronic devices can be connected by the terminal station (for example, the central control host 40 of FIG. 4) (for example, the devices 44-48 with the restart function of FIG. 4) ), and when a plurality of large-scale electronic devices are down, the control commands can be transmitted in time to restart a plurality of large-scale electronic devices, thereby achieving a quick and convenient restart effect.

In summary, the device with the restart function proposed by the present invention monitors the exchange of communication information between the application executed by the operating system and the microcontroller and the motherboard through the microcontroller, and is selectively selected according to a predetermined time. A reset signal is generated to restart the device. This device with a restart function not only protects the computer when it is down, but also covers the operating system and applications of the computer.

Although the present invention has been disclosed above in the foregoing embodiments, it is not intended to limit the invention. It is within the scope of the invention to be modified and modified without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Please refer to the attached patent application for the scope of protection defined by the present invention.

1, 2, 3, 44, 46, 48‧‧‧ devices with restart function

4‧‧‧System with restart function

10, 20, 30, 440, 460, 480 ‧ ‧ operating systems

101, 201, 301, 442, 462, 482‧‧‧ applications

12, 22, 32, 444, 464, 484 ‧ ‧ information communication interface

24, 34, 446, 466, 486‧‧‧ Microcontrollers

16, 38‧‧ ‧ timer

14, 26, 36, 448, 468, 488‧‧‧ motherboards

40‧‧‧Central Control Host

42‧‧‧ Remote Management Interface

FIG. 1 is a diagram of a device with a restart function according to an embodiment of the invention. FIG. 2 is a diagram of a device with a restart function according to another embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a diagram of a device with a restart function according to another embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4 is a diagram of a system with a restart function according to an embodiment of the invention.

Claims (9)

A device having a restart function, comprising: an operating system, executing an application; an information communication interface; and a motherboard through which the communication information is exchanged with the application, and the motherboard monitors the exchange of the communication information. When the motherboard exchanges the communication information with the application unsuccessfully and exceeds a predetermined time, the motherboard generates a reset signal and restarts the device according to the reset signal. The device with a restart function as described in claim 1, wherein the communication information includes: a first information transmitted by the application to the motherboard through the information communication interface; and a second information passed by the motherboard The information communication interface is transmitted to the application; wherein the motherboard generates the first information from the application when the predetermined time is not received, or the motherboard cannot transmit the second information to the application The reset signal. A device having a restart function, comprising: an operating system, executing an application; an information communication interface; a motherboard; and a microcontroller disposed on the motherboard, the microcontroller communicating with the application through the information interface The program exchanges a communication message, the microcontroller monitors the exchange of the communication information, and when the microcontroller exchanges the communication information with the application is unsuccessful, and the predetermined time is exceeded, the microcontroller generates a reset signal. And transmitting the reset signal to the motherboard, so that the motherboard restarts the device according to the reset signal. The device with a restart function as claimed in claim 3, wherein the motherboard has a General-Purpose Output (GPO), and the motherboard receives the reset signal through the universal output pin to restart the device. The device with a restart function as described in claim 3, wherein the communication information includes: a third information transmitted by the application to the microcontroller through the information communication interface; and a fourth information by the micro The controller is transmitted to the application through the information communication interface; wherein when the predetermined time is exceeded, the microcontroller does not receive the third information from the application, or the microcontroller cannot transmit the fourth information to The microcontroller generates the reset signal for the application. A device having a restart function, comprising: an operating system, executing an application; an information communication interface; a microcontroller, exchanging a first communication message with the application through the information communication interface; and a motherboard The information communication interface exchanges a second communication information with the application; wherein when the microcontroller exchanges the first communication information with the application is unsuccessful and exceeds a predetermined time, the microcontroller generates a first reset Signaling, when the motherboard exchanges the second communication information with the application is unsuccessful, and the predetermined time is exceeded, the motherboard generates a second reset signal, and the motherboard according to the first reset signal or the second reset Signal to restart the device. The device with a restart function as described in claim 6, wherein the first communication information includes: a fifth information transmitted by the application to the microcontroller through the information communication interface; and a sixth information, The microcontroller is transmitted to the application through the information communication interface; wherein when the predetermined time is exceeded, the microcontroller does not receive the fifth information from the application, or the microcontroller cannot transmit the sixth The microcontroller generates the first reset signal when the information is sent to the application. The device with a restart function as described in claim 6, wherein the second communication information comprises: a seventh information transmitted by the application to the motherboard through the information communication interface; and an eighth information by the motherboard The information communication interface is transmitted to the application; wherein, when the predetermined time is exceeded, the motherboard does not receive the seventh information from the application, or the motherboard cannot transmit the eighth information to the application, The motherboard generates the second reset signal. A system with a restart function, comprising: a central control host for providing a control command; a remote management interface; and at least one device having a restart function, and communicating with the central control host through the remote management interface, Each of the devices having the restart function includes: an operating system, executing an application and receiving the control command; an information communication interface; a motherboard; and a microcontroller electrically connected to the motherboard and passing the information The communication interface communicates with the application, and the microcontroller selectively generates a reset signal according to the control command, and the motherboard restarts the device with the restart function according to the reset signal.