CN111102220A

CN111102220A - Fan control device and system

Info

Publication number: CN111102220A
Application number: CN201911315673.5A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 王茂松
Original assignee: Maipu Communication Technology Co Ltd
Current assignee: Maipu Communication Technology Co Ltd
Priority date: 2019-12-18
Filing date: 2019-12-18
Publication date: 2020-05-05
Anticipated expiration: 2039-12-18
Also published as: CN111102220B

Abstract

The application provides a fan control device and system, belongs to heat-radiating equipment technical field. The fan control device comprises a controller, a memory, a control logic module and a switch control circuit; the controller is respectively electrically connected with the memory, the control logic module and the processor, the control logic module is electrically connected with the switch control circuit, and the switch control circuit is also connected with the driver; the memory is used for storing the fan identification of the fan, and the control logic module is used for storing the target rotating speed; the controller is used for sending the fan identification to the processor to detect whether the fan is matched with a correct fan socket, the control logic module is used for outputting a control pulse to the switch control circuit based on the target rotating speed when the fan is matched with the correct fan socket, and the switch control circuit is used for controlling the driver driving motor to operate according to the target rotating speed based on the control pulse. Through memory and controller, can realize the high-efficient detection of fan grafting and assembly correctness based on fan model, serial number.

Description

Fan control device and system

Technical Field

The application relates to the technical field of heat dissipation equipment, in particular to a fan control device and system.

Background

In the field of servers and data communication, particularly in medium-high-end equipment, the power consumption of a used chip is large, forced air cooling is generally carried out through a direct current fan to generate high-speed airflow, cold air enters from an air inlet and passes through a heating area to take away heat emitted by the chip, and hot air exits from an air outlet, so that the temperature of the chip is stabilized in a proper range. In addition, due to differences in manufacturers and equipment, the brand, specification and number of fans used in the equipment may be selected differently as desired.

The existing direct current fan control system can only judge whether the fan stops rotating or rotates at a rotating speed, has single functions of controlling and monitoring the fan and cannot effectively check and record the running condition of the fan. Specifically, the fan model is various, the fan model cannot be obtained, the system is inconvenient to detect the matching degree of the fan and the equipment, and the checking efficiency and the reliability are low.

Disclosure of Invention

In view of this, an object of the embodiments of the present application is to provide a fan control apparatus and system, so as to solve the problems in the prior art that the model of the fan cannot be obtained, the system is inconvenient to detect the matching degree between the fan and the equipment, and the checking efficiency and reliability are low.

The embodiment of the application provides a fan control device, which comprises a controller, a memory, a control logic module and a switch control circuit; the controller is respectively electrically connected with the memory, the control logic module and the processor, the control logic module is electrically connected with the switch control circuit, and the switch control circuit is also electrically connected with the driver; the memory is used for storing a fan identifier of the fan, and the control logic module is used for storing a target rotating speed; the controller is used for sending the fan identification to the processor to detect whether the fan is matched with a correct fan socket, the control logic module is used for outputting a control pulse to the switch control circuit based on the target rotating speed when the fan is matched with the correct fan socket, and the switch control circuit is used for controlling the driver driving motor to operate according to the target rotating speed based on the control pulse.

In the implementation mode, the currently connected fan model can be identified based on the fan identifier in the memory, so that whether the fan corresponding to the interface is correctly connected or not is detected, the fan label and the assembly process file need to be checked, and the reliability and the efficiency of detection are improved.

Optionally, the device further comprises a hall sensor and a temperature sensor, and both the hall sensor and the temperature sensor are connected with the control logic module; the Hall sensor is used for detecting the rotating speed information of the fan, and the temperature sensor is used for detecting the temperature information of the fan.

In the implementation mode, the temperature information acquired by the temperature sensor is used for inquiring the temperature condition of each monitoring point, and the target rotating speed of the fan is adjusted according to the rotating speed of the fan acquired by the Hall sensor and based on the current rotating speed of the fan and the established temperature control strategy, so that the accuracy of regulating and controlling the rotating speed of the fan is improved.

Optionally, the control logic module includes a status register and a control register; the state register is used for storing the rotating speed information obtained from the Hall sensor and storing the temperature information obtained from the temperature sensor; the controller is used for acquiring the rotating speed information and the temperature information from the state register, sending the rotating speed information and the temperature information to the processor, receiving the target rotating speed generated by the processor based on the rotating speed information and the temperature information, and writing the target rotating speed into the control register; the control register is used for storing the target rotating speed and outputting the control pulse to the switch control circuit based on the target rotating speed.

In the implementation mode, the rotating speed of the fan is controlled by controlling the target rotating speed in the register, the target rotating speed of the fan operation is latched once and needs to be modified and written once again, the PWM signal does not need to be continuously output, and the occupation and the waste of resources are reduced.

Optionally, the controller is an I2C controller, the I2C controller being connected to the processor via an SCL/SDA bus.

In the implementation mode, the I2C controller and the processor are used for data transmission, so that transmission of various control signals can be realized, the integration and communication efficiency of the fan control device are improved, and powerful support is provided for efficient management of the system.

The embodiment of the application also provides a fan control system, which comprises a processor, a driver and a fan, wherein the fan comprises a motor and any one of the fan control devices; the processor is electrically connected with the fan control device, and the driver is respectively electrically connected with the fan control device and the motor; the processor is configured to access the controller of the fan control device to read the fan identification and detect whether the fan is matched with a device based on the fan identification.

In the implementation mode, the identification of the fan is confirmed through the processor and the fan control device, so that whether the fan is matched with the equipment or not can be detected, whether the fan is installed at the correct case position or not can be judged without checking the fan label and the assembly process file, and the accuracy and the efficiency of product detection are improved.

Optionally, the processor is further configured to periodically poll the controller according to a preset period, so as to periodically obtain status information of the fan from the control logic module, determine a target rotation speed of the fan based on the status information, and write the target rotation speed into the control logic module, where the status information includes rotation speed information of the fan.

In the implementation mode, the processor writes the target rotating speed into the control register, so that the rotating speed of the fan is controlled based on the target rotating speed, the target rotating speed of the fan is written once, namely latched, and needs to be modified and written once again, a PWM signal does not need to be continuously output, and occupation and waste of resources are reduced.

Optionally, the number of the fans is multiple, the processor is connected to multiple fan control devices in the multiple fans through an I2C hub through an I2C interface, and the fan identification includes a fan model number and a serial number of the fan.

In the implementation mode, one processor can control a plurality of fans, and can determine whether each fan normally operates under a correct interface, so that the fan detection efficiency and accuracy are improved.

Optionally, the memory further stores a default rotation speed of the fan; the controller is used for writing the default rotating speed into the control logic module when the fan control system is powered on so as to enable the fan to operate according to the default rotating speed.

In the implementation mode, the fan is driven to operate based on the default rotating speed when the equipment is initially powered on, and the phenomenon that the fan does not work when heat dissipation is needed is avoided, so that the reliability of the fan is guaranteed.

Drawings

In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application, the drawings that are required to be used in the embodiments of the present application will be briefly described below, it should be understood that the following drawings only illustrate some embodiments of the present application and therefore should not be considered as limiting the scope, and that those skilled in the art can also obtain other related drawings based on the drawings without inventive efforts.

Fig. 1 is a schematic structural diagram of a fan control system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

fig. 2 is a schematic structural diagram of a fan control device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

fig. 3 is a schematic structural diagram of a control logic module according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Icon: 10-a fan control system; 11-a fan; 111-a fan control device; 1111-a controller; 1112-a memory; 1113-control logic module; 11131-status register; 11132-control register; 1114-a switch control circuit; 112-a motor; 113-a hall sensor; 114-a temperature sensor; 115-an oscillator; 12-a processor; 13-driver.

Detailed Description

The technical solution in the embodiments of the present application will be described below with reference to the drawings in the embodiments of the present application.

The applicant researches and discovers that under the condition that the fan is needed to dissipate heat of equipment, certain energy is consumed due to the rotation of the fan, the higher the rotating speed is, the more energy is consumed, and larger noise is generated along with the energy. Therefore, a designer can adopt a certain temperature control strategy, and can properly adjust the rotating speed of the fan according to the temperature of a chip in the equipment, so that the energy and noise consumed by the fan are in a reasonable range. In the prior art, in a server and a data communication device, a four-wire dc fan is generally adopted, that is, the fan leads out four wires to a plug, and the four wires are respectively: the difference between the two types of fans is whether a high/low state level is output or a pulse indicating the rotation speed is output.

In order to meet the requirements of different scenes, the two types of fans have multiple specifications in practice, mainly comprising working voltage, physical size, rotating speed and the like, and under each physical size, the fans almost have multiple models of working voltage and rotating speed. Generally, one type of fan is selected by one type of equipment to meet the requirement of equipment heat dissipation, and in addition, two types of fans are selected based on the consideration of factors such as cost, structure and the like, so that the cost is reduced or the structural constraint is adapted as much as possible.

Specifically, the use of the existing fan is generally the following cases: the processor simulates or directly outputs a PWM signal and detects an RD or FG signal, and the fan is completely and tightly coupled with the system; or the programmable logic realizes the generation of PWM and detects RD or FG signals, thus reducing the burden of a processor, the coupling of the fan and a system is loose, and the programmable logic needs to adopt different logics for detection according to the type of the fan; alternatively, the output of PWM is achieved by the fan controller, and the RD or FG signal is detected, and the processor accesses and controls the fan controller via I2C.

Therefore, the control signal of the dc fan in the prior art is PWM to adjust the rotation speed, the feedback signals are RD and FG, and the system can only determine whether to stop or rotate according to the RD or FG signals. Control system is single to fan control and monitoring function, can not effectively inspect and take notes fan behavior, and the fan model is various, can not acquire the fan model, and the system of being inconvenient for detects fan and equipment matching degree, and inspection efficiency and reliability are low.

In order to solve the above problem, the embodiment of the present application provides a fan control system 10. Referring to fig. 1, fig. 1 is a schematic structural diagram of a fan control system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

The fan control system 10 includes a fan 11, a processor 12, and a driver 13, wherein the fan 11 includes a fan control device 111, a motor 112, and fan blades. The processor 12 is electrically connected to the fan control device 111, the fan control device 111 is electrically connected to the driver 13, and the driver 13 is electrically connected to the motor 112 to drive the fan blades to rotate.

Referring to fig. 1 and fig. 2, fig. 2 is a schematic structural diagram of a fan control device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

The fan control apparatus 111 includes a controller 1111, a memory 1112, a control logic module 1113, and a switch control circuit 1114. The controller 1111 is connected to the memory 1112, the control logic 1113, and the processor 12, the control logic 1113 is connected to the switch control circuit 1114, and the switch control circuit 1114 is connected to the motor 112 through the driver 13.

It should be understood that, as another embodiment, the driver 13 may be provided as a component of the fan 11.

The controller 1111 is used to support data transmission between the processor 12 and the fan control device 111, and an access interface of the processor 12 is responsible for reading and writing information from and into the memory 1112 and for interaction with control logic of the fan 11 to obtain status information of the fan 11 and write a target rotation speed. Alternatively, the controller 1111 may be an I2C controller, also known as an I2C bus controller, and the I2C controller provides an interface for a microcontroller or microprocessor to control the I2C bus, which controls the specific sequencing, protocol, arbitration, timing of all I2C buses. I2C (Inter-Integrated Circuit) is a simple, bi-directional two-wire synchronous serial bus that requires only two wires to transmit information between devices connected to the bus, and typically includes an SDA (serial data line) and an SCL serial clock line, both of which are bi-directional I/O (input/output) lines.

Alternatively, when the number of the fans 11 is plural, one processor 12 is electrically connected to the plural fans 11 to control the plural fans 11 through the one processor 12. In such a case, the processor 12 may be electrically connected to the fans 11 through an I2C HUB (I2C HUB), and the HUB has a main function of performing regenerative shaping and amplification on the received signals to extend the transmission distance of the network, and simultaneously, centralizes all nodes (in this embodiment, the plurality of fans 11) on the node centered on the HUB. In this embodiment, the processor 12 integrates an I2C control interface, and the processor 12 is connected to the I2CHUB through the I2C control interface, so that the processor 12 expands multiple I2C buses through an I2C HUB chip in an I2C HUB, and each I2C bus is connected to a socket of the fan 11 to provide an access control channel for the fan 11.

Specifically, the I2CHUB includes an I2C control register, and when the processor 12 accesses the I2C control register and connects the I2C interface to the controller 1111 of the corresponding fan 11, the connection between the processor 12 and the management channel of the fan 11 is realized. Alternatively, the management channel may be an SCL/SDA serial management channel.

Optionally, the connection cable of the processor 12 and the I2C HUB, the connection cable of the I2C HUB and the controller 1111, and other cables in the fan control system 10 in this embodiment may adopt shielding cables to ensure transmission distance and reduce cable radiation.

The memory 1112 stores therein a fan identification, which may include a model number and a serial number of each fan 11, the serial number indicating factory information or assembly time information of each fan 11 to identify the fan 11. When the serial numbers of the fans 11 are different, the correspondence relationship between each fan 11 and the socket may be indicated according to the serial numbers, for example, if the serial number of the fan 11 is 1, the socket 1 is corresponded, and if the serial number of the fan 11 is 2, the socket 2 is corresponded.

The model number and serial number of the fan 11 are used for self-checking whether the socket is correct. For example, if the correct sockets of the dc fan i and the dc fan ii with different models are the socket 1 and the socket 2 in sequence, the processor 12 may determine whether the two dc fans are in the correct sockets according to the correspondence between the dc fan models and the socket numbers detected by the socket 1 and the socket 2, respectively.

Further, the memory 1112 may further store an operation duration and a default rotation speed of the fan 11, where the operation duration is used for the processor 12 to detect the operation condition of the fan 11, and the default rotation speed is used for directly driving the fan 11 to normally operate when the fan 11 is powered on.

Specifically, the fan identifier and the default rotation speed may be preset by the processor 12 or other recording devices and stored in the memory 1112 in advance, and the operation duration is periodically updated by the processor 12 based on the operation duration of the fan 11 in the system, and may be recorded once per week or once per month, so as to reduce the writing workload.

The fan 11 generally has a certain stock period as the electronic device, and the production date does not correspond to the use time. In the prior art, there is no record on the current system and the fan for the specific operation time of the fan, and especially, the pluggable modular fan can be replaced at any time, and the operation time is unknown, so that the management of the fan is not comprehensive enough, and therefore, the operation time of the fan 11 is stored and updated in the memory 1112 of the embodiment, so as to realize the precise control of the fan 11.

Referring to fig. 3, fig. 3 is a schematic structural diagram of a control logic module according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Control logic module 1113 may include status register 11131 and control register 11132.

The status register 11131 may be connected to a sensor included in the fan control device 111 to obtain an operation parameter of the fan 11 obtained based on the detection of the sensor.

Alternatively, the fan control device 111 may be provided with a hall sensor 113 and a temperature sensor 114, the hall sensor 113 and the temperature sensor 114 are respectively connected to the status register 11131, the acquired rotational speed information and temperature information are input to the status register 11131, the processor 12 may read the rotational speed information and temperature information from the status register 11131 through the controller 1111, generate a target rotational speed based on the rotational speed information and temperature information, and write the target rotational speed to the control register 11132 through the controller 1111.

Optionally, the fan control device 111 of the present embodiment may be provided with an oscillator 115, and the oscillator 115 is connected to the status register 11131, which provides a clock signal for the fan control logic, so that the fan control logic does not depend on the processor 12 to continuously output the control signal, thereby reducing the burden on the processor 12.

The control register 11132 outputs a control pulse to the switch control circuit 1114 based on the preset control logic and the target rotation speed, and drives the motor 112 to operate through the driver 13, so as to drive the fan 11 to operate at the target rotation speed.

The switch control circuit 1114 is generally a control circuit that is composed of a transistor and a metal oxide semiconductor field effect (MOS) transistor and controls the power supply to be turned on or off, and the specific choice thereof may be a common packaged switch control module, and the like, which is not described herein again.

The processor 12 may be an integrated circuit chip having signal processing capabilities. The processor 12 may be a general-purpose processor including a Central Processing Unit (CPU), a Network Processor (NP), and the like; but also Digital Signal Processors (DSPs), Application Specific Integrated Circuits (ASICs), Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs) or other programmable logic devices, discrete Gate or transistor logic devices, discrete hardware components. The general purpose processor may be a microprocessor or any conventional processor. In this embodiment, the processor 12 may be an STM32 series processor, such as an STM32F103C8T6, an STM32F103VET6, or the like.

Since the fan 11 in this embodiment is a dc fan, the driver 13 and the motor 112 may be dc type matched with each other.

It should be understood that the I2C HUB in this embodiment may also contain a power and ground wire, and be connected to the power and ground wires of the fan 11 via a socket, respectively.

Optionally, I2C HUB in this embodiment may also be connected to an external temperature sensor through SCLa/SDAa line, where the external temperature sensor is used to detect device temperature information of a device that needs to dissipate heat, and processor 12 may set the target rotation speed based on the device temperature information.

The operation of the fan control system 10 is described below by way of an example: when the fan 11 is powered on when connected to the socket, the controller 1111 first writes the default rotation speed in the memory 1112 into the control register 11132, the control register 11132 outputs a control pulse to the switch control circuit 1114 based on the preset control logic and the default rotation speed, and the driver 13 drives the motor 112 to operate, so as to drive the fan 11 to operate according to the default rotation speed. After the processor 12 is started, the I2C HUB control register is accessed according to a predetermined access sequence, the SCL/SDA channel is connected to the SCLa/SDAa channel to obtain external temperature sensor data, the controller 1111 obtains the model and serial number of the fan 11 from the memory 1112, determines whether the fan 11 is in a correct socket based on the model and serial number, generates a target rotation speed based on the external temperature sensor data according to a control strategy, writes the target rotation speed of the fan 11 into the controller 1111 of the fan 11 through the SCL/SDA channel, outputs a control pulse to the switch control circuit 1114 based on a preset control logic and the target rotation speed, and drives the motor 112 to operate through the driver 13 to drive the fan 11 to operate according to the target rotation speed. Thereafter, the processor 12 accesses the next fan 11 based on the above flow and repeats the above operation. Meanwhile, the hall sensor 113 and the temperature sensor 114 transmit the detected rotation speed information and temperature information to the status register 11131, the processor 12 periodically or aperiodically polls the controller 1111 of each fan 11 based on a preset period, the controller 1111 acquires the rotation speed information and temperature information of the fan 11 in the status register 11131, and the target rotation speed is updated based on the rotation speed information and temperature information without continuously outputting a control signal to the fan 11, thereby reducing the occupation and waste of resources. Further, the processor 12 may also obtain the running time of the fan 11 from the memory 1112 through the controller 1111, and the running time is used as a reference parameter for generating the target rotation speed.

In summary, the embodiments of the present application provide a fan control device and system, where the device includes a controller, a memory, a control logic module, and a switch control circuit; the controller is respectively electrically connected with the memory, the control logic module and the processor, the control logic module is electrically connected with the switch control circuit, and the switch control circuit is also electrically connected with the driver; the memory is used for storing a fan identifier of the fan, and the control logic module is used for storing a target rotating speed; the controller is used for sending the fan identification to the processor to detect whether the fan is matched with a correct fan socket, the control logic module is used for outputting a control pulse to the switch control circuit based on the target rotating speed when the fan is matched with the correct fan socket, and the switch control circuit is used for controlling the driver driving motor to operate according to the target rotating speed based on the control pulse.

In the implementation mode, the fan type can be identified based on the fan identification in the storage, so that whether the fan corresponding to the socket is connected correctly or not is detected, the fan label and the assembly process file need to be checked, and the reliability and the efficiency of detection are improved.

In the embodiments provided in the present application, it should be understood that the disclosed apparatus may be implemented in other manners. The apparatus embodiments described above are merely illustrative, and for example, the block diagrams in the figures illustrate the architecture, functionality, and operation of possible implementations of devices according to various embodiments of the present application. It will also be noted that each block of the block diagrams, and combinations of blocks in the block diagrams, can be implemented by special purpose hardware-based systems which perform the specified functions or acts, or combinations of special purpose hardware and computer instructions.

In addition, functional modules in the embodiments of the present application may be integrated together to form an independent part, or each module may exist separately, or two or more modules may be integrated to form an independent part.

The above description is only an example of the present application and is not intended to limit the scope of the present application, and various modifications and changes may be made by those skilled in the art. Any modification, equivalent replacement, improvement and the like made within the spirit and principle of the present application shall be included in the protection scope of the present application. It should be noted that: like reference numbers and letters refer to like items in the following figures, and thus, once an item is defined in one figure, it need not be further defined and explained in subsequent figures.

The above description is only for the specific embodiments of the present application, but the scope of the present application is not limited thereto, and any person skilled in the art can easily conceive of the changes or substitutions within the technical scope of the present application, and shall be covered by the scope of the present application.

It is noted that, herein, relational terms such as first and second, and the like may be used solely to distinguish one entity or action from another entity or action without necessarily requiring or implying any actual such relationship or order between such entities or actions. Also, the terms "comprises," "comprising," or any other variation thereof, are intended to cover a non-exclusive inclusion, such that a process, method, article, or apparatus that comprises a list of elements does not include only those elements but may include other elements not expressly listed or inherent to such process, method, article, or apparatus. Without further limitation, an element defined by the phrase "comprising … …" does not exclude the presence of other identical elements in a process, method, article, or apparatus that comprises the element.

Claims

1. A fan control device is characterized in that the device comprises a controller, a memory, a control logic module and a switch control circuit;

the controller is respectively electrically connected with the memory, the control logic module and the processor, the control logic module is electrically connected with the switch control circuit, and the switch control circuit is also electrically connected with the driver;

the memory is used for storing a fan identifier of the fan, and the control logic module is used for storing a target rotating speed;

the controller is used for sending the fan identification to the processor to detect whether the fan is matched with a correct fan socket, the control logic module is used for outputting a control pulse to the switch control circuit based on the target rotating speed when the fan is matched with the correct fan socket, and the switch control circuit is used for controlling the driver driving motor to operate according to the target rotating speed based on the control pulse.

2. The device of claim 1, further comprising a hall sensor and a temperature sensor, both connected to the control logic module;

the Hall sensor is used for detecting the rotating speed information of the fan, and the temperature sensor is used for detecting the temperature information of the fan.

3. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the control logic module comprises a status register and a control register;

the state register is used for storing the rotating speed information obtained from the Hall sensor and storing the temperature information obtained from the temperature sensor;

the controller is used for acquiring the rotating speed information and the temperature information from the state register, sending the rotating speed information and the temperature information to the processor, receiving the target rotating speed generated by the processor based on the rotating speed information and the temperature information, and writing the target rotating speed into the control register;

the control register is used for storing the target rotating speed and outputting the control pulse to the switch control circuit based on the target rotating speed.

4. The apparatus of any of claims 1-3, wherein the controller is an I2C controller, the I2C controller being connected with the processor through an SCL/SDA bus.

5. A fan control system, the system comprising a processor, a drive, and a fan, the fan comprising a motor and a fan control apparatus as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 4;

the processor is electrically connected with the fan control device, and the driver is respectively electrically connected with the fan control device and the motor;

the processor is configured to access the controller of the fan control device to read the fan identification and detect whether the fan is matched with a device based on the fan identification.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein the processor is further configured to periodically poll the controller at a predetermined period to periodically obtain status information of the fan from the control logic module, determine a target speed of the fan based on the status information, and write the target speed to the control logic module, wherein the status information includes speed information of the fan.

7. The system of claim 5, wherein the plurality of fans, the processor connected to a plurality of fan controls of the plurality of fans through an I2C hub via an I2C interface, the fan identification comprising a fan model number and a serial number of the fan.

8. The system of claim 5, wherein the memory further stores a default speed of the fan;

the controller is used for writing the default rotating speed into the control logic module when the fan control system is powered on so as to enable the fan to operate according to the default rotating speed.

9. The system of claim 5, wherein the memory further stores a run time of the fan;

the processor is used for updating the running time through the controller according to a preset period based on the normal running time of the fan.