JP2007140779A - Power source management device, failure-monitoring device, failure-monitoring program, and recording medium - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a power source management device which secures the safe startup and end of an information-processing device. <P>SOLUTION: The power source management device manages the power source of an information-processing device by being incorporated into the information-processing device. The power source management device determines whether at least either the starting or stopping of power feeding is permitted based on a source voltage value on the substrate of the information-processing device. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to power control of an information processing apparatus such as a PC.

  When the operation end process is performed in the electronic device and the power supply (power supply) to the electronic device is stopped, the capacitor constituting the electronic device starts to discharge. Therefore, even if the power supply to the electronic device is stopped, a current flows on the substrate for a while, and the power supply voltage does not become 0 volts. That is, the power supply voltage on the substrate gradually decreases after power supply is stopped, and becomes 0 volt after a certain time.

  Thus, for a while after the power supply is stopped, the current is flowing in the IC mounted on the substrate and the like, and the electronic device is turned on again (that is, the power supply voltage is 0 volts). If the current flows again to the IC or the like before starting to be in the vicinity and driving is started), the operation of the IC or the like may become unstable. In particular, the IC etc. on the motherboard of the information processing device (the most basic device group for configuring the information processing device system mounted on a single substrate) There are many cases where startup (power-on) is prohibited, but the motherboard itself does not take into consideration the specifications of the IC, etc., and even in the unstable state described above, the user can turn on the power by operating the power. It is like that.

  The above problem will be described with reference to FIG. As shown in the figure, at time t100, the user turns on (presses) the power switch and continues this state for a time T1 = for example, 16 milliseconds. It rises from 0V to 5V. As a result, the information processing apparatus starts up normally. The substrate of the information processing apparatus is in an OFF state (stable state) if the power supply voltage is 0.95 V or less, and is in an ON state (stable state) if the power supply voltage is 4.6 V or more. To do. Next, at t102, the user turns on (presses) the power switch, and this state is continued for time T2 = for example 4 seconds (so-called long press) to stop power supply from the power source, and the power supply voltage drops from 5V. . Here, if the user turns off (releases) the power switch at t103 and turns it back on (presses) again immediately after t104, the power supply voltage of the substrate of the information processing apparatus does not drop to 0.95V. Power supply from the power supply is started again at (around 2.8 V). That is, the power supply voltage dropped from 5V rises again from around 2.8V without falling to 0.95V. In addition, when the power supply is stopped due to the end on the information processing device (OS) side at t106 and the user turns on (presses) the power switch at t107 immediately after the power supply voltage starts to drop from 5V, the power switch is turned on again. The power supply is started, and the power supply voltage dropped from 5V does not fall down to a stable 0.95V, but rises again from around an unstable state of 2.8V.

  In this way, even if the IC on the motherboard is in an unstable state, when the information processing device is turned on, the information processing device does not start at all, or even if it starts, it does not operate normally. There is a risk of malfunction.

In addition, the following patent documents 1 and 2 can be mentioned as well-known literature which discloses a related technique.
JP 2000-293923 (release date: October 20, 2000) JP 2000-339069 (release date: December 8, 2000)

  However, since the power switch of the information processing apparatus is always in a state of accepting a power-on operation, and the user cannot always grasp the state of the information processing apparatus accurately, the above-described problems It was difficult to avoid the occurrence of

  The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a power management device for an information processing device for ensuring safe start-up and termination of the information processing device.

  In order to solve the above problems, the power management device of the present invention is a power management device for managing the power supply of the information processing device by being incorporated in the information processing device, wherein the power supply is started and stopped. At least one permission / prohibition (permission / prohibition) is determined based on a power supply voltage value on a substrate of the information processing apparatus.

  According to the above configuration, for example, by allowing the start of power supply only when the power supply voltage value is equal to or lower than the first threshold value, the power supply voltage is unstable (the power supply voltage has not fallen down) immediately after the power supply stop (power OFF) operation. ) State, it is possible to prevent an erroneous operation such that power supply is started again, thereby avoiding a problem that the information processing apparatus does not start or does not operate normally even when started. The power supply start may be accompanied by the power switch of the information processing apparatus being turned on when the power supply is in a non-power supply state, or may be accompanied by a restart of the information processing apparatus. It doesn't matter. Furthermore, the power management apparatus can be configured to autonomously restart the information processing apparatus when a startup failure occurs. In this case, retry processing may be performed.

  Further, for example, by allowing the power supply stop only when the power supply voltage value is equal to or greater than the second threshold value, an unstable state (the power supply voltage has not fully increased) immediately after the power supply start (power ON) operation is performed. Thus, it is possible to prevent an erroneous operation such that power supply is stopped again, thereby avoiding a problem that the information processing apparatus does not normally end or start up. The power supply stop may be accompanied by the power switch of the information processing apparatus being turned ON for a predetermined time or more when the power supply is in a power supply state, or may be accompanied by termination of the information processing apparatus. I do not care. Further, the power management apparatus can be configured to autonomously terminate the information processing apparatus when a termination failure occurs. In this case, retry processing may be performed.

  In order to solve the above problems, the fault monitoring apparatus of the present invention is a fault monitoring apparatus that monitors a fault related to a power supply of the information processing apparatus by being incorporated in the information processing apparatus. Power management means that permits power supply start to the information processing apparatus only when the power supply voltage on the substrate is equal to or lower than the first threshold value, and the value of the power supply voltage after the power supply start to the information processing apparatus is equal to or higher than the second threshold value Recording means for recording in the storage unit that the normal processing is recorded in the storage unit, while recording in the storage unit that it is abnormal processing when the value of the power supply voltage does not exceed the second threshold value, It is characterized by having gained.

  According to the above configuration, the reliability of the information processing apparatus can be ensured by ensuring reliable start processing, and in addition, the activation state and activation failure of the information processing apparatus can be recorded, Failure analysis work can be facilitated and maintainability can be improved.

  In the fault monitoring apparatus, the power management unit permits the power supply to the information processing apparatus to be stopped only when the power supply voltage value is equal to or greater than a second threshold value. After the power supply to the information processing apparatus is stopped, if the power supply voltage value is equal to or lower than the first threshold value, the fact that the processing is normal is recorded in the storage unit, while the power supply voltage value is equal to or lower than the first threshold value. If not, it is preferable to record in the storage section that the process is abnormal.

  According to the above configuration, in addition to being able to improve the reliability by ensuring a reliable start-up process of the information processing device, by recording the end state and end failure of the information processing device, Failure analysis work can be facilitated and maintainability can be improved.

  Further, in the fault monitoring apparatus, the recording means stores in the storage unit whether the power supply stop is caused by a user operation (user power switch operation or information processing apparatus OS termination) or due to a power failure. It is preferable to record.

  In this regard, hard disks, etc., which information processing devices generally have, are subject to physical power interruptions that do not perform normal processing during disk access (non-human factors such as power outages, human operations such as inadvertent switch operations by the user) If this occurs, there is a possibility that the data in the accessed data area may be damaged or the disk may be physically damaged. Then, if factors that cause disk failures such as repeated physical power interruptions during disk access are accumulated, it may cause disk failure, loss of important data, and malfunction of the information processing device. .

  Here, by recording such a power-off state, in the event of a failure in the information processing apparatus, the process up to the failure such as what operation has been performed on the information processing apparatus Can be used to analyze the cause of the failure, perform maintenance, and improve the components of the information processing apparatus later.

  The fault monitoring apparatus preferably includes a display unit that displays that power supply can be started when the power supply voltage on the substrate is equal to or lower than the first threshold. Moreover, it is preferable that the display unit displays that the power supply can be stopped when the power supply voltage on the substrate is equal to or higher than the second threshold value. In this way, the user can easily grasp whether or not it can be activated or terminated, and erroneous operation can be prevented. As a result, safe start-up and termination processing of the information processing apparatus is ensured more reliably.

  The fault monitoring program of the present invention is characterized in that each means of the fault monitoring apparatus can be executed by a computer.

  The recording medium of the present invention is a computer-readable recording medium on which the failure monitoring program is recorded.

  As described above, according to the power management device of the present invention, it is possible to prevent a startup failure when an IC or the like mounted on the information processing device is turned on in an electrically unstable state and to reliably start the information processing device. And the reliability can be improved by performing the operation end processing.

  Further, according to the fault monitoring apparatus of the present invention, the reliability of the information processing apparatus can be improved by performing reliable start / end processing, and the operation related to the power source of the information processing apparatus, the fault that has occurred, etc. By recording, it is possible to facilitate analysis at the time of failure analysis later and improve maintainability.

  An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS.

  FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a fault monitoring apparatus according to the present embodiment, FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing a specific configuration of the fault monitoring apparatus, and FIG. 3 is incorporated with the fault monitoring apparatus. It is a schematic diagram which shows the structure of information processing apparatus.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, for example, an information processing apparatus 50 that is an industrial PC includes a motherboard 51, a motherboard power supply voltage output terminal 57, a power supply control signal input terminal 58, a power supply unit (hereinafter, power supply) 52, and A hard disk 53 is provided. The fault monitoring apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment is configured to be incorporated in the casing of the information processing apparatus 50, and includes a CPU 11, an SRAM 12, a battery 13, an RS232C interface (hereinafter referred to as an interface) 56, a motherboard power supply voltage input terminal. 14, a power control signal output terminal 15, a power switch signal input terminal 16, an LED 55, and an LED output terminal 17.

  Here, the interface 56 mediates data transmission between the information processing apparatus 50 and the failure monitoring apparatus 10. The SRAM 12 stores a log of the state of the information processing apparatus 50 and a failure that has occurred. The LED 55 displays a power-on permission state and a prohibition state of the information processing apparatus 50. The power supply voltage on the motherboard 51 of the information processing apparatus 50 is input to the motherboard power supply voltage input terminal 14. The power control signal output terminal 15 outputs a power control signal to the mother board 51 (power control signal input terminal). The power switch signal input terminal 16 receives an ON signal of a power switch 54 provided in the housing of the information processing apparatus 50. Further, the battery 13 supplies power to each unit of the failure monitoring apparatus 10 and supplies, for example, power for storing and holding to the log storage SRAM 12.

  The CPU 11 includes an internal RAM 21, an internal ROM 22, an A / D converter (ADC) 18, a UART (communication unit) 19, a timer 20, a power switch signal input port 24, a power control output port 23, an LED output port 25, and A control unit 6 is provided.

  Here, the internal ROM 22 is an operating system, a driver group for controlling each hardware resource in the failure monitoring apparatus 10, a program group for realizing each function of the failure monitoring apparatus 10, and constants used during operation. Is stored. The internal RAM 21 stores data for continuous operation. The ADC 18 converts the power supply voltage (analog value) on the mother board 51 of the information processing apparatus 50 into a digital value. The UART 19 converts transmission data between the information processing device 50 and the failure monitoring device 10. A signal from the power switch 54 is input to the power switch signal input port 24. A power control signal for the information processing apparatus 50 is output from the power control output port 23. A control signal for the LED 55 is output from the LED output port 25.

  The control unit 6 of the CPU 11 is realized by an operating system, each driver group, a program group, and the like, and operates as a functional block on the operating system. The system control unit 101 (power management unit), the ADC control unit 102, and log management A unit 103 (recording unit) and a timer control unit 104 are provided. The system control unit 101 realizes control of the failure monitoring apparatus 10 and each function thereof. The ADC control unit 102 controls the ADC 18 and performs A / D conversion. The log management unit 103 writes log data (status log data) for recording the status of the information processing device 50 and the failure monitoring device 10 and log data related to failure information (failure log data) to the SRAM 12 for log accumulation. When this failure log data or status log data is stored in the log storage SRAM 12, the driver that controls each hardware resource in the failure monitoring apparatus 10 and the system control unit 101 that implements each function activates the log management unit 103. The started log management unit 103 writes the log data in a designated area in the log storage SRAM 12. The timer control unit 104 controls the timer 20 and performs necessary processing every time a hardware interrupt of the timer 20 occurs.

  Next, a specific configuration for monitoring the power supply voltage on the mother board 51 and managing the power supply unit (hereinafter, power supply 52) for the information processing apparatus 50 will be described.

  First, the motherboard power supply voltage output terminal 57 is provided on the motherboard 51 constituting the information processing apparatus 50, and the power supply voltage on the motherboard 51 is supplied from the motherboard power supply voltage output terminal 57 to the fault monitoring apparatus 10 via the power supply voltage cable 59. Input to the motherboard power supply voltage input terminal 14. The analog signal of the power supply voltage input to the motherboard power supply voltage input terminal 14 is input to the ADC built in the CPU 11 via the wiring on the board of the failure monitoring apparatus 10. The analog signal of the power supply voltage of the information processing apparatus 50 input to the ADC 18 is converted into a digital value by the ADC 18 driven by the ADC control unit 102. The ADC control unit 102 performs a moving average process on the calculated digital value and stores it in a designated area of the internal RAM 21 built in the CPU 11. Next, the system control unit 101 calculates the average value of the digital value of the power supply voltage value at regular intervals and the first threshold value (threshold A) or the second threshold value (threshold value) stored in the internal ROM 22 in advance. B) and compare each part of the information processing device 50 and the failure monitoring device 10 based on the comparison result.

  A power switch 54 for operating the power source 52 of the information processing apparatus 50 is provided in the housing of the information processing apparatus 50, and a signal (ON signal) input to the switch signal input terminal 16 is a power source. The signal is input to the power switch signal input port 24 of the CPU 11 via the switch cable 61. The input signal is subjected to smoothing processing by the timer control unit 104 that is periodically started by an interruption of the timer 20, and the system control unit 101 is notified that the power switch 54 has been operated by detecting the rise of the signal. To do.

  In the power control of the information processing apparatus 50 by the failure monitoring apparatus 10, the control unit 6 of the CPU 11 outputs a power control signal from the power control signal output port 23 to the power control signal output terminal 15, and this power control signal is the power control signal. This is realized by being input to the power control signal input terminal 58 of the information processing apparatus 50 via the cable 60.

  A processing procedure for turning on the power source 52 (starting power feeding) and starting the information processing apparatus by operating the power switch by the user will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 8 is a sequence chart showing the activation or termination processing by the user of the information processing apparatus incorporating the fault monitoring apparatus.

  When the user presses the power switch 54 (at least T1 = 16 milliseconds or more) in S100, the ON signal is notified to the system control unit 101 of the CPU 11 via the power switch cable 61 and the switch signal input terminal 16. In response to this, the system control unit 101 compares the value of the power supply voltage on the mother board 51 notified from the ADC control unit 102 with the threshold value A (0.95 V) (S101).

  If S101 is No, that is, if the power supply voltage exceeds 0.95 V, the power supply start is not permitted because the power supply voltage is in an unstable state. That is, the system control unit 101 ignores the operation notification of the power switch 54 and keeps the power control signal “Low” (see t3 in FIG. 8) until the power supply voltage falls below the threshold A (0.95 V) ( The power supply 52 is maintained in the non-powered state until then (until S101 becomes Yes). Note that the process proceeds to S102 when the power supply voltage falls below the threshold A (0.95 V) (see t4 in FIG. 8).

  On the other hand, if S101 is Yes, that is, if the power supply voltage is 0.95 V or less, it is assumed that the power supply voltage is in a stable state, and power supply to the information processing apparatus 50 from the power supply 52 is permitted. That is, the system control unit 101 sets the power control signal (power control port signal) to “High (H)” (S102), and the power source 52 starts feeding the motherboard 51 after T1. When the power switch 54 that the user has pressed is released (turned off) (S103), the system control unit 101 sets the power control signal (power control port signal) to “Low (L)” (S104). . When the activation notification is received from the information processing apparatus 50 (communication is started), the log management unit 103 stores log data indicating that the information processing apparatus 50 has been activated by a user's power operation in the log storage SRAM 12. Writing in a predetermined area (S105). However, if there is no activation notification from the information processing apparatus 50 (communication is not started) even after a lapse of a certain time, it is assumed that there is an activation failure, and the process proceeds to the automatic restart processing shown in FIG. 7 (described later).

  While S101 is No, the CPU 11 lights the LED 55 (for example, red) to notify the user that the power supply voltage is in an unstable state. On the other hand, if the answer is Yes in S101, the CPU 11 turns off the LED 55 and notifies the user that the power supply voltage is in a stable state.

  The processing procedure when the user operates the power switch to turn off the power source 52 (power supply is stopped) and terminate the information processing apparatus 50 will be described below with reference to FIGS.

  When the user presses and holds the power switch 54 for a certain time (for example, T2 = 4 seconds) or longer (see t1 to t2 in FIG. 8), the ON signal is sent from the CPU 11 via the power switch cable 61 and the switch signal input terminal 16 for a certain time or longer. This is notified to the system control unit 101.

  Upon receiving these notifications (power-off instruction), the power supply voltage value on the motherboard 51 notified from the ADC control unit 102 is compared with the threshold value B (4.6 V) (S121).

  If S121 is No, that is, if the power supply voltage is 4.6 V or less, the power supply stop is not permitted because the power supply voltage is in an unstable state. That is, the system control unit 101 ignores the operation notification of the power switch 54 and keeps the power control signal “Low”, and the power supply 52 does not operate until the power supply voltage exceeds 4.6 V (Yes in S121). Until the power supply state is maintained. When the power supply voltage exceeds the threshold value B (4.6V), the process proceeds to S122.

  On the other hand, if S121 is Yes, that is, if the power supply voltage is 4.6V or higher, the power supply to the information processing apparatus 50 from the power supply 52 is permitted to be stopped as the power supply voltage is in a stable state. In other words, the system control unit 101 sets the power control signal (power control port signal) to “High (H)” (S122), and releases the power switch 54 that the user has pressed after the time T2 or more has elapsed (sets it to the OFF state). (S123), the power control signal (power control port signal) is set to "Low (L)" (S124). As a result, the power supply 52 stops supplying power to the mother board 51 (see t2 and t7 in FIG. 8). When communication with the information processing apparatus 50 is stopped, the log management unit 103 writes log data indicating that the information processing apparatus has been terminated by the user's power operation to a predetermined area in the log storage SRAM 12 (S126). However, if communication with the information processing apparatus 50 is not stopped even after a certain time has elapsed, it is assumed that there has been an end failure, and the process proceeds to a self-end process shown in FIG. 6 (described later).

  While S121 is No, the CPU 11 lights the LED 55 (for example, red) to notify the user that the power supply voltage is in an unstable state. On the other hand, if the answer is Yes in S101, the CPU 11 turns off the LED 55 and notifies the user that the power supply voltage is in a stable state.

  A processing procedure when the information processing apparatus 50 is automatically turned off (stops the power supply of the power supply 52) from the failure monitoring apparatus 10 will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 9 is a sequence chart showing automatic termination and restart processing of the information processing apparatus incorporating the fault monitoring apparatus.

  When the operation is terminated or restarted from the OS or when the above-described termination failure occurs, the failure monitoring apparatus 10 autonomously performs the following processing. First, the system control unit 101 compares the value of the power supply voltage on the mother board 51 notified from the ADC control unit 102 with a threshold value B (4.6 V) (S10).

  If No in S10, that is, if the power supply voltage is 4.6 V or less, the power supply voltage is unstable and power supply is not stopped. That is, the system control unit 101 keeps the power supply control signal “Low”, and the power supply 52 is maintained in the power supply state until then until the power supply voltage exceeds 4.6 V (until S10 becomes Yes). Note that the process proceeds to S11 when the power supply voltage exceeds the threshold value B (4.6V).

  On the other hand, if Yes in S10, that is, if the power supply voltage is 4.6 V or higher, it is possible to stop power supply to the information processing device 50 of the power supply 52 as the power supply voltage is in a stable state (see t11 in FIG. 9). That is, the system control unit 101 sets the power control signal to “High (H)” (S11), and after starting the timer 20 and counting 5 seconds (see t13 in FIG. 9), the power control signal Is set to “L” (S12-14). As a result, the power switch 52 is in the same state as when the power switch 52 is pressed long (T2 = 4 seconds), and the power supply 52 of the information processing apparatus 50 stops supplying power to the motherboard 51 (see t12 in FIG. 9). Next, the system control unit 101 activates the timer 20 again and counts 10 seconds (S15), and compares the power supply voltage value notified from the ADC control unit 102 with the threshold A (0.95 V) ( S17). Here, if the value of the power supply voltage is 0.95 V or less (see t13 in FIG. 9), the system control unit 101 recognizes that the information processing apparatus 50 has ended normally. In response to this, the log management unit 103 writes log data to the effect that the information processing apparatus has been completed normally in a predetermined area in the log storage SRAM 12 (S19). On the other hand, if the power supply voltage is 0.95 V or higher (No in S16) but 10 seconds have not elapsed (No in S17), the process returns to S16, and if 10 seconds have elapsed, the process proceeds to S18. In S18, the process returns to S11, and the subsequent processing is repeated up to the prescribed number of retries. If the power supply voltage value does not fall below the threshold value A (0.95 V) even if the retry activation process is performed a specified number of times (the information processing apparatus 50 has not ended normally) (Yes in S18), the log management unit 103 writes log (failure log) data indicating that the information processing apparatus 50 has terminated abnormally into a predetermined area in the log storage SRAM 12 (S20).

  In S19 or S20, the termination (stop of power supply to the mother board 51) is automatically performed from the fault monitoring apparatus 10 side in accordance with the termination or restart of the OS or the above termination failure. That is also written at the same time. In S10, the CPU 11 lights the LED 55 (for example, red) to notify the user that the power supply voltage is unstable. On the other hand, if Yes in S16, the CPU 11 turns off the LED 55 and notifies the user that the power supply voltage has become stable.

  Finally (S21), it is determined whether the power is turned off or restarted. If the power is turned off, the end processing of the information processing apparatus 50 is completed. If the power is turned off, the process proceeds to A, and the restart process shown in FIG. Migrate to

  Furthermore, the system control unit 101 also enables the information processing apparatus to operate through the log management unit 103 due to a power failure or the like even when a power failure occurs due to a power failure or the like, without being based on a user operation or a power-off instruction from the failure monitoring device 10. Log data indicating that the power is cut off is written in a predetermined area in the log storage SRAM 12.

  The processing procedure for restarting the information processing apparatus 50 (automatically starting the power supply 52) will be described below with reference to FIGS.

  When the restart processing of the information processing apparatus 50 is performed following A in FIG. 6 or when the above-described activation failure occurs, the failure monitoring apparatus 10 autonomously performs the following processing. First, the system control unit 101 activates the timer 20 and counts 2 seconds (see t14 in FIG. 9), and then sets the power control signal to “High (H)” (S30 to 32). This 2 seconds is a period for eliminating errors such as ADC and ensuring that the power supply voltage of the mother board 51 is 0.95 V or less. Next, after starting the timer 20 again and counting one second, the power control signal is set to “L” (S33 to S35). As a result, the state is the same as when the power switch 52 is pressed by T1, and the power source 52 of the information processing apparatus 50 starts to supply power to the motherboard 51. Next, the system control unit 101 starts the timer 20 again and counts 10 seconds (S36), and compares the value of the power supply voltage notified from the ADC control unit 102 with the threshold B (4.6V) ( S37). Here, if the value of the power supply voltage is 4.6 V or more (see t15 in FIG. 9), the system control unit 101 recognizes that the information processing apparatus 50 has been normally restarted. In response to this, the log management unit 103 writes log data indicating that the information processing apparatus has been normally started in a predetermined area in the log storage SRAM 12 (S40). On the other hand, if the power supply voltage is less than 4.6 V (No in S37) but 10 seconds have not elapsed (No in S38), the process returns to S37, and if 10 seconds have elapsed, the process proceeds to S39. In S39, the process returns to S30, and the subsequent processing is repeated up to the prescribed number of retries. If the power supply voltage value does not exceed the threshold value B (4.6 V) even after the retry process is performed a predetermined number of times (the information processing apparatus 50 has not been restarted normally) (Yes in S39), the log management unit 103 Writes log (failure log) data indicating that the information processing apparatus 50 has started abnormally into a predetermined area in the log storage SRAM 12 (S41). In S40 and S41, the startup (power supply to the mother board) is automatically performed from the fault monitoring apparatus 10 side when the information processing apparatus 50 is restarted or started up. Written simultaneously. In S30, the CPU 11 turns on the LED 55 (for example, red) to notify the user that the power supply voltage is in an unstable state. On the other hand, if Yes in S37, the CPU 11 turns off the LED 55 and notifies the user that the power supply voltage is in a stable state.

  As described above, according to the fault monitoring apparatus 10, even when the power switch 54 is operated immediately after the power supply 52 of the information processing apparatus 50 is turned off (power supply is stopped) and the information processing apparatus 50 is activated. The system control unit 101 ignores the push-down notification of the power switch 54 until the power supply voltage falls below the threshold A (0.95 V). By this processing, it is possible to prevent the information processing apparatus from being activated in an electrically unstable state such as an IC after the power is turned off. If the power supply 52 is normally turned off (power supply is stopped) and the power supply voltage becomes 0.95 V or less, the startup process can be started again by the notification that the power switch 54 is pressed down.

  In addition, information such as the operation of the power switch 54 by the user and the start and end status of the information processing apparatus 50 is recorded as a status log in a designated area of the log storage SRAM 12 of the fault monitoring apparatus 10, and the information is used. By doing so, it is possible to grasp a device failure or an operation history of the user in the information processing apparatus.

  Further, the fault monitoring apparatus 10 can notify the user of the power supply operation permission / inhibition state of the information processing apparatus 50 by the light emission state (lighting / extinguishing) of the LED 55.

  As described above, according to the fault monitoring apparatus 10, the information processing apparatus 50 can be safely started and ended, and the reliability thereof can be improved. Also, by recording the operations on the information processing device 50 and the failure monitoring device 10 and their states during startup, operation, and operation end, failure cause analysis at the time of failure occurrence can be facilitated, and maintainability is improved. It becomes possible.

  The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various modifications are possible within the scope shown in the claims, and the embodiment can be obtained by appropriately combining technical means disclosed in the embodiment. Is also included in the technical scope of the present invention.

  The fault monitoring apparatus according to the present invention is particularly suitable for an industrial information processing apparatus (PC or the like).

It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the failure monitoring apparatus concerning this Embodiment. It is a schematic diagram which shows the specific structure of the failure monitoring apparatus shown in FIG. It is a schematic diagram which shows the structure which integrated the failure monitoring apparatus shown in FIG. 1 in information processing apparatus. It is a flowchart which shows the process process (activation by user operation) of the failure monitoring apparatus concerning this Embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows the process process (end by user operation) of the failure monitoring apparatus concerning this Embodiment. It is a flowchart (automatic end by a failure monitoring apparatus) which shows the process process of the failure monitoring apparatus concerning this Embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows the process (automatic restart process by a failure monitoring apparatus) of the failure monitoring apparatus concerning this Embodiment. It is a sequence chart which shows the starting or completion | finish process of the information processing apparatus incorporating this fault monitoring apparatus. It is a sequence chart which shows the automatic termination and (automatic) restart process of the information processing apparatus incorporating this fault monitoring apparatus. It is a sequence chart which shows the starting or completion | finish process of the conventional PC.

Explanation of symbols

6 Control Unit 10 Fault Monitoring Device 11 CPU
12 Log storage SRAM
13 Battery 14 Motherboard Power Supply Voltage Input Terminal 15 Power Supply Control Signal Output Terminal 16 Power Switch Signal Input Terminal 17 LED Output Terminal 18 AD Converter (ADC)
19 Communication Department (UART)
20 Timer 21 RAM
22 ROM
23 Power control signal output port 24 Power switch signal input port 25 LED output port 50 Information processing device 51 Information processing device motherboard 52 Power supply (unit)
53 Hard disk 54 Power switch 55 LED
56 RS232C interface 57 Motherboard power supply voltage output terminal 58 Power supply control signal input terminal 59 Power supply voltage cable 60 Power supply control signal cable 61 Power switch cable 62 LED output cable

Claims (16)

A power management apparatus that manages the power of the information processing apparatus by being incorporated in the information processing apparatus,
A power management apparatus, wherein whether or not to start and stop the power supply of the power supply is determined based on a power supply voltage value on a substrate of the information processing apparatus.   The power management apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the power supply start is permitted only when the power supply voltage value is equal to or lower than a first threshold value.   3. The power management apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the power supply start is accompanied by a power switch of the information processing apparatus being turned on when the power is in a non-powered state.   The power management apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the start of power supply is accompanied by a restart of the information processing apparatus.   5. The power management apparatus according to claim 4, wherein when the start failure occurs, the information processing apparatus restarts itself.   The power management apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the power supply stop is permitted only when the power supply voltage value is equal to or greater than a second threshold value.   7. The power management apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the power supply stop is accompanied by a power switch of the information processing apparatus being turned on for a predetermined time or more when the power is in a power supply state.   The power management apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the power supply stop is accompanied by termination of the information processing apparatus.   9. The power management apparatus according to claim 8, wherein when the termination failure occurs, the information processing apparatus is terminated by itself. A failure monitoring device that monitors a failure related to a power supply of the information processing device by being incorporated in the information processing device,
A storage unit;
Power supply management means for permitting the start of power supply to the information processing apparatus of the power supply only when the power supply voltage on the substrate is equal to or lower than a first threshold;
If the value of the power supply voltage becomes greater than or equal to the second threshold after the start of power supply to the information processing apparatus, the fact that the processing is normal is recorded in the storage unit, while the value of the power supply voltage is greater than or equal to the second threshold. A failure monitoring apparatus comprising: a recording unit configured to record in the storage unit that an abnormal process has occurred when it is not. The power management means permits the power supply to the information processing apparatus of the power supply to be stopped only when the power supply voltage value is equal to or greater than a second threshold;
After the power supply to the information processing apparatus is stopped, the recording unit records in the storage unit that the power supply voltage value is equal to or lower than a first threshold value, and the power supply voltage value is The failure monitoring apparatus according to claim 10, wherein an abnormality process is recorded in the storage unit when it does not become the first threshold value or less.   12. The fault monitoring apparatus according to claim 11, wherein the recording unit records in the storage unit whether the power supply stop is caused by a user operation or a power failure.   The fault monitoring apparatus according to claim 10, further comprising a display unit that displays that power supply can be started when the power supply voltage on the substrate is equal to or lower than a first threshold value.   The fault monitoring apparatus according to claim 13, wherein the display unit displays that the power supply can be stopped when the power supply voltage on the substrate is equal to or higher than a second threshold value.   12. A failure monitoring program that enables a computer to execute each means of the failure monitoring apparatus according to claim 10.   A computer-readable recording medium on which the failure monitoring program according to claim 15 is recorded.

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