JPS63150715A - Power supply managing method for shared input and output device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To ensure the power supply and to attain the use of a common I/O device so log as any terminal requires the use by leaving a timer value of reservation request from each terminal equipment and a maximum value of a timer value for initial setting. CONSTITUTION:A terminal equipment uses DA as a shared I/O device address, SA as its own address C as request kind, sets them to the item FF and sends the reservation request to the shared I/O device while using the D as the reservation timer by the shared I/O device. The shared I/O device receives an instruction of CPU when the reception frame has a relation of C=FF (hexadecimal number), a control section 32 opens a read gate 44 and sends the value of a subtractor 36 to the CPU. The read value is compared with the value D in a frame and when the D is smaller, since the setting time is longer, the request from the terminal equipment is disregarded. When the D is larger, the control section 32 gives a load signal 37 by the instruction of the CPU, the value D passes through the gate 40 and reset in the subtractor 36. Thus, any terminal equipment stops using, the power supply of the shared I/O device is shut off. The power supply OFF management of the shared I/O is attained by having only to send the request set with the time desired by itself.

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] [Industrial Application Field] The present invention relates to power management of various shared l10 (input/output) devices connected to a LAN (Local Area Network), and in particular, to keep the power on until the end of the workday. It is related to the control of

[Conventional technology]

A shared I10 device connected to a LAN, such as a file station or a printer station, is commonly used by a plurality of terminals connected to the LAN.

Figure 2 is an example of such a system, where 1 is a LAN
, 2 represents a terminal, 3 represents a printer station, and 4 represents a file station. Conventionally, in such a system, shared I10 devices such as printer station 3 and file station 4 are powered on when the system starts operating, and powered off when the system ends. If your terminal uses the shared I10 device beyond normal operating hours, please notify the system or shared I10 device administrator in advance and ask them not to turn off the power when the operation ends.
It was necessary to turn off the power to 10 devices.

In order to avoid such complicated processing, a method has been adopted in which a mask station is installed in the LAN system and the usage status of each terminal is managed. Figure 3 shows an example of the system. 2~ in the same figure
4 is the same as in FIG. 2, and 5 is a mask station. Note that the mask station may also serve as the terminal 2 or one of the shared I10 devices 3 and 4. In this case, the shared I10 device has a function of cutting off the power of its own device in response to a power-off command for its own device among the data on the LAN.

FIG. 4 shows an example of the configuration of a shared I10 device, in which 11 is a LAN interface section, 12 is a CPU, 13 is a power off signal, and 1
4 is a power supply unit, 15 is a memory, and 16 is an I10 unit specific to the shared I10 device, for example, in the case of a file station, it represents the file device and its controller. Figure 5 shows an example of the management commands used in this method.
>In the command frame, F is the start flag, DA is the destination address, SA is the source address,
C represents a command type, D represents data, and Fe2 represents a check code. In this example, specific values of command type C are defined as commands shown in FIG. 5(ii). That is, C=11 (hexadecimal number) is defined as a shared I10 device usage request command, C=FF (hexadecimal number) is defined as a usage termination command, and C=FD (hexadecimal number) is defined as a shared I10 power-off command.

First, a terminal using shared I10 sends a DA to a mask station.
= mask station address, SA = own terminal address, C = FF
(Hexadecimal number) That is, a use request command, and a command frame with D=shared I10 device address to be used is transmitted. This allows the mask station to manage which terminal is using which shared I10 device. When the terminal finishes using the shared I10 device, it sends C=FE again to the mask station.
(hexadecimal number) is sent.

At the mask station, when the user of each shared I10 device disappears due to notification from each terminal, the shared I10 device address and mask station address are set in DA and SA, respectively, for that shared I10 device, and C=FD(16 Sends a power-off command (decimal number). In the shared I10 device, the LAN interface section-11 receives this command, and the CPU1
2, if it is determined to be a power-off command, the power-off signal 13 is enabled and the power supply 4 is turned off.

[Problem that the invention seeks to solve]

However, the above method requires a mask station and has the drawback that power management of the shared I10 device cannot be performed while the master station is in failure or is powered off.

The present invention provides a method that can turn off the power of the shared I10 section when each terminal finishes using it, without requiring manual management or management by a mask station as described above. The purpose is to

[Means for solving problems]

The power management method of the present invention includes causing a counter to hold a value representing the time until the power of the input/output device is turned off, and starting from a terminal that requires the use of the input/output device, and ending the use of the input/output device by the terminal. the value generated from the terminal and the value held in the counter are compared, and the larger value is left in the counter; and cutting off the power to the input/output device when the value of the counter reaches O. [Operation] With the above configuration, the counter always holds data representing the time until the power is turned off. For example, when the power is turned on, a predetermined initial value (
A value corresponding to the normal operating time) is set. When any of the terminals requires use of the input/output device beyond the time set by the initial value, data representing the time until the end of the use is generated. For example, when this data is larger than the data set as the initial value, the contents of the counter are rewritten. Furthermore, when another terminal needs to use the input/output device, it similarly generates data representing the time until the end of use.

When this data is larger than the data held in the counter, the contents of the counter are rewritten again. Conversely, if the data held in the counter is larger, the generated data is ignored. In this way, data generated from the terminal that needs to be used the latest remains on the counter. The contents of the counter decrease over time, and when it reaches O, the input/output device is powered off. As a result, power is maintained until all terminals no longer need to be used, and the power is cut off when none of the terminals need to be used.

〔Example〕

FIGS. 1 and 6 show an apparatus used in carrying out an embodiment of the present invention. First, FIG. 1 shows a shared I10 device,
In the figure, 21 represents a reserve timer, and 1, 11 to
16 is the same as in FIG.

FIG. 6 shows the configuration of the reserve timer 21, where 31 is a reset signal, 32 is a control section, 33 is a gate switching signal, and 3
4 is an initial value gate, 35 is an initial value setting switch, 36 is a down counter, 37 is a load signal, 38
is an AND gate, 39 is a power off signal 40 is a write gate, 41 is an O detector, 42 is a control line, 43 is a read signal,
44 represents a read gate, and 45 represents a timer pulse generator.

FIG. 7 shows the timing of initial value setting.

First, when power is turned on to the shared I10 device, a reset signal @
31 is given, for example, by the CPU 11 in FIG. In response to this reset signal 31, the control section 32 outputs a gate switching signal 33, opens the initial value gate 34 to enable it), and applies the set value of the initial value setting switch 35 to the input of the down counter 36. Then down counter 3
6 outputs the load signal 37 and sets the down counter 36 to an initial value. Also, the gate switching signal 33 is AN
is input to the D gate 38, and the power off signal 39 is kept “L” until the setting of the initial value to the down counter 36 is completed.
I keep it at H. The reset signal 31 disappears (“L
pt), the control section 32 sets the gate switching signal 33 to 441'' to enable the write gate 40. In this state, one pulse is sent from the timer pulse generator 45 to the down counter 36 every unit time. The down counter 36 is subtracted by this pulse, and when the value of this counter 36 becomes O, the O detector 41 operates and the AND gate 38
A power off signal 39 is outputted through the terminal, and the device type m14 is turned off.

In this way, when only the initial value setting is performed after the device is powered on and no terminal issues a reserve command, the power is turned off after the set time for initial value setting has elapsed. If you want to use a shared I10 device on any of the terminals beyond the normal operating time (the time set by the initial value setting), issue a reserve command from the terminal to secure the power to the shared I10 device. . The operation when one of the terminals issues a reserve command to secure power to the shared I10 device will be described below.

FIG. 8 shows data transmitted between each terminal and the shared I10 device, and F, DA, SA, C, D, and Fe2 are the same as in FIG. 5. Here, the reserve command from the terminal to the shared I10 device, for example, C=FF (hexadecimal), D
= Reserve timer value. If Cf=FF (hexadecimal number), it represents other control commands/data.

First, the terminal creates a reserve command. Figure 8(a)
, DA is the shared l10R location address, SA is the own terminal address, and C represents the type of command, which is set to an FF indicating a reserve command. D is shared I10
Represents the reserve timer value for the time the device is used. For example, if the unit time is 1 minute and the device is used for 3 hours, the value is 180 (1
0 base number) is set. Such a reserve command is sent to the shared I10 device.

FIG. 9 shows the processing in the shared I10 device. First, in step 51, the 0 part of the received frame is checked and the FF (16
If it is not a base number), it is processed as other command/data. If C=FF, the current down counter value is read out in step 52. In FIG. 6, a read command from the CPU is notified to the control section 32 through the control line 42, a read signal 43 is output from the control section 32, and the value of the down counter 36 is passed through the read gate 44 and sent to the CPLJ. This is done by being output.

Next, in step 53, the read counter value and the value of D in the frame are compared, and if D is small, the already set time is longer, so this reserve command is ignored and the process ends. do. If D is large, step 54 resets the down counter to the value of D within the frame.

This is done by outputting a load signal 37 from the control unit 32 in response to a write command from the CPU in FIG. 6, and loading the write data (value of D) from the CPU into the down counter 36 through the write gate 40. .

In this way, the shared I10 device retains the largest of the timer values of the reserve command and the timer value of the initial value setting from each terminal. Therefore, as long as any terminal requires use, power is secured and the pot sharing I10 device can be used, but when the initial setting time has elapsed and neither terminal requires use. , the shared I10 device is powered off.

[Effects of the Invention] As explained above, according to the present invention, even in a LAN system where there is no mask station, each terminal can operate the shared I10 device by simply sending a reserve command setting the time it wants to use to each shared I10 device. It is possible to manage the power off.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a shared I10 device used to carry out the method of an embodiment of the present invention, and FIGS.
Figure 4 is a block diagram showing an example of a LAN, Figure 4 is a block diagram showing a conventional shared I10 device, Figure 5 is a diagram showing an example of mask station management commands used in the device shown in Figure 4, and Figure 6. is a block diagram showing an example of the reserve timer in Fig. 1, Fig. 7 is a time chart showing the timing of initial value setting, Fig. 8 is a diagram showing the frame format, and Fig. 9 is a flow chart showing the processing upon frame reception. It is. 1... LAN, 2... Terminal, 3... Printer station, 4... File station, 12...
cpu. 14... Power supply unit, 21... Reserve timer, 32...
...Control unit, 34...Initial value gate, 36...
・Down counter, 40...Write gate, 41...
0 detector, 44...readout gate, 45...timer pulse generator. Central 'fir10 adventure block diagram easy! " LAN3zXfAJiiiir 2nd figure exchange flow Chitora command, data processing ^

Claims (1)

[Claims] A power management method for an input/output device connected to a local area network and shared by two or more terminals, comprising: causing a counter to hold a value representing the time until the input/output device is powered off; , generating a value representing the time from a terminal that requires the use of the input/output device until the end of use of the input/output device by the terminal; and compare the values and leave the larger one in the counter, decrease the value of the counter at predetermined intervals, and turn off the power to the input/output device when the value of the counter reaches 0. A power management method for shared input/output devices with