Method, a system, a computer-readable medium, and a power controlling apparatus for applying and distributing power
Embodiments of the invention relate generally to power management and the like, and more particularly, to an apparatus, a system, a method, and a computer-readable medium for providing power controlling functionality to generate configurable power signals and to deliver power during fault conditions. In at least some embodiments, a power control unit can generate power signals having configurable attributes as a function of a mode of operation, a fault type, and the like.
1. A system for distributing power comprising:
a plurality of power control units coupled to one or more communication links, at least one of the power control units comprising:
a first portion of memory configured to store data representing operational profiles for generating a power signal as a function of a parameter;
a mode controller configured to select an operational profile from the operational profiles to establish a selected operational profile;
a waveform control module configured to generate the power signal in accordance with the selected operational profile;
a second portion of memory configured to store data representing fault profiles that include thresholds for determining types of faults; and
a fault detector configured to:
detect a fault based on the fault profiles, and to
determine whether the fault is associated with a first subset of faults or a second subset of faults, and to
perform a fault action.
2. The system of claim 1 further comprising:
a master controller configured to communicate with a power control unit via the one or more communication links,
wherein the power control unit operates in a dependent mode,
wherein the master controller includes either the at least one of the power control units or a power management application (“PMA”).
3. The system of claim 1 further comprises:
a power management application (“PMA”); and
one or more processors configured to execute instructions of the power management application to:
receive a message indicating detection of the fault, and
transmit another message to the at least one of the power control units to perform the fault action.
4. The system of claim 1 wherein the at least one of the power control units is configured to operate independent of a master controller in an independent mode.
5. The system of claim 1 further comprising:
a peer-to-peer arrangement for the plurality of power control units to communication to each other via one or more communication links.
6. The system of claim 1 further comprising:
a power source input terminal configured to receive power, wherein the waveform control module is further configured to:
modify an amount of the power to provide a portion of the power in association with the power signal.
7. The system of claim 6 wherein the waveform control module is further configured to modulate a duty cycle of the power signal to provide the portion of the power as specified by the selected operational profile.
8. The system of claim 1 wherein the waveform control module is further configured to include a power-on portion of a waveform for the power signal and a power-off portion of the waveform for the power signal.
9. The system of claim 1 wherein the first subset of faults includes magnitude-based faults and the second subset of faults includes time-based faults.
10. The system of claim 1 wherein the waveform control module is configured to generate another power signal as the fault action.