1. A method comprising:
acquiring a plurality of supply voltages supplied to an electrical component;
acquiring a plurality of temperatures of the electrical component;
determining a margin, which reflects reliability of the electrical component and is allowed by current workload and environment conditions, wherein the determining comprises
comparing the plurality of supply voltages to a maximum supply voltage allowed;
comparing the plurality of temperatures to a maximum temperature allowed; and
creating a reliability trending of the electrical component based on the plurality of supply voltages and the plurality of temperatures; and
altering one or more operational parameters of the electrical component based on the determined margin.
2. A method according to claim 1, wherein the one or more operational parameters comprise at least one of a frequency of operation, a body bias, a supply voltage, or a workload.
3. A method according to claim 1, wherein altering the one or more operational parameters of the electrical component comprises:
increasing a frequency of operation of the electrical component if the margin exceeds a predetermined threshold; and
decreasing the frequency of operation if the margin is below the predetermined threshold.
4. A method according to claim 1, wherein altering the one or more operational parameters of the electrical component comprises dynamically scaling at least one of a frequency of operation of or a supply voltage to the electrical component to optimize power consumption by and a performance requirement from the electrical component.
5. A method according to claim 1, wherein determining the margin comprises determining an extent to which an operational life of the electrical component has been depleted.
6. An apparatus comprising:
a voltage sensor to determine a plurality of supply voltages supplied to an electrical component;
a temperature sensor to determine a plurality of temperatures of the electrical component; and
a control unit to determine a margin, which reflects reliability of the electrical component and is allowed by current workload and environment conditions, and to alter one or more operational parameters of the electrical component based on the determined margin, wherein the determining comprises
comparing the plurality of supply voltages to a maximum supply voltage allowed; and
comparing the plurality of temperatures to a maximum temperature allowed, wherein the control unit further creates a reliability trending of the electrical component based on the plurality of supply voltages and the plurality of temperatures.
7. An apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the one or more operational parameters comprise at least one of a frequency of operation, a body bias, a supply voltage, or a workload.
8. An apparatus according to claim 6, further comprising:
a memory to store the plurality of supply voltages and the plurality of temperatures from the temperature sensor, and to provide the plurality of supply voltages and the plurality of temperatures to the control unit.
9. An apparatus according to claim 6, further comprising:
a body bias circuit coupled to the control unit, the body bias circuit to receive an instruction from the control unit to change a body bias voltage of the electrical component.
10. An apparatus according to claim 6, further comprising:
a voltage regulator coupled to the control unit, the voltage regulator to receive an instruction from the control unit to change a supply voltage supplied to the electrical component.
11. An apparatus according to claim 6, further comprising:
a clocking unit coupled to the control unit, the clocking unit to receive an instruction from the control unit to change a frequency of operation of the electrical component.
12. An apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the control unit increases a frequency of operation of the electrical component if the margin exceeds a predetermined threshold, and decreases the frequency of operation if the margin is below the predetermined threshold.
13. An apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the control unit dynamically scales at least one of a frequency of operation of or a supply voltage to the electrical component to optimize power consumption by and a performance requirement from the electrical component.
14. An apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the control unit determines an extent to which an operational life of the electrical component has been depleted.
15. A system comprising:
a microprocessor comprising:
a voltage sensor to determine a plurality of supply voltages supplied to the microprocessor;
a temperature sensor to determine a plurality of temperatures of the microprocessor; and
a control unit to determine a margin, which reflects reliability of the electrical component and is allowed by current workload and environment conditions, and to alter one or more operational parameters of the electrical component based on the determined margin, wherein the determining comprises
comparing the plurality of supply voltages to a maximum supply voltage allowed; and
comparing the plurality of temperatures to a maximum temperature allowed, wherein the control unit further creates a reliability trending of the electrical component based on the plurality of supply voltages and the plurality of temperatures; and
a double data rate memory coupled to the microprocessor.
16. A system according to claim 15, wherein the one or more operational parameters comprise at least one of a frequency of operation, a supply voltage, or a workload.
17. A system according to claim 15, wherein the control unit dynamically scales at least one of a frequency of operation of or a supply voltage to the electrical component to optimize power consumption by and a performance requirement from the electrical component.
18. A system according to claim 15, wherein the control unit determines an extent to which an operational life of the electrical component has been depleted.
19. A medium storing program code, the program code comprising:
code to acquire a plurality of supply voltages supplied to an electrical component;
code to acquire a plurality of temperatures of the electrical component;
code to determine a margin, which reflects reliability of the electrical component and is allowed by current workload and environment conditions, wherein the determining comprises
comparing the plurality of supply voltages to a maximum supply voltage allowed;
comparing the plurality of temperatures to a maximum temperature allowed; and
creating a reliability trending of the electrical component based on the plurality of supply voltages and the plurality of temperatures; and
code to alter one or more operational parameters of the electrical component based on the determined margin.
20. A medium according to claim 19, wherein the one or more operational parameters comprise at least one of a frequency of operation, a supply voltage, or a workload.
21. A medium according to claim 19, wherein the code to determine the margin comprises code to determine an extent to which an operational life of the electrical component has been depleted.
The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.
1. A method for making an article having an electronic device embedded therein comprising:
providing a substrate having first and second opposing broad planar surfaces;
forming an elongated electrical conductor on the first broad planar surface of the substrate;
attaching an electronic device to the first broad planar surface of the substrate;
providing a layer of melt-flowable adhesive proximate the first broad planar surface of the substrate, wherein the layer of melt-fiowable adhesive has a thickness that is substantially uniform and sufficient to cover the electronic device; and
melt flowing the melt-flowable adhesive to the first broad planar surface of the substrate to encapsulate the electronic device thereto in the substantially uniform thickness layer of melt-flowable adhesive;
wherein said forming an elongated electrical conductor includes depositing a loop antenna pattern of a conductive adhesive on the first broad planar surface of the substrate, and wherein said attaching an electrical device includes attaching at least one contact on the electronic device to one contact of the loop antenna pattern of conductive adhesive.
2. A method for making an article having an electronic device embedded therein comprising:
providing a substrate having first and second opposing broad planar surfaces;
attaching an electronic device to the first broad planar surface of the substrate;
providing a layer of melt-flowable adhesive proximate the first broad planar surface of the substrate, wherein the layer of melt-flowable adhesive has a thickness that is substantially uniform and sufficient to cover the electronic device; and
melt flowing the melt-flowable adhesive to the first broad planar surface of the substrate to encapsulate the electronic device thereto in the substantially uniform thickness layer of melt-flowable adhesive,
wherein said melt flowing includes heating the melt-flowable adhesive to a melt-flow temperature, which melt-flow temperature is less than a deformation temperature of the substrate and the card blank.
3. The method of claim 1 or 2 wherein said attaching an electronic device includes forming electrical connections between contact pads on the substrate and corresponding contact pads on the electronic device.
4. The method of claim 3 wherein said forming electrical connections includes at least one of forming a solder connection, forming a conductive adhesive connection and forming a flexible conductive adhesive connection.
5. The method of claim 3 wherein said forming electrical connections includes depositing a pattern of electrically conductive adhesive contact features corresponding to the pattern of contact pads of the electronic device onto the first broad planar surface of the substrate.
6. The method of claim 5 wherein said attaching an electronic device includes placing the contact pads of the electronic device against the corresponding contact features at a time when the conductive adhesive thereof is wet.
7. The method of claim 5 wherein said attaching an electronic device includes placing the contact pads of the electronic device against the corresponding contact features at a time after the conductive adhesive thereof is one of dried and B-staged.
8. The method of claim 1 or 2 wherein said providing a layer of melt-flowable adhesive includes forming the layer of melt-flowable adhesive on the first broad planar surface of the substrate after the electronic device is attached thereto.
9. The method of claim 8 wherein said forming the layer of melt-flowable adhesive includes one of sheet laminating, roll coating, screen printing, stenciling, masking, and ink-jet printing the melt-flowable adhesive.
10. The method of claim 2 further comprising forming an elongated electrical conductor on the first broad planar surface of the substrate.
11. The method of claim 10 wherein said forming an elongated electrical conductor includes depositing a pattern of a conductive adhesive on the first broad planar surface of the substrate.
12. The method of claim 11 wherein said attaching an electrical device includes attaching at least one contact on the electronic device to a location on the pattern of conductive adhesive.
13. The method of claim 1 or 2 wherein said melt flowing the melt-flowable adhesive comprises:
placing a card blank against the layer of melt-flowable adhesive; and
melt flowing the melt-flowable adhesive to attach the card blank to the substrate with the electronic device therebetween.
14. The method of claim 13 wherein said placing a card blank includes positioning a card blank having a cavity adapted for receiving an electronic device therein in a position with the cavity opposite the electronic device.
15. The method of claim 14 wherein said melt flowing includes pressing the substrate and the card blank together to position the electronic device in the cavity in the card blank.
16. The method of claim 1 or 2 wherein providing a substrate includes providing one of a strip and a panel of a plurality of substrates.
17. The method of claim 16 including separating the one of a strip and a panel of a plurality of substrates into a plurality of separate substrates after said melt flowing the melt-flowable adhesive.
18. A method for making an article having an electronic device embedded therein comprising:
providing a substrate having first and second opposing broad planar surfaces comprising one of a strip and a panel of a plurality of substrates;
attaching an electronic device to the first broad planar surface of the substrate;
providing a layer of melt-flowable adhesive proximate the first broad planar surface of the substrate, wherein the layer of melt-flowable adhesive has a thickness that is substantially uniform and sufficient to cover the electronic device; and
melt flowing the melt-flowable adhesive to the first broad planar surface of the substrate to encapsulate the electronic device thereto in the substantially uniform thickness layer of melt-flowable adhesive;
wherein said providing a layer of melt-flowable adhesive includes forming the layer of melt-flowable adhesive on the first broad planar surface of the provided one of a strip and a panel of substrates after the electronic device is attached thereto, and further including separating the provided one of a strip and a panel of a plurality of substrates into a plurality of separate substrates after said forming the layer of melt-flowable adhesive on the first broad planar surface thereof.
19. A method for making a plurality of articles each having an electronic device embedded therein comprising:
providing substrate material having first and second opposing broad planar surfaces, wherein the substrate material has a plurality of contact patterns on the first broad planar surface thereof;
attaching an electronic device having contacts to each of the plurality of contact patterns on the first broad planar surface of the substrate material;
providing a layer of melt-flowable adhesive proximate the first broad planar surface of the substrate material, wherein the layer of melt-flowable adhesive has a thickness that is substantially uniform and is sufficient to cover the plurality of electronic devices;
melt flowing the layer of melt-flowable adhesive to the first broad planar surface of the substrate material to encapsulate the electronic device thereto in the substantially uniform thickness layer of melt-flowable adhesive; and
after said melt flowing the melt-flowable adhesive, separating the broad planar substrate material into a plurality of separate articles wherein each separate article includes at least one of the plurality of electronic devices encapsulated to a substrate by a portion of the melt-flowed layer of melt-flowable adhesive.
20. The method of claim 19 further comprising:
placing plastic blank material opposing the layer of melt-flowable adhesive and the first surface of the broad planar substrate material with the electronic device between the substrate material and the plastic blank material; and wherein said melting the melt-flowable adhesive comprises:
attaching the plastic blank material and the broad planar substrate material with the layer of melt-flowable adhesive substantially filling the space therebetween to substantially encapsulate the electronic device,
wherein each separate article incldes at least one of the plurality of electronic devices encasulated on a substrate and a portion of the plastic blank material.
21. The method of claim 19 wherein said attaching an electronic device includes, for each electronic device, at least one of:
making electrical connections of the contacts of the electronic device to a loop antenna disposed on either the first or the second broad planar surface of the substrate material via one of the plurality of contact patterns on the first broad planar surface of the substrate material; and
making electrical connections of the contacts of the electronic device to a pattern of external contacts on the second broad planar surface of the substrate material via one of the plurality of contact patterns on the first broad planar surface of the substrate material.
22. The method of claim 21 wherein said making electrical connections includes at least one of forming a solder connection, forming a conductive adhesive connection and forming a flexible conductive adhesive connection.
23. The method of claim 19 wherein said providing a layer of melt-flowable adhesive includes one of sheet laminating, roll coating, screen printing, stenciling, masking, and ink-jet printing the melt-flowable adhesive on the first broad planar surface of the substrate material.