Effectiveness Analysis of DVFS and DPM in Mobile Devices

• Published in: Journal of computer science and technology Vol. 27; no. 4; pp. 781 - 790
• Main Authors: Seo, Youngbin, Kim, Jeongki, Seo, Euiseong
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Boston Springer US 01-07-2012; Springer Nature B.V; Computer Science and Engineering Major, University of Science and Technology, 217 Gajeong-ro, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon 305-350, Korea%Electronics and Communications Research Institute, 138 Gajengno, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon, Korea%College of Information and Communication Engineering, Sungkyunkwan University, 2066 Seubu-ro, Jangan-gu Suwon 440-746, Korea
• Subjects: Adaptive control; Adaptive control systems; Algorithms; Analysis; Artificial Intelligence; Batteries; Computer Science; Consumption; Cost control; Data Structures and Information Theory; Demand; DPM; Effectiveness; Electronics; Embedded computer systems; Embedded systems; Energy; Energy management; Information Systems Applications (incl.Internet); Interface cards; Management; Marketing; Measurement techniques; Microprocessors; Multimedia; Network interface cards; Operating systems; Portable computers; Power; Power consumption; Power management; Preliminary designs; Processors; Regular Paper; Science; Smartphones; Software Engineering; Speed control; Studies; Theory of Computation; Time series; Time synchronization; 嵌入式处理器; 性能要求; 效果分析; 移动多媒体; 移动电子产品; 移动设备; 能源效率; power management; battery management; smart phone; dynamic voltage scaling; energy efficiency
• ISSN: 1000-9000; 1860-4749
• DOI: 10.1007/s11390-012-1264-6

The demand for high-performance embedded processors in multimedia mobile electronics is growing and their power consumption thus increasingly threatens battery lifetime. It is usually believed that the dynamic voltage and frequency scaling （DVFS） feature saves significant energy by changing the performance levels of processors to match the performance demands of applications on the fly. However, because the energy efficiency of embedded processors is rapidly improving, the effectiveness of DVFS is expected to change. In this paper, we analyze the benefit of DVFS in state-of-the-art mobile embedded platforms in comparison to those in servers or PCs. To obtain a clearer view of the relationship between power and performance, we develop a measurement methodology that can synchronize time series for power consumption with those for processor utilization. The results show that DVFS hardly improves the energy efficiency of mobile multimedia electronics, and can even significantly worsen energy efficiency and performance in some cases. According to this observation, we suggest that power management for mobile electronics should concentrate on adaptive and intelligent power management for peripherM devices. As a preliminary design, we implement an adaptive network interface card （NIC） speed control that reduces power consumption by 1070 when NIC is not heavily used. Our results provide valuable insights into the design of power management schemes for future mobile embedded systems.