Hewlett-Packard Company

Donna E Ott

Guy R Wagner

John P Hoppal

Dennis L Floyd

A configuration based cooling fan speed controller for use with computers and other heat intensive electronic devices. Methods of using and manufacturing the controller are also disclosed. The cooling fan speed controller generally comprises a EEPROM coupled with firmware controls. If the controller is set in manual mode, a speed input by the computer's manufacturer or service provider is used to set the starting speeds of a device's cooling fans. If the controller is set in auto mode, the device's configuration is detected, and cooling fan start speeds are retrieved from a fan speed table stored in the EEPROM. Once the lowest operating speeds for a device's cooling fans have been selected, the speeds of the device's cooling fans are ramped up or down in response to the temperature sensed by an ambient air temperature sensor. The invention holds audible fan noise to a minimum. The invention also gives a manufacturer the ability to write an appropriate fan speed table into a controller's EEPROM at any stage in the manufacturing process. A single fan type may therefore be placed in a variety of electronic devices, and programmed for a variety of uses.

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Fort Collins, CO, United States of America

Donna E Ott