Abstract: A hot reconfigurable parallel bus bridging circuit is provided in a computer system which enables the computer system to communicate, via a peripheral port, with any one of plurality of incompatible standardized parallel bus systems. The hot reconfigurability of the bridging circuit of the present invention is accomplished using software to reconfigure or reprogram the various combinational logic gates, wait-state generators, and registers of the bridging circuit while the computer system is operating, without removing the bridging circuit from the computer system. The flexible hardware architecture of the present invention allows the computer system which houses this hardware to communicate with virtually any type of parallel bus system.

Abstract: A dynamic power management device for supplying power to a solid state memory integrated circuit includes power control circuitry for supplying a variable voltage to the memory integrated circuit and logic control circuitry responsive to data access activity for generating address and control signals for the memory integrated circuit and for controlling the power control circuitry to supply power to the memory integrated circuit sufficient to maintain memory information in the memory integrated circuit during periods of no data access activity and sufficient to exchange memory information with the memory integrated circuit during periods of data access activity. Power consumption of the memory integrated circuit is thereby curtailed.

Abstract: A method for controlling a rotating disk magnetic data storage device employing several reduced power modes which are automatically entered and exited under the control of the rotating disk device microcontroller. Two modes are provided which are fully responsive to host computer commands, and are thereby transparent to the host computer user, all providing significant power savings. An additional full power down mode is provided which can be initiated by a command from the host computer user, wherein the operational state parameters of the rotating disk device are stored in the host computer until the host computer powers on the device. At this time the stored state parameter are restored into the rotating disk device allowing it to resume its operational state immediately prior to the power suspension.