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Energy-efficient memory tracing for state retention in transient computing systems

Energy-efficient memory tracing for state retention in transient computing systems
Energy-efficient memory tracing for state retention in transient computing systems
Transient computing systems, also known as intermittent computing systems, are batteryless systems powered by energy harvesting (EH) sources that do not require large energy storage for system operations. Instead, they rely on retaining their state, i.e. a snapshot, in non-volatile memory (NVM) in the event of a power outage and restoring it when the power recovers. In this paper, we first discuss the limitations of state-of-the-art techniques that attempt to minimize the amount of system state saved to NVM. Therefore, we propose a novel energy-efficient system-level approach for state retention through memory tracing based on a custom hardware module named MeTra that traces changes in the main (volatile) memory between power outages. MeTra allows the voltage threshold that activates the state retention process to be dynamically adjusted according to the energy requirement of each snapshot. Thus, a great proportion of the energy harvested can be spent on useful operations. Experimental results show that the system’s active time can be extended up to 17x for Flash-based systems and 92.2% for FRAM-based systems, compared to saving the entire system state, with an area overhead of as little as 2.48%.
transient computing, state retention, memory tracing, energy harvesting, energy efficiency
Verykios, Theodoros D.
fc203333-af9c-48e6-b7d6-f22d8cf60636
Balsamo, Domenico
9cfdb7ce-3fa9-49a5-b119-77897d6db64d
Merrett, Geoff
89b3a696-41de-44c3-89aa-b0aa29f54020
Verykios, Theodoros D.
fc203333-af9c-48e6-b7d6-f22d8cf60636
Balsamo, Domenico
9cfdb7ce-3fa9-49a5-b119-77897d6db64d
Merrett, Geoff
89b3a696-41de-44c3-89aa-b0aa29f54020

Verykios, Theodoros D., Balsamo, Domenico and Merrett, Geoff (2023) Energy-efficient memory tracing for state retention in transient computing systems. 9th IEEE International Workshop on Advances in Sensors and Interfaces, Il Melograno Hotel, Monopoli, Italy. 08 - 09 Jun 2023. 6 pp . (In Press)

Record type: Conference or Workshop Item (Paper)

Abstract

Transient computing systems, also known as intermittent computing systems, are batteryless systems powered by energy harvesting (EH) sources that do not require large energy storage for system operations. Instead, they rely on retaining their state, i.e. a snapshot, in non-volatile memory (NVM) in the event of a power outage and restoring it when the power recovers. In this paper, we first discuss the limitations of state-of-the-art techniques that attempt to minimize the amount of system state saved to NVM. Therefore, we propose a novel energy-efficient system-level approach for state retention through memory tracing based on a custom hardware module named MeTra that traces changes in the main (volatile) memory between power outages. MeTra allows the voltage threshold that activates the state retention process to be dynamically adjusted according to the energy requirement of each snapshot. Thus, a great proportion of the energy harvested can be spent on useful operations. Experimental results show that the system’s active time can be extended up to 17x for Flash-based systems and 92.2% for FRAM-based systems, compared to saving the entire system state, with an area overhead of as little as 2.48%.

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More information

Accepted/In Press date: 10 April 2023
Venue - Dates: 9th IEEE International Workshop on Advances in Sensors and Interfaces, Il Melograno Hotel, Monopoli, Italy, 2023-06-08 - 2023-06-09
Keywords: transient computing, state retention, memory tracing, energy harvesting, energy efficiency

Identifiers

Local EPrints ID: 476733
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/476733
PURE UUID: f66ba69a-c57a-4426-b802-b74bbbe6e342
ORCID for Geoff Merrett: ORCID iD orcid.org/0000-0003-4980-3894

Catalogue record

Date deposited: 12 May 2023 16:55
Last modified: 11 May 2024 04:03

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Contributors

Author: Theodoros D. Verykios
Author: Domenico Balsamo
Author: Geoff Merrett ORCID iD

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