Patent ID: 7515996

Claim:
An apparatus for monitoring and controlling environmental and operating conditions of an integrated circuit (IC) in which the apparatus is located, the apparatus comprising: supply voltage measurement logic configured to measure a supply voltage of the IC; process speed measurement logic configured to measure a process speed of the IC; temperature measurement logic configured to measure a temperature of the IC; processing logic configured to receive respective indications of the supply voltage, the process speed and the temperature from the measurement logic and to process the indications to generate a supply voltage control signal, a process speed control signal, and a temperature control signal; supply voltage control logic configured to control the supply voltage of the IC in response to receiving the supply voltage control signal from the processing logic; process speed control logic configured to control the process speed of the IC in response to receiving the process speed control signal from the processing logic; and temperature control logic configured to control the temperature of the IC in response to receiving the temperature control signal from the processing logic, wherein the processing logic includes fuzzy logic that processes the respective indications in accordance with a prioritization algorithm that generates control signals that control the supply voltage, process speed and temperature of the IC to prevent damage to the IC while maintaining proper functionality of the IC.