Adaptive voltage scaling (AVS) is a closed-loop dynamic power minimization technique that adjusts the voltage supplied to a computer chip to match the chip's power needs during operation. Many computer chips, especially those in mobile devices or Internet of things devices are constrained by the power available (for example, they are limited to the power stored in a battery) and face varying workloads. In other situations a chip may be constrained by the amount of heat it is allowed to generate. In addition, individual chips can vary in their efficiency due to many factors, including minor differences in manufacturing conditions. AVS allows the voltage supplied to the chip, and therefore its power consumption, to be continuously adjusted to be appropriate to the workload and the parameters of the specific chip. This is accomplished by integrating a device that monitors the performance of the chip (a hardware performance manager) into the chip, which then provides information to a power controller.
AVS is similar in its goal to dynamic voltage scaling (DVS) and dynamic voltage and frequency scaling (DVFS). All three approaches aim to reduce power usage and heat generation. However AVS adapts the voltage directly to the conditions on the chip, allowing it to address real-time power requirements as well as chip-to-chip variations and changes in performance that occur as the chip ages.