Patent attributes
Methods and systems are disclosed for automatically tracking and controlling the capacity ratings of UPS units. The methods and systems provide a central server or repository for storing the capacity ratings, grant kVA and grant code authorized for each UPS unit along with a unique security key for each unit. When a customer purchases a capacity upgrade, the server updates the capacity rating for the customer's unit and issues an upgrade grant that includes the new rating and the grant code. The upgrade grant may thereafter be downloaded by a service technician and used to upgrade the unit. Alternatively, the upgrade grant may be downloaded directly to the UPS unit, and the unit's software and/or firmware may perform the upgrade automatically. In either case, the upgrade may be performed through a software modification, thus eliminating the need for the technician to physically swap out hardware. Such an arrangement helps ensure that only authorized capacity upgrades are performed.
