A power supply unit (system power supply IC) has a multiplicity of power supply
circuits providing for different supply voltages. Should an abnormal condition
take place in any of the multiple power supply circuits, the power supply circuit
suffering the abnormality issues an abnormality detection signal that contains
a power supply circuit number and an abnormality type, which signal is stored in
a nonvolatile memory together with time data indicative of the time of reception
of the abnormality detection signal before all the power supply circuits are disabled.
Thus, this arrangement protects the system power supply IC and the loads connected
thereto, and provides convenient means for analyzing the abnormality and replicating
it if necessary, based on the abnormal power supply circuit number, abnormality
type and time data stored in the nonvolatile memory.