Patent · US Expired

Method and circuitry for increasing reserve memory in a solid state memory disk

US5586285A · kind A · utility

111Cited by
17References
24Claims
0Family size

Assignee

Inventors

Key dates

Filing dateFeb 19, 1993
Grant dateDec 17, 1996
Priority date
Expiry dateFeb 19, 2013

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC Y)Emerging Cross-Sectional Technologies
  • CPC primaryY02D10/00
  • WIPO fieldComputer technology
  • WIPO sectorElectrical engineering

Abstract

A solid state memory disk with increased reserve memory is described. The solid state memory disk includes an array of solid state memory devices for storing user data and reserve memory, which includes both free memory and dirty memory. The solid state memory disk also includes a controller, a clean-up state machine, and a data compressor. The data compressor increases reserve memory by compressing data received from a host and coupling compressed data to the array of memory devices under the control of the controller. In response to write commands from the host, the controller writes a first sector data, which has been compressed, to a first location in a first block within a memory device. Reserve memory within the array is thus increased, so long as the maximum number of sectors the host is allowed to write is less the average compression ratio of the data compressor multiplied by the capacity of the solid state disk. A method of increasing reserve memory in a solid state disk is also described.

Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.