Patent · US Expired

Time allocation shared memory arbitration for disk drive controller

US6178486A · kind A · utility

95Cited by
12References
13Claims
0Family size

Assignee

Inventors

Key dates

Filing dateFeb 19, 1998
Grant dateJan 23, 2001
Priority date
Expiry dateFeb 19, 2018

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC G)Physics
  • CPC primaryG06F13/385
  • WIPO fieldComputer technology
  • WIPO sectorElectrical engineering

Abstract

A method and apparatus for arbitrating requests for access to a single buffer memory embedded within a disk drive in which a disk data channel is assigned a highest priority for buffer access within a queue. An arbitration cycle progressively services access requests pending within the queue, beginning with providing buffer access to the disk data channel and following with accesses to other channels during an arbitration cycle completion interval in accordance with a round-robin circular priority arrangement providing orderly access to all channels contending for memory access. At the end of completion interval, buffer access returns to the disk data channel, and thereafter, the arbitration cycle is repeated.

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