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US 12,670,966 B2Granted
Device data path monitor
AssigneeMicron Technology, Inc.
InventorLeon Zlotnik
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A processor determines whether a device is in an inactive state and, responsive to determining that the device is in the inactive state, accesses a number of addresses of the device. The processor monitors output data generated by the device responsive to the number of addresses to determine whether accessing one or more of the number of addresses results in an error. The output data is provided by the device along a path. The output data is continuously monitored when the device is in the inactive state. The processor performs an action responsive to determining that there is an error of the device.
Claims20
An apparatus, comprising:
- a device;
- a processor coupled to the device and configured to:
- determine whether the device is in an inactive state;
- responsive to determining that the device is in the inactive state, alternate access of a number of addresses of the device by toggling between the number of addresses based on a clock signal, wherein memory cells of the device having the number of addresses store output data comprising predefined bit-value patterns;
- monitor the output data, to monitor a read path of the device, generated by the device responsive to the number of addresses to determine whether accessing one or more of the number of addresses results in an error in the output data,
- wherein the output data is provided by the device along a data path, and
- wherein the output data is continuously monitored when the device is in the inactive state;
- and
- perform an action responsive to determining that there is an error in the read path of the device based on the error in the output data.
6 more elements
A method, comprising:
- monitoring whether a device is in an idle state based on a memory enable (ME) signal, wherein the ME signal having a first state corresponds to the device being in the idle state in which the device is not actively processing host read commands, and the ME signal having a second state corresponds to the device being in a non-idle state in which the device is configured to actively process host read commands;
- responsive to the ME signal having the second state, read, from the device, data stored at a functional address corresponding to a received host read command;
- responsive to the ME signal having the first state corresponding to the device being in the idle state, perform a read path monitor operation that includes:
- selecting a first monitored address of a plurality of monitored addresses of the device to read;
- reading monitored data stored at the first monitored address;
- performing an error detection operation on the monitored data stored at the first monitored address to determine whether the monitored data has an error;
- performing a reporting operation to report an error in a read path of the device responsive to detecting the error in the monitored data stored at the first monitored address;
- and
- while the device remains in the idle state:
- continuing to perform additional read operations by cycling through the plurality of monitored addresses.
7 more elements
An apparatus, comprising:
- a device;
- a processor coupled to the device and configured to:
- determine whether the device is inactive based on a memory enable (ME) signal, wherein the ME signal having a first state corresponds to the device being in the idle state in which the device is not actively processing host read commands, and the ME signal having a second state corresponds to the device being in a non-idle state in which the device is configured to actively process host read commands;
- responsive to the ME signal having the second state, read, from the device, data stored at a functional address corresponding to a received host read command;
- responsive to the ME signal having the first state corresponding to the device being in the idle state, perform a read path monitor operation that includes:
- alternate providing a first address and a second address of a command utilizing a plurality of multiplexors (MUX), repetitively over a period of time and wherein memory cells of the device having the first address and the second address store monitored data comprising predefined bit-value patterns;
- monitor the monitored data from the device generated responsive to receipt of the first address or the second address to determine whether there is an error associated with a data path of the device, wherein the monitored data comprises predefined bit-value patterns;
- and
- perform an action responsive to determining that there is an error associated with the data path of the device.
6 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.