US 6,119,245 AGranted

Semiconductor storage device and method of controlling it

AssigneeOki Electric Industry Co., Ltd.

InventorShinji Hiratsuka

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Abstract

The aim is to improve reliability and life of a semiconductor storage device using memory elements for which deterioration is a problem. In a semiconductor disk device equipped with a flash memory section 110 having memory elements M(0).about.M(9) having a plurality of sectors used as ordinary sectors or spare sectors, and a disk controller section 120 that performs data writing/reading in respect of memory elements M(0).about.M(9) in accordance with address information input from outside, there are provided a data error information management table 127 that stores for each memory element the situation regarding occurrence of write/read error of memory elements M(0).about.M(9), a micro CPU 131 that detects deterioration of memory elements in accordance with the situation regarding occurrence of write/read error stored in data error information management table 127, and an address conversion table 128 that effects conversion of address information such that memory elements M(0).about.M(9) for which deterioration has been detected by micro CPU 131 are not used.

Claims20

Dependent claims

A semiconductor storage device comprising:

a storage section comprising a plurality of memory elements having a plurality of sectors that are used as ordinary sectors and spare sectors, wherein said memory elements are accessed in accordance with a first memory number indicated in a first address information;
an input section for inputting an externally received second address information which indicates a second memory number;
an address conversion table for storing conversion information which indicates a relationship between said first memory numbers and said second memory numbers, and for converting said second address information into said first address information by using said conversion information;
a control section for performing writing/reading of data to said memory elements in accordance with said first memory number indicated in said first address information obtained by said address conversion table;
a data error information management table for storing error data indicative of an occurrence of write/read errors of said memory elements;
and
a deterioration detection section for detecting a deterioration of said memory elements in accordance with said error data stored in said data error information management table, and for rewriting a first memory number of said address conversion table such that a memory element that is detected as being deteriorated by said deterioration detection section is not used.

4 more elements

A method of controlling a semiconductor storage device, said method comprising:

storing error data indicative of an occurrence of write/read errors of a plurality of memory elements in a data error information management table, each of said memory elements having a plurality of sectors employed as ordinary sectors and as spare sectors, wherein said memory elements are accessed in accordance with a first memory number indicated in a first address information;
detecting a deterioration of said memory elements using a deterioration detection section in accordance with said error data stored in said data error information management table;
receiving an externally supplied second address information containing a second address number;
converting said second address information into said first address information by altering said second memory number into said first memory number by accessing an address conversion table which stores information indicating a relationship between said first memory numbers and said second memory numbers;
performing writing/reading of data to said memory elements in accordance with a first address number indicated in said first address information converted in said converting step;
and
rewriting said first memory number of said address conversion table such that a memory element that is detected to have deteriorated by said deterioration detection section is not used.

4 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.