Arbitration scheme for shared memory device
AssigneeSamsung Electronics Co., Ltd.
InventorYoung-Min Lee
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
For arbitrating access to a shared memory device among a plurality of masters, a master generates a request for access signal that is sent to the arbitrator concurrently with an indispensable command such as an auto-refresh command that is generated in series. The arbitrator generates an acknowledge signal sent to the master for indicating approval or rejection for access. Existing pins of the master are used for transmission of such arbitration signals.
Claims26
A master that arbitrates for access to a shared memory device, the master comprising:
- a data processor;
- and
- a master memory device having sequences of instructions stored thereon, wherein execution of the sequences of instructions by the data processor causes the data processor to perform the steps of:
- controlling generation of a series of an indispensable command that is sent to an arbitrator, wherein any activation with a transition of a logical state of a request for access signal is synchronized to a respective generation of the indispensable command such that said activation of the request for access signal is latched within the arbitrator with a respective detection of said respective generated indispensable command;
- controlling generation of the request for access signal that is sent to the arbitrator together with one indispensable command in the series;
- and
- controlling generation of another request for access signal that is sent to the arbitrator together with a subsequent one of the indispensable command in the series when said request that was previously generated is rejected such that a respective approval or rejection for each request for access signal is synchronized to the series of indispensable commands.
A system for arbitrating access to a memory device among a plurality of masters, comprising:
- an arbitrator;
- and
- a master that regularly generates a series of an indispensable command that is sent to the arbitrator, and wherein the master generates a request for access signal that is sent to the arbitrator together with one indispensable command in the series,
- and wherein any activation with a transition of a logical state of the request for access signal is synchronized to a respective generation of the indispensable command such that said activation of the request for access signal is latched within the arbitrator with a respective detection of said respective generated indispensable command,
- and wherein the master generates another request for access signal that is sent to the arbitrator together with a subsequent one of the indispensable command in the series when said request that was previously generated is rejected such that a respective approval or rejection for each request for access signal is synchronized to the series of indispensable commands.
A method of arbitrating access to a memory device among a plurality of masters, comprising:
- generating, by a master, a series of an indispensable command that is sent to an arbitrator;
- generating, by the master, a request for access signal that is sent to the arbitrator together with one indispensable command in the series,
- wherein any activation with a transition of a logical state of the request for access signal is synchronized to a respective generation of the indispensable command such that said activation of the request for access signal is latched within the arbitrator with a respective detection of said respective generated indispensable command;
- and
- generating, by the master, another request for access signal that is sent to the arbitrator together with a subsequent one of the indispensable command in the series when said request that was previously generated is rejected such that a respective approval or rejection for each request for access signal is synchronized to the series of indispensable commands.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.