Methods for controlling data transfer speed of a data storage device and a host device utilizing the same

• US 10,452,122 B2
• Filed: 11/27/2017
• Issued: 10/22/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 12/07/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Silicon Motion, Inc. (Silicon Motion)
• Original Assignee: Silicon Motion, Inc. (Silicon Motion)
• Inventors: Shih, Fu-Jen, Chen, Yen-Hung
• Primary Examiner(s): Chen, Xuxing
• Application Number:
  US15/823,328
• Publication Number:
  US 20180157309A1
• Time in Patent Office: 694 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/3225 of memory devices
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/3253 Power saving in bus
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/3275 Power saving in memory, e.g. RAM, cache
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/3296 by lowering the supply or operating voltage
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 13/1673 using buffers
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 13/28 using burst mode transfer, e.g. direct memory access DMA, cycle steal G06F13/32 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0625 Power saving in storage systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0634 by changing the state or mode of one or more devices
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0653 Monitoring storage devices or systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0659 Command handling arrangements, e.g. command buffers, queues, command scheduling
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/068 Hybrid storage device
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 10/00 Energy efficient computing, e.g. low power processors, power management or thermal management

Abstract

A data storage device coupled to a host device via a predetermined interface includes a memory device, an SRAM, and a controller. The controller is coupled to the memory device and the SRAM. The controller receives a first power mode change request packet requesting to change the data transfer speed of the predetermined interface from a first speed to a second speed via the predetermined interface from the host device, and in response to the first power mode change request packet, the controller determines whether the operation status of the data storage device is busy. When the operation status of the data storage device is busy, the controller determines to reject the request to change the data transfer speed and keeps the data transfer speed at the first speed and does not change the data transfer speed to the second speed.

Claims

1. A data storage device, coupled to a host device via a predetermined interface, comprising:

a memory device;

an SRAM; and

a controller, coupled to the memory device and the SRAM,

wherein the controller receives a first power mode change request packet requesting to change a data transfer speed of the predetermined interface from a first speed to a second speed via the predetermined interface from the host device, and in response to the first power mode change request packet, the controller determines whether an operation status of the data storage device is busy, and

wherein when the operation status of the data storage device is busy, the controller determines to reject the request to change the data transfer speed and keeps the data transfer speed at the first speed and does not change the data transfer speed to the second speed.

2. The data storage device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the controller further transmits a first power mode change confirm packet to the host device via the predetermined interface for responding to the first power mode change request packet, and wherein when the controller determines that the operation status of the data storage device is busy, the controller sets a status field of the first power mode change confirm packet to busy.

3. The data storage device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the controller determines whether the operation status of the data storage device is busy according to utilization of the SRAM, remaining transmission bandwidth of the memory device, and/or data throughput of the memory device.

4. The data storage device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the controller further stores the data carried in the first power mode change request packet in the SRAM, and when the controller determines that the operation status of the data storage device becomes normal, the controller further transmits a second power mode change request packet to the host device to request to change the data transfer speed of the predetermined interface from the first speed to the second speed.

5. The data storage device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the memory device is a Universal Flash Storage (UFS).

6. A method for controlling data transfer speed, comprising:

receiving, by a controller of a data storage device, a first power mode change request packet from a host device via a predetermined interface, wherein in the first power mode change request packet, the data storage device is requested to change the data transfer speed of the predetermined interface from a first speed to a second speed;

determining, using the controller, whether the operation status of the data storage device is busy; and

when the operation status of the data storage device is busy, determining, using the controller, to reject the request to change the data transfer speed, and keeping the data transfer speed at the first speed without changing the data transfer speed to the second speed.

7. The method as claimed in claim 6, further comprising:

transmitting, using the controller, a first power mode change confirm packet to the host device via the predetermined interface for responding to the first power mode change request packet,

wherein when the operation status of the data storage device is busy, a status field of the power mode change confirm packet is set to busy by the controller.

8. The method as claimed in claim 6, wherein whether the operation status of the data storage device is busy is determined by the controller according to the utilization of the SRAM, the remaining transmission bandwidth of the memory device, and/or the data throughput of the memory device.

9. The method as claimed in claim 6, further comprising:

storing the data carried in the first power mode change request packet in an SRAM of the data storage device.

10. The method as claimed in claim 6, further comprising:

continuing to monitor the operation status of the data storage device by the controller,

wherein when the operation status of the data storage device becomes normal, transmitting, using the controller, a second power mode change request packet to the host device to request to change the data transfer speed of the predetermined interface from the first speed to the second speed.