MULTIPATH ACCESSIBLE SEMICONDUCTOR MEMORY DEVICE

• US 20080256305A1
• Filed: 03/24/2008
• Published: 10/16/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 04/11/2007
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: LEE, Dong-Woo, KWON, Jin-Hyoung, SOHN, Han-Gu
• Application Number:
  US12/053,742
• Publication Number:
  US 20080256305A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 711/147
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 15/167 using a common memory, e.g. mailbox
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2212/2022 Flash memory

Abstract

A multipath accessible semiconductor memory device provides an interfacing function between multiple processors which indirectly controls a flash memory. The multipath accessible semiconductor memory device comprises a shared memory area, an internal register and a control unit. The shared memory area is accessed by first and second processors through different ports and is allocated to a portion of a memory cell array. The internal register is located outside the memory cell array and is accessed by the first and second processors. The control unit provides storage of address map data associated with the flash memory outside the shared memory area so that the first processor indirectly accesses the flash memory by using the shared memory area and the internal register even when only the second processor is coupled to the flash memory. The control unit also controls a connection path between the shared memory area and one of the first and second processors. The processors share the flash memory and a multiprocessor system is provided that has a compact size, thereby substantially reducing the cost of memory utilized within the multiprocessor system.

Claims

1. A semiconductor memory device comprising:

a shared memory area accessed by first and second processors via different input/output ports, said shared memory area allocated to a portion of a memory cell array;

an internal register located outside the memory cell array and accessed by the first and second processors; and

a control unit configured to control the storage of address map data associated with a flash memory such that the first processor indirectly accesses the flash memory by using the shared memory area and the internal register even when only the second processor is coupled to the flash memory, said control unit further configured to operationally connect the shared memory area to one of the first and second processors.

2. The device of claim 1 wherein the memory cell array has dedicated memory areas accessible exclusively by the either the first or second processor.

3. The device of claim 1 wherein the internal register is accessed substitutively corresponding to a specific address of the share memory area.

4. The device of claim 1 wherein the address map data comprises a logical address of the flash memory and a physical address mapped to the logical address.

5. The device of claim 3 wherein the internal register comprises a semaphore area and mailbox areas distinguished by a column address.

6. The device of claim 1 wherein the shared memory area is formed of DRAM cells and the internal register is constructed of a flip-flop.

7. The device of claim 4 wherein the first processor applies the physical address corresponding to the logical address of the flash memory to the internal register when accessing the flash memory.

8. The device of claim 4 wherein the first processor applies the logical address of the flash memory intact to the internal register when accessing the flash memory.

9. The device of claim 5 further comprising a transmission mailbox area within said mailbox areas, said first processor is configured to write write-data to the shared memory area, first processor further configured to store the physical address of the flash memory, a data size associated with the write-data, an address of the shared memory area where the write-data is written, and a write command to said transmission mailbox area.

10. The device of claim 9, wherein the second processor acquires a use priority for the shared memory area, and accesses the transmission mailbox to read the write-data from the shared memory area, said second processor writing the write-data to the physical address of the flash memory.

11. A semiconductor memory for use with a first and second processor, said second processor being coupled to a first flash memory device, said semiconductor memory comprising:

a shared memory area defined by a memory bank of a memory cell array, said shared memory area selectively accessed by the first and second processors via corresponding input/output ports, said shared memory array configured to store address map data associated with said flash memory device;

an interfacing unit located outside the memory cell array and selectively accessed by the first and second processors, said interfacing unit configured to provide a specific address of the shared memory area so that the first processor accesses the flash memory through the shared memory area; and

a control unit configured to form a data access path between a first of said input ports and the shared memory area in response to an external signal applied from the first and second processors.

12. The device of claim 11 wherein the interfacing unit comprises:

a semaphore area; and

first and second mailbox areas distinguished by a column address.

13. The device of claim 12 wherein the memory cell array includes dedicated memory areas individually accessed by the first and second processors.

14. The device of claim 13 wherein the address map data contains a logical address associated with the flash memory and a physical address mapped to the logical address.

15. The device of claim 12 wherein the first processor is further configured to write a physical address of flash memory, a data size, a designated address of the shared memory area into which read data will enter, and a read command to the first mailbox area.

16. The device of claim 15 wherein the second processor is configured to acquire a use priority associated with the shared memory area, said second processor accessing the first mailbox area to read data from the physical address of the flash memory, said second processor further configured to write the read-data to the designated address of the shared memory area.

17. The device of claim 12 wherein the first processor is configured to write write-data to the shared memory area, said first processor writing a logical address of the flash memory, a data size, an address of the shared memory area where the write-data was written, and a write command to the first mailbox area.

18. The device of claim 17, wherein the second processor is configured to acquire a use priority associated with the shared memory area, said second processor further configured to access the first mailbox area to read the write data from the shared memory area, said second processor searches for a physical address corresponding to the logical address of the flash memory from address map data stored in the shared memory area, said second processor writing the write data to the flash memory.

19. The device of claim 12 wherein the first processor writes a logical address of the flash memory, a data size, a designated address of the shared memory area into which read data will enter, and a read command to the first mailbox area.

20. The device of claim 19 wherein the second processor is configured to acquire a use priority for the shared memory area and subsequently reading the first mailbox area to search for a physical address corresponding to the logical address of the flash memory from the shared memory area, said second processor further configured to read data from the flash memory and writing the read data to the designated address of the shared memory area.

21. A drive method of a semiconductor memory device which includes a shared memory area and an internal register each accessible to first and second processors, the method comprising:

storing address map data associated with a flash memory in the shared memory area; and

operationally connecting the shared memory area to one of the first and second processors such that the first processor indirectly accesses the flash memory by using the shared memory area and the internal register even when only the second processor is coupled to the flash memory.

22. A method of writing data to a flash memory through a semiconductor memory device which includes a shared memory area of a memory cell array and an internal register each accessible to first and second processors, the method comprising:

during an initial booting of a system having the flash memory, allowing the second processor to load address map data associated with the flash memory to the shared memory area from the second processor;

allowing the first process to write write-data to the shared memory area from the first processor;

allowing the first processor to write a physical address of the flash memory, a data size, a designated address of the shared memory area where the write-data was written, and a write command to a transmission mailbox area included in the mailbox areas;

allowing the second processor to access the transmission mailbox area to read the write-data from the designated address of the shared memory area; and

allowing the second processor to write the write-data to the physical address of the read flash memory.

23. A mobile communication system comprising:

a first processor for performing a first determined task;

a second processor for performing a second determined task;

a flash memory coupled to the second processor; and

an integrated dynamic random access memory including a shared memory area, an internal register and a control unit, the shared memory area being accessed by the first and second processors through different ports and allocated to a portion of a memory cell array, the internal register being located outside the memory cell array and accessed by the first and second processors, the control unit storing address map data of the flash memory in the shared memory area such that the first processor indirectly accesses the flash memory by using the shared memory area and the internal register, said control unit configured to control a communication path to operationally connect the shared memory area to one of the first and second processors.