METHOD OF WEAR LEVELING FOR A NON-VOLATILE MEMORY

• US 20090254729A1
• Filed: 04/07/2008
• Published: 10/08/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 04/07/2008
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Skymedi Corporation
• Original Assignee: Skymedi Corporation
• Inventors: LIN, CHIEN CHENG, HUANG, HSIN JEN, YEN, CHIH NAN, SHONE, FUJA, TAI, SHIH CHIEH
• Application Number:
  US12/098,741
• Publication Number:
  US 20090254729A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 711/170
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 12/0246 in block erasable memory, e.g. flash memory
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2212/7207 management of metadata or control data
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2212/7211 Wear leveling

Abstract

According to the method of wear leveling for a non-volatile memory of the present invention, the non-volatile memory is divided into a plurality of windows, and a mapping table is built in which the logical block addresses having frequently accessed data are allocated equally to the plurality of windows. The logical block addresses may store a File Allocation Table (FAT) or a directory table; therefore the windows they locate will be written or erased more frequently. In an embodiment, the logical block addresses having frequently accessed data are allocated on a one-to-one basis to the plurality of windows. For example, the plurality of windows may comprise Windows 0, 1, 2 and 3, the logical block addresses comprise logical block addresses 0, 1, 2 and 3, and logical block addresses 0, 1, 2 and 3 point to Windows 0, 1, 2 and 3, respectively.

Claims

1. A method of wear leveling for a non-volatile memory, comprising the steps of:

dividing the non-volatile memory into a plurality of windows; and

allocating logical block addresses having frequently accessed data to the plurality of windows equally.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the logical block addresses store the File Allocation Table (FAT).

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the logical block addresses store the directory table.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the logical block addresses having frequently accessed data point to the plurality of windows on a one-to-one basis.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality windows comprise four windows, the logical block addresses comprise four logical block addresses, and the four logical block addresses point on a one-to-one basis to the four windows.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of windows comprise Windows 0, 1, 2 and 3, the logical block addresses comprise logical block addresses 0, 1, 2 and 3, and logical block addresses 0, 1, 2 and 3 point to Windows 0, 1, 2 and 3, respectively.

7. A method of wear leveling for a non-volatile memory, comprising the steps of:

dividing the non-volatile memory into a plurality of windows; and

building a mapping table allocating logical block addresses having frequently accessed data to the plurality of windows equally.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the logical block addresses store the File Allocation Table (FAT).

9. The method of claim 7, wherein the logical block addresses store the directory table.

10. The method of claim 7, wherein the logical block addresses having frequently accessed data point on a one-to-one basis to the plurality of windows.

11. The method of claim 7, wherein the plurality of windows comprise four windows, the logical block addresses comprise four logical block addresses, and the four logical block addresses point on a one-to-one basis to the four windows.

12. The method of claim 7, wherein the plurality of windows comprise Windows 0, 1, 2 and 3, the logical block addresses comprise logical block addresses 0, 1, 2 and 3, and logical block addresses 0, 1, 2, 3 points to Windows 0, 1, 2 and 3, respectively.