INTERFACE FOR EXTENDING FUNCTIONALITY OF MEMORY CARDS

• US 20110314068A1
• Filed: 06/21/2011
• Published: 12/22/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 02/13/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Google Inc. (Alphabet Inc.)
• Inventors: Sherman, Itay, Segalov, Yaron
• Granted Patent: US 8,832,161 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 707/824
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/166 File name conversion
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/1847 specifically adapted to static storage, e.g. adapted to flash memory or SSD
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0605 by facilitating the interaction with a user or administrator
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0623 in relation to content
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0643 Management of files
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0646 Horizontal data movement in storage systems, i.e. moving data in between storage devices or systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0659 Command handling arrangements, e.g. command buffers, queues, command scheduling
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0664 at device level, e.g. emulation of a storage device or system
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0667 at data level, e.g. file, record or object virtualisation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0673 Single storage device
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0679 Non-volatile semiconductor memory device, e.g. flash memory, one time programmable memory [OTP]
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 30/70 in wireless communication networks

Abstract

An enhanced flash memory card, including a flash memory card, including a wireless modem for downloading remote directory listings, and media files and steams over the Internet, and a memory partitioned into physical data storage clusters, and a driver for the flash memory card (i) for managing a file allocation table (FAT) that stores information about physical and virtual data storage clusters, the FAT including stub files for remote directory listings and remote media files and streams, wherein the stub files link to virtual data clusters, (ii) for managing a download conversion map from virtual cluster numbers to pointers of remote media files and streams, and (iii) for storing downloaded directory listings and media files and streams in the physical data storage clusters. A method is also described and claimed.

Claims

1-22. -22. (canceled)

23. An enhanced flash memory card, comprising:

a flash memory card, comprising;

a wireless modem for downloading remote directory listings, and media files and streams over the Internet; and

a memory partitioned into physical data storage clusters; and

a driver for said flash memory card (i) for managing a file allocation table (FAT) that stores information about physical and virtual data storage clusters, the physical clusters being mapped to real locations in said memory and the virtual clusters having addresses that are higher than the highest address of any real location in said memory, the FAT including stub files for remote directory listings and remote media files and streams, wherein the stub files point to virtual data clusters, (ii) for managing a download conversion map from virtual cluster numbers to pointers of remote media files and streams, and (iii) for storing downloaded directory listings and media files and streams in the physical data storage clusters.

24. The enhanced flash memory card of claim 23 wherein the remote media files and streams are MP3 audio files and streams, respectively.

25. The enhanced flash memory card of claim 23 wherein the remote media files and streams are MP4 video files and streams, respectively.

26. A method for remote file access using flash memory, comprising:

issuing a read request from a host device to a flash memory file system, the flash memory being represented as a plurality of physical and virtual data storage clusters, the physical clusters being mapped to real locations in the flash memory and the virtual clusters having addresses that are higher than the highest address of any real location in the flash memory, wherein the read request is addressed to a designated virtual data cluster;

reading a stub file at a physical data cluster of the flash memory that corresponds to the designated virtual data cluster;

identifying a URL for remote file data that corresponds to the designated virtual data cluster;

receiving the remote file data from the URL; and

storing the remote file data in physical data clusters of the flash memory.

27. The method of claim 26 wherein the stub file contains a place holder message that is displayed while said receiving remote data is being performed.

28. A method for file upload using flash memory, comprising:

issuing a write request from a host device to a flash memory file system, the flash memory being represented as a plurality of physical and virtual data storage clusters, the physical clusters being mapped to real locations in the flash memory and the virtual clusters having addresses that are higher than the highest address of any real location in the flash memory, wherein the write request is to a directory represented as a stub file in the virtual storage;

re-directing the write request to a physical cluster that holds an outgoing directory;

writing the file content to a file created in the outgoing directory;

sending the created file from the outgoing directory to a designated remote server; and

removing the file from the physical storage and from being listed in the outgoing directory listing, after completion of said sending.

29. A method for file management, comprising:

implementing a file system that includes (i) visible physical sectors, (ii) hidden physical sectors, and (iii) virtual sectors, wherein visible physical sectors are mapped to the file system, hidden physical sectors are not mapped to the file system, and virtual sectors are not resident in a physical memory;

mapping a virtual sector to a hidden sector in response to a read or a write command to the virtual sector, prior to performing the read or write command, wherein multiple virtual sectors are mapped to the same hidden sector; and

performing at least one auxiliary action by a wireless modem in response to the read or write command to the virtual sector.

30. The method of claim 29 wherein the at least one auxiliary action in response to a read command is a remote file download.

31. The method of claim 29 wherein the at least one auxiliary action in response to a write command is a remote file upload.

32. The method of claim 29 wherein the write command includes text that is a modem command for a communication modem, and the auxiliary action in response to the write command is issuing the modem command to the modem.

33. The method of claim 32 further comprising writing a reply issued by the modem in response to the modem command, in a file of the file system.

34. An enhanced flash memory card, comprising:

a flash memory card, comprising;

a memory; and

a wireless modem for downloading remote directory listings, and media files and steams over the Internet; and

a driver for said flash memory card for managing a system of files and directories in said memory, and for invoking an action directed to said wireless modem, wherein the action is associated by the driver with a designated file system command.

35. The enhanced flash memory card of claim 34 wherein the action is a modem AT command, wherein the designated file system command is a write command to a file within a designated directory, and wherein said driver copies text specified in the file write command for inclusion in the associated AT command.

36. An enhanced flash memory card, comprising:

a flash memory card, comprising;

a memory; and

a media player; and

a driver for said flash memory card for managing a system of files and directories in said memory, and for invoking an action directed to said media player, wherein the action is associated by the driver with a designated file system command.

37. The enhanced flash memory card of claim 36 wherein the designated file system command is a command to open a specific file within a designated directory, and wherein the action corresponds to the name of the specific file.

38. The enhanced flash memory card of claim 37 wherein the action is a play or a pause.

39. The enhanced flash memory card of claim 37 wherein the action is a forward search or a backward search.

40. The enhanced flash memory card of claim 37 wherein the action is a volume up or a volume down.

41. A method for embedding a wireless modem in a flash memory card, comprising:

managing a system of files and directories in a flash card memory storage;

generating an AT modem command in response to receiving a write command to a file within a designated directory, comprising copying text specified in the write command for inclusion in the associated AT command; and

issuing the AT modem command for a wireless modem embedded within the flash card.

42. A method for embedding a media player in a flash memory card, comprising:

managing a system of files and directories in a flash card memory storage;

generating a media player command in response to receiving a command to open a specific file within a designated directory, wherein the media player command corresponds to the name of the specific file; and

issuing the media player modem command to a media player embedded within the flash card.

43. An enhanced flash memory card, comprising:

a flash memory card, comprising;

a memory for storing a file system; and

an embedded wireless modem for downloading data from a remote computer to said memory; and

a driver for said flash memory card (i) for managing the file system, and (ii) for controlling said wireless modem by associating designated flash memory file system commands with modem operations.

44. The enhanced flash memory card of claim 43 wherein said wireless modem also uploads data from said memory to a remote computer, under control of said driver.

45. An enhanced flash memory card, comprising:

a flash memory card, comprising;

a memory for storing a file system; and

an embedded media player for playing media data stored in said memory; and

a driver for said flash memory card (i) for managing the file system, and (ii) for controlling said media player by associating designated flash memory file system commands with media player operations.

46. An enhanced flash memory card, comprising:

a flash memory card, comprising;

a memory for storing a file system;

an embedded wireless modem for downloading media data from a remote computer to said memory; and

an embedded media player for playing media data stored in said memory; and

a driver for said flash memory card (i) for managing the file system, (ii) for controlling said wireless modem by associating designated flash memory file system commands with modem operations, and (iii) for controlling said media player by associating other designated flash memory file system commands with media player operations.