Memory writing device for an electronic device

• US 6,249,848 B1
• Filed: 07/25/2000
• Issued: 06/19/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 09/20/1996
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Original Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Inventors: Ishida, Takashi, Kawase, Yoshihiro, Kida, Yoshiaki, Terada, Yukari
• Primary Examiner(s): Kim, Matthew
• Assistant Examiner(s): Tran, Denise
• Application Number:
  US09/625,402
• Time in Patent Office: 329 Days
• Field of Search: 711/103, 711/165, 711/154, 711/166, 365/185.33, 365/218, 365/221, 365/239, 709/216, 709/233, 709/228, 710/29, 710/33, 710/58, 710/60, 710/11, 370/466, 370/468
• US Class Current: 711/154
• CPC Class Codes: F02D 41/2487 Methods for rewriting
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/60 Software deployment
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/654 using techniques specially adapted for alterable solid state memories, e.g. for EEPROM or flash memories
• CPC Class Codes: G11C 16/102 External programming circuits, e.g. EPROM programmers; In-circuit programming or reprogramming; EPROM emulators

Abstract

To provide a memory-writing device which can simply and reliably write desired data to a nonvolatile memory of an electronic device, connection is made with an ECU to perform write processing to write write data from the memory-writing device to a flash ROM by copying a write-control program from the external portion to a RAM and executing the write-control program, and by sequentially sending the foregoing write-control program and write data to this ECU together with sending, at a predetermined timing, write-control information required for the ECU to execute the write-control program, the write-control program and the write-control information are stored in a freely attachable and removable first ROM and the write-control information stored in the first ROM is read and sent to the ECU at a memory-rewriting device to cause the write processing to be performed in the ECU. According to this device, an ECU of differing specifications can be supported merely by exchanging the first ROM.

Claims

1. A memory writing control system comprising:

write data acquiring means for receiving a rewrite control program and a first amount of write data from an external device, the acquiring means having a memory area to receive and store the first amount of write data;

first baud rate setting means for setting a first baud rate of communication between the acquiring means and the external device when the rewrite control program is sent to the acquiring means from the external device;

second baud rate setting means for setting a second baud rate of communication between the acquiring means and the external device when the write data is sent to the acquiring means from the external device;

a nonvolatile memory;

writing means connected to the write data acquiring means and the nonvolatile memory, the writing means for using the rewrite control program to sequentially write a second amount of write data from the memory area to the nonvolatile memory, the writing means writing the data to the nonvolatile memory by sequentially extracting each of a plurality of bytes of data from the memory area and writing the bytes of data to the nonvolatile memory, the first amount of write data being a multiple of the second amount of write data;

determining means for determining whether the first amount of write data stored in the memory area has been written to the nonvolatile memory; and

request signal sending means for sending a request signal to the external device, the external device responsive to the request signal to send the first amount of write data to the acquiring means.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the second baud rate of communication is the same or faster than the first baud rate of communication.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the rewrite control program is stored in the memory area, and the second baud rate setting means sets the second baud rate after the rewrite control program is stored in the memory area.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the acquiring means receives a first baud rate request signal from the external device and sends a first supported baud rate signal to the external device, the first baud rate request signal indicating a self-held baud rate of the acquiring means wherein the first baud rate setting means sets both the acquiring means and the external device to the first baud rate after the acquiring means sends the first supported baud rate signal to the external device.

5. The system of claim 2, wherein the acquiring means receives a second baud rate request signal from the external device and sends a second supported baud rate signal to the external device, the second supported baud rate signal indicating a self-held baud rate of the acquiring means, wherein the second baud rate setting means sets both the acquiring means and the external device to the second baud rate after the acquiring means sends the second supported baud rate signal to the external device.