System and method for organizing wireless communication device system software

• US 7,328,007 B2
• Filed: 07/26/2001
• Issued: 02/05/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 07/26/2001
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Kyocera Corporation
• Original Assignee: Kyocera Wireless Corporation (Kyocera Corporation)
• Inventors: Rajaram, Gowri
• Primary Examiner(s): Eng; George
• Assistant Examiner(s): Torres; Marcos L.
• Application Number:
  US09/917,026
• Publication Number:
  US 20030022665A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,385 Days
• Field of Search: 455418-420, 455/550.1, 717/1, 717/68, 717168-178, 709/246, 375/259, 375/295, 375/316, 719331-332, 713/191
• US Class Current: 455/420
• 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: G06F 9/44521 Dynamic linking or loading; Link editing at or after load time, e.g. Java class loading
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/245 from a network towards a terminal

Abstract

A system and method are provided for organizing field upgradeable system software in a wireless communications device. The software is organized into a first plurality of symbol libraries or code sections. Contiguously addressed memory blocks store the symbol libraries or code sections. The start addresses of code sections or symbol libraries are stored in a code section address table cross-referencing code section identifiers with corresponding start addresses. Each symbol is offset from its respective code section start address. Symbol identifiers are cross-referenced with corresponding offset addresses, and corresponding code section identifiers in a symbol offset address table. A symbol accessor code is used to identify symbol addresses using the code section address table and the symbol offset address table.

Claims

1. A wireless communication device comprising:

a nonvolatile memory module comprising;

a file system section (FSS) for storing a received updated code section and a received updated patch manager code section;

a code storage section for storing a plurality of code sections, each code section of the plurality of code sections comprising at least one symbol library comprising a plurality of symbols having a related functionality; and

a patch manager code section configured to overwrite at least one of the plurality of code sections comprising;

a code section address table which stores a code section identifier and a start address for the each code section; and

a symbol offset address table which stores an offset reference for each symbol of the plurality of symbols in the at least one symbol library stored in the each code section, the offset reference comprising an offset value derived from the start address of the each code section,

wherein the patch manager code section is configured to control a system software update in response to a user acknowledgement that resets the wireless communication device, the system software update including copying a patch manager code section stored in the nonvolatile memory to a volatile memory notifying a user via a user interface that an updated code section and an updated patch manager code section has been received, receiving an acknowledgement from the user, suspending a communication task for the wireless communication device, overwriting at least a portion of a code section of the plurality of code sections with the updated code section and overwriting at least a portion of the patch manager code section with a portion of the updated patch manager code section by updating the code section address table and updating the symbol offset address table.

2. The wireless communication device of claim 1, wherein the updated patch manager code section is configured to enable a system software update to be implemented on the wireless communication device.

3. The wireless communication device of claim 1, wherein the patch manager code section further comprises:

a read-write data section;

a symbol accessor code section;

a symbol accessor code address section; and

a patch library.

4. The wireless communication device of claim 1, wherein the patch manager code section is loaded into a volatile memory upon a reset condition.

5. The wireless communication device of claim 1 wherein the received updated code section and the received updated patch manager code section define a system software update, and wherein each code section of the received code sections stores at least part of the system software update.

6. The wireless communication device of claim 1, wherein the at least one symbol library comprises a first symbol library, a second symbol library, and a third symbol library wherein the second symbol library and the third symbol library are arranged contiguously within a single code section.

7. A method for updating system software in a wireless communications device, the method comprising:

copying a patch manager code section stored in a nonvolatile memory to a volatile memory;

receiving a broadcasted system software update comprising an update code section and an update patch manager;

notifying a user via a user interface that the wireless communication device has received the broadcasted system software update;

receiving an acknowledgement from the user via the user interface;

initiating an update operation in response to the acknowledgement, the update operation comprising,

(1) suspending a communication task for the wireless communication device;

(2) storing the system software update on a file system section of the nonvolatile memory,

(3) overwriting at least a portion of a code section of a plurality of code sections stored in a code storage section of the nonvolatile memory with the update code section, each code section of the plurality of code sections comprising at least one symbol library, having a plurality of symbols of related functionality,

(4) overwriting at least a portion of a patch manager code section of the nonvolatile memory with at least a portion of the update patch manager, comprising, updating a code section address table of the patch manager code section which stores a code section identifier and a start address for each code section of the plurality of code sections, updating a symbol offset address table which stores an offset reference for each symbol of the plurality of symbols in the at least one symbol library of the each code section, the offset reference comprising an offset value derived from the start address of the each code section, and

(5) resetting the wireless communication device.

8. The method of claim 7 further comprising executing the system software update from the nonvolatile memory, copying a code storage section stored in the nonvolatile memory to the volatile memory.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein each symbol of the plurality of symbols is associated with a symbol access code, further comprising arranging the symbol access code in the corresponding symbol library.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising referencing the symbol access code to calculate an address of a symbol.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein calculating an address of a symbol further comprises accessing the symbol offset address table to determine a corresponding code section identifier and a corresponding offset value;

accessing the code section address table to determine a start address of the corresponding code section identifier; and

calculating the address of the symbol based on the offset value and the start address.

12. The method of claim 9 further comprising associating a first symbol access code with a first symbol library of the at least one symbol library and associating a second symbol access code with a second symbol library of the at least one symbol library.

13. The method of claim 12, further comprising associating a third symbol access code with a third symbol library of the at least one symbol library, wherein the third symbol access code is stored contiguously to the second symbol library.