Media card command pass through methods

• US 8,078,788 B2
• Filed: 11/07/2008
• Issued: 12/13/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 12/08/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: SanDisk Technologies LLC (Western Digital Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Sandisk Technologies Incorporated (Western Digital Corporation)
• Inventors: Chang, Robert Chin-Tse, Hutton, Henry Ricardo, Sabet-Sharghi, Farshid, Tanik, Haluk Kent, Barzilai, Ron, Soffer, Meytal, Yan, Mei, Dwyer, Patricia, Yuan, Po, Qawami, Bahman
• Primary Examiner(s): Misiura, Brian
• Application Number:
  US12/267,100
• Publication Number:
  US 20090182919A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,131 Days
• Field of Search: 710/5, 710/13, 710/105, 710/305, 710/315
• US Class Current: 710/315
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 13/4291 using a clocked protocol

Abstract

Methods for transmitting application specific or extended commands between a host and a memory card are disclosed. Commands for an extended card protocol are embedded in messages, along with a marker, in the data or command portion of a base card transmission protocol that is used to communicate between the host and the memory card. This allows for the transmission of application specific commands that lack a corresponding command in the base card protocol. The method can be implemented on the host side at the device driver level or the file level. In order to implement a read command in the extended card protocol, a write command in the base card protocol with an encapsulated read command in the extended protocol is first sent to a logical address, followed by a read command to the same logical address. Message set identifiers associate embedded commands and data received in separate transmissions.

Claims

1. A method of transmitting a message to a memory card, comprising:

in a host operatively coupled to a memory card for exchanging commands and data with the memory card according to a base card protocol, transmitting to the memory card a message formatted in an extended card protocol, the transmitting by the host including;

dividing the message into a plurality of message parts; and

transmitting the plurality of message parts to the memory card, the transmitting of each message part including;

encapsulating the message part in a data field of a command formatted in the base card protocol, the command comprising a parameter corresponding to the message parts already transmitted; and

transmitting the command to the memory card.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the parameter comprises a logical block address of the memory card, the logical block address corresponding to a base address and an offset determined from a size of the plurality of message parts already transmitted.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein a first command encapsulating a first message part of the plurality of message parts further comprises a marker, the marker identifying when the first message part is encapsulated within the command, and wherein parameters encapsulated in subsequent commands identify remaining message parts.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the parameter comprises a message set identifier to associate the plurality of message parts with each other.

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising:

selecting a unique message set identifier if a message part is not associated with a previously transmitted message; and

selecting an existing message set identifier associated with the previously transmitted message, if the message part is associated with a previously transmitted message.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the message comprises an encapsulated command in the extended card protocol selectively executable by the memory card.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the encapsulated command is a data transfer command from the host to the memory card.

8. The method of claim 6, wherein the message further comprises encapsulated data associated with the encapsulated command.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein transmitting the plurality of message parts further comprises the host interleaving transmission of commands in the base card protocol having one of the plurality of encapsulated messages with transmission of commands in the base card protocol not having one of the plurality of message parts.

10. The method of claim 2, further comprising determining that a message size is less than a predetermined limit, wherein the predetermined limit comprises a host operating system file allocation unit that can be stored on the memory card without segmentation.

11. A method of communicating with a memory card, comprising:

in a host operatively coupled to a memory card for exchanging commands and data with the memory card according to a base card protocol and receiving a message formatted in an extended card protocol, the exchanging and receiving by the host including;

dividing the message to be received into a plurality of message parts; and

reading each of the plurality of message parts from the memory card, the reading comprising;

encapsulating an extended card protocol read command in a data field of a command formatted in the base card protocol, the command comprising a parameter corresponding to message parts already received;

transmitting the command to the memory card; and

receiving one of the plurality of message parts from the memory card.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the parameter comprises a logical block address of the memory card, the logical block address corresponding to a base address and an offset determined from a size of a plurality of message parts already received.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein a first command further comprises a marker, the marker identifying when the extended card protocol read command is encapsulated within the command, and wherein parameters encapsulated in subsequent commands identify the remaining extended card protocol read commands.

14. The method of claim 11, wherein the parameter comprises an application identifier to associate message parts with each other, and wherein the received message part comprises the parameter.

15. The method of claim 14, further comprising:

selecting a unique application identifier if the message part is not associated with a previously received message; and

selecting an existing application identifier associated with the previously received message, if the message is associated with a previously received message.

16. A method of transmitting a command, comprising:

in a host operatively coupled to a memory card for exchanging commands and data with the memory card according to a transfer protocol, transmitting to the memory card an embedded command in an embedded protocol within a message in a storage command protocol, the transmitting by the host including;

embedding the embedded command and an embedded marker into a command block in accordance with the storage command protocol;

forming a message configured in accordance with the storage command protocol, the message comprising the command block and a storage marker; and

transmitting the message in a data field of a transfer command, the embedded marker and the storage marker identifying the presence of the embedded command within the data field of the transfer command.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the embedded command comprises an Application Protocol Data Unit command in accordance with an ISO 7816-4 protocol, the storage command protocol comprises a Universal Serial Bus Mass Storage Class protocol, the message comprises a Command Block Wrapper of a Universal Serial Bus Mass Storage Class Command Transport, the storage marker comprises a Command Block Wrapper Signature of the Universal Serial Bus Mass Storage Class Command Transport, and the transfer protocol comprises a Universal Serial Bus Bulk Transfer protocol.

18. The method of claim 16, further comprising:

subsequent to transmitting the message, forming a second message in accordance with the storage command protocol, wherein the second message comprises embedded data in accordance with the embedded protocol, wherein the embedded data is associated with the embedded command; and

transmitting the second message in a data field of a second transfer command.

19. The method of claim 16, further comprising:

subsequent to transmitting the message, receiving a result message in accordance with the storage command protocol, the result message comprising an embedded data result in accordance with the embedded protocol, wherein the embedded data result is associated with the embedded command; and

extracting the embedded data result from the result message.

20. A system for transmitting a message to a memory card, the system comprising:

a host device; and

a memory card receptacle in communication with the host device and positioned to receive a memory card, wherein the memory card receptacle is configured by the host device to transmit commands to the memory card in a base card protocol that encapsulates a message formatted in an extended card protocol, according to the following steps;

dividing the message into a plurality of message parts; and

transmitting the plurality of message parts to the memory card, the transmitting of each message part including;

encapsulating the message part in a data field of a command formatted in the base card protocol, the command comprising a parameter corresponding to the message parts already transmitted; and

transmitting the command to the memory card.

21. The system of claim 20, wherein the host device comprises a personal computer (PC).