Data storage device with bad block scan command

• US 8,239,713 B2
• Filed: 10/10/2011
• Issued: 08/07/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 04/08/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Google Inc. (Alphabet Inc.)
• Inventors: Borchers, Albert T., Swing, Andrew T., Sprinkle, Robert S., Klaus, Jason W.
• Primary Examiner(s): BRITT, CYNTHIA H
• Application Number:
  US13/269,972
• Publication Number:
  US 20120030416A1
• Time in Patent Office: 302 Days
• Field of Search: 714/718, 714/723, 714/763, 714/766, 714/768, 365200-201, 711/148, 711/221
• US Class Current: 714/723
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 12/0246 in block erasable memory, e.g. flash memory
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 12/0813 with a network or matrix configuration
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2212/7205 Cleaning, compaction, garbage collection, erase control
• CPC Class Codes: G11C 2029/0409 Online test
• CPC Class Codes: G11C 29/52 Protection of memory contents; Detection of errors in memory contents
• CPC Class Codes: G11C 29/88 with partially good memories

Abstract

A data storage device includes an interface that is configured to interface with a host, a command bus, multiple memory devices that are operably coupled to the command bus and a controller that is operably coupled to the interface and to the command bus. The controller is configured to receive a bad block scan command for a specified one of the memory devices from the host using the interface, scan the specified memory device for bad blocks, generate a map of the bad blocks and communicate the map to the host using the interface.

Claims

1. A data storage device comprising:

an interface that is arranged and configured to interface with a host, the interface communicatively coupling the data storage device and the host;

a command bus;

multiple memory devices that are operably coupled to the command bus; and

a controller that is operably coupled to the interface and to the command bus, wherein the controller is arranged and configured to;

receive multiple bad block scan commands for multiple different specified memory devices from the host using the interface;

scan the specified memory devices for bad blocks in parallel;

generate a map of the bad blocks for each of the memory devices; and

communicate the maps to the host using the interface.

2. The data storage device of claim 1 wherein the maps comprise bitmaps.

3. The data storage device of claim 1 wherein the controller is configured to scan the specified memory devices by scanning for a pattern written to the memory device by a manufacturer to determine the bad blocks.

4. The data storage device of claim 1 wherein the memory devices include flash memory devices.

5. A non-transitory recordable storage medium having recorded and stored thereon instructions that, when executed, perform the actions of:

receiving multiple bad block scan commands for multiple different specified memory devices from a host using an interface, the interface communicatively coupling a data storage device and the host;

scanning the specified memory devices for bad blocks in parallel;

generating a map of the bad blocks for each of the memory devices; and

communicating the maps to the host using the interface.

6. The recordable storage medium of claim 5 wherein the maps comprise bitmaps.

7. The recordable storage medium of claim 5 wherein the instructions that, when executed, perform the action of scanning the specified memory devices comprise instructions that, when executed, perform the actions of scanning for a pattern written to the memory device by a manufacturer to determine the bad blocks.

8. The recordable storage medium of claim 5 wherein the multiple memory devices include flash memory devices.

9. A non-transitory recordable storage medium having recorded and stored thereon instructions that, when executed, perform the actions of:

communicating multiple bad block scan commands from a host to a controller on a data storage device using an interface to scan multiple different specified memory devices of multiple memory devices for bad blocks in parallel, wherein the interface communicatively couples the data storage device and the host;

receiving maps of the bad blocks for each of the specified memory devices from the controller using the interface; and

storing the maps of the bad blocks.

10. The recordable storage medium of claim 9 wherein the maps comprise bitmaps.

11. The recordable storage medium of claim 9 wherein the multiple memory devices include flash memory devices.

12. The recordable storage medium of claim 9 wherein the maps of the bad blocks include a unique pattern identifying one or more blocks of memory on the memory device that are not usable.

13. An apparatus comprising:

an interface that is configured to interface with a controller on a data storage device, the interface communicatively coupling a host and the data storage device; and

a processor on the host that is configured to process instructions to perform the actions of;

communicating multiple bad block scan commands to the controller using the interface to scan multiple different specified memory devices of multiple memory devices for bad blocks in parallel;

receiving maps of the bad blocks for each of the specified memory devices from the controller using the interface; and

storing the maps of the bad blocks.

14. The apparatus of claim 13 wherein the maps comprise bitmaps.

15. The apparatus of claim 13 wherein the multiple memory devices include flash memory devices.

16. The apparatus of claim 13 wherein the maps of the bad blocks includes a unique pattern identifying one or more blocks of memory on the memory device that are not usable.