Extending shelf life of non-volatile memory devices

• US 10,282,105 B2
• Filed: 01/20/2017
• Issued: 05/07/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 01/20/2017
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Kasula, Prashanth K., Kosuru, Trinadhachari, McPadden, Adam J., Raghavendra, Preetham H., Swaminathan, Janani
• Primary Examiner(s): Leboeuf, Jerome
• Application Number:
  US15/411,136
• Publication Number:
  US 20180210646A1
• Time in Patent Office: 837 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/24 Resetting means
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/061 Improving I/O performance
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0625 Power saving in storage systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0655 Vertical data movement, i.e. input-output transfer; data movement between one or more hosts and one or more storage devices
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0688 Non-volatile semiconductor memory arrays
• CPC Class Codes: G11C 11/406 Management or control of the refreshing or charge-regeneration cycles
• CPC Class Codes: G11C 16/20 Initialising; Data preset; Chip identification
• CPC Class Codes: G11C 16/30 Power supply circuits
• CPC Class Codes: G11C 16/32 Timing circuits
• CPC Class Codes: G11C 16/3418 Disturbance prevention or evaluation; Refreshing of disturbed memory data
• CPC Class Codes: G11C 5/142 Contactless power supplies, e.g. RF, induction, or IR
• CPC Class Codes: G11C 5/143 Detection of memory cassette insertion or removal; Continuity checks of supply or ground lines; Detection of supply variations, interruptions or levels G11C5/148 takes precedence; Switching between alternative supplies G11C5/141 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G11C 7/04 with means for avoiding disturbances due to temperature effects

Abstract

Methods, systems and computer program products for extending the shelf life of non-volatile memory devices, aspects of which include detecting that the non-volatile memory device has been disconnected from a power supply and responsively resetting a timer, a first counter, and a second counter and incrementing the first counter and the second counter based on the timer. Based on a determination that the first counter has reached a first threshold value, aspects also include initiating a wireless charging a battery of the non-volatile memory device. Based on a determination that the second counter has reached a second threshold value, aspects also include initiating a refresh of a non-violate memory of the non-volatile memory device. Based on a determination that the refresh of the non-violate memory of the non-volatile memory device has been completed, aspects also include resetting the timer, the first counter, and the second counter.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method for extending a shelf life of a non-volatile memory device, the method comprising:

detecting, by a processor of the non-volatile memory device, that the non-volatile memory device has been disconnected from a power supply and responsively resetting a timer, a first counter, and a second counter;

incrementing the first counter and the second counter based on the timer;

based on a first determination that the first counter has reached a first threshold value, initiating a wireless charging a battery of the non-volatile memory device;

based on a second determination that the second counter has reached a second threshold value, initiating a refresh of a non-violate memory of the non-volatile memory device;

based on a third determination that the refresh of the non-violate memory of the non-volatile memory device has been completed, resetting the timer, the first counter, and the second counter; and

when a fourth determination that the battery of the non-volatile memory device is fully charged, resetting the first counter.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the first counter is incremented at a first rate and the second counter is incremented at a second rate, which is not equal to the first rate.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the second threshold value is determined based on a data retention life of the non-volatile memory device.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the second threshold value is larger than the first threshold value.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein incrementing the first counter and the second counter is further based on an ambient temperature of the non-volatile memory device.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein a rate of incrementing the first counter and the second counter is positively correlated with the ambient temperature of the non-volatile memory device.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising resetting the first counter and the second counter based on a fifth determination that the non-volatile memory device has been reconnected to the power supply.

8. A computer program product for extending a shelf life of a non-volatile memory device, the computer program product comprising:

a non-transitory storage medium readable by a processing circuit and storing instructions for execution by the processing circuit for performing a method comprising;

detecting that the non-volatile memory device has been disconnected from a power supply and responsively resetting a timer, a first counter, and a second counter;

incrementing the first counter and the second counter based on the timer;

based on a first determination that the first counter has reached a first threshold value, initiating a wireless charging a battery of the non-volatile memory device;

based on a second determination that the second counter has reached a second threshold value, initiating a refresh of a non-violate memory of the non-volatile memory device;

based on a third determination that the refresh of the non-violate memory of the non-volatile memory device has been completed, resetting the timer, the first counter, and the second counter; and

when a fourth determination that the battery of the non-volatile memory device is fully charged, resetting the first counter.

9. The computer program product of claim 8, wherein the first counter is incremented at a first rate and the second counter is incremented at a second rate, which is not equal to the first rate.

10. The computer program product of claim 8, wherein the second threshold value is determined based on a data retention life of the non-volatile memory device.

11. The computer program product of claim 8, wherein the second threshold value is larger than the first threshold value.

12. The computer program product of claim 8, wherein incrementing the first counter and the second counter is further based on an ambient temperature of the non-volatile memory device.

13. The computer program product of claim 12, wherein a rate of incrementing the first counter and the second counter is positively correlated with the ambient temperature of the non-volatile memory device.

14. The computer program product of claim 8, wherein the method further comprises resetting the first counter and the second counter based on a fifth determination that the non-volatile memory device has been reconnected to the power supply.

15. A non-volatile memory device comprising a non-violate memory, a battery and a processor, the processor configured to:

detect that the non-volatile memory device has been disconnected from a power supply and responsively reset a timer, a first counter, and a second counter;

increment the first counter and the second counter based on the timer;

based on a first determination that the first counter has reached a first threshold value, initiate a wireless charging of the battery;

based on a second determination that the second counter has reached a second threshold value, initiate a refresh of the non-violate memory;

based on a third determination that the refresh of the non-violate memory of the non-volatile memory device has been completed, reset the timer, the first counter, and the second counter; and

when a fourth determination that the battery of the non-volatile memory device is fully charged, reset the first counter.

16. The non-volatile memory device of claim 15, wherein the first counter is incremented at a first rate and the second counter is incremented at a second rate, which is not equal to the first rate.

17. The non-volatile memory device of claim 15, wherein the second threshold value is determined based on a data retention life of the non-volatile memory device.

18. The non-volatile memory device of claim 15, wherein the second threshold value is larger than the first threshold value.

19. The non-volatile memory device of claim 15, wherein incrementing the first counter and the second counter is further based on an ambient temperature of the non-volatile memory device.

20. The non-volatile memory device of claim 19, wherein a rate of incrementing the first counter and the second counter is positively correlated with the ambient temperature of the non-volatile memory device.