Patent Application
20150085571
The present disclosure is generally related to determining read voltages for a non-volatile memory.
Non-volatile data storage devices, such as embedded flash memories, universal serial bus (USB) flash memory devices, or removable storage cards, have allowed for increased portability of data and software applications. Flash memory devices can enhance data storage density by storing multiple bits in each flash memory cell. For example, Multi-Level Cell (MLC) flash memory devices can provide increased storage density by storing 3 bits per cell, 4 bits per cell, or more.
Storing multiple bits of information in a single flash memory cell typically includes mapping sequences of bits to states of the flash memory cell. For example, a first sequence of bits “110” may correspond to a first state of a flash memory cell and a second sequence of bits “010” may correspond to a second state of the flash memory cell. After determining that a sequence of bits is to be stored into a particular flash memory cell, the particular flash memory cell may be programmed to a state (e.g., by setting a threshold voltage) that corresponds to the sequence of bits.
Once memory cells in a data storage device have been programmed, data may be read from the memory cells by sensing the programmed state of each memory cell by comparing the cell threshold voltage to one or more read voltages. However, the sensed programming states can sometimes vary from the written programmed states due to one or more factors, such as data retention and program disturb conditions.
Accuracy of reading data stored in a data storage device may be improved by updating a set of read voltages used to read the stored data in order to reduce an estimated or actual bit error rate associated with reading the stored data. Updating the set of read voltages by selecting an optimal read voltage associated with each page can be resource intensive. Accordingly, a simplified process that utilizes less time and power can be used to update the set of read voltages according to a particular embodiment. For example, a first read voltage for a first page of the non-volatile memory may be determined (e.g., by performing a plurality of read operations using different test read voltages to read values representative of a codeword from the first page and selecting the first read voltage based on results of the plurality of read operations). A second read voltage may be determined by applying an offset value to the first read voltage. Thus, both the first and second read voltages can be updated based on the plurality of read operations for the first page. Additional read voltages may also be determined by applying other offset values to the first read voltage. The offset value or offset values may be predetermined values or may be selected (e.g., from a lookup table) or otherwise determined based on information related to the non-volatile memory, such as a count of read cycles associated with the non-volatile memory (e.g., read cycles of a particular storage element of the non-volatile memory), a count of write cycles associated with the non-volatile memory (e.g., write cycles of a particular storage element of the non-volatile memory), or both.
Referring to
The host device 130 may be configured to provide data, such as user data 132, to be stored at a non-volatile memory 104 or to request data to be read from the non-volatile memory 104. For example, the host device 130 may include a mobile telephone, a music player, a video player, a gaming console, an electronic book reader, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a computer, such as a laptop computer, notebook computer, or tablet, any other electronic device, or any combination thereof. The host device 130 communicates via a memory interface that enables reading from the non-volatile memory 104 and writing to the non-volatile memory 104. For example, the host device 130 may operate in compliance with a Joint Electron Devices Engineering Council (JEDEC) industry specification, such as a Universal Flash Storage (UFS) Host Controller Interface specification or a JEDEC embedded MultiMedia Card (eMMC) device specification. As other examples, the host device 130 may operate in compliance with one or more other specifications, such as a Secure Digital (SD) Host Controller specification as an illustrative example. The host device 130 may communicate with the non-volatile memory 104 in accordance with any other suitable communication protocol.
The data storage device 102 includes the non-volatile memory 104 coupled to a controller 120. For example, the non-volatile memory 104 may be a NAND flash memory. The non-volatile memory 104 includes a representative group 106 of storage elements, such as a word line of a multi-level cell (MLC) flash memory. The group 106 includes a representative storage element 108, such as a flash MLC cell. For example, the data storage device 102 may be configured to be coupled to the host device 130 as embedded memory, such as eMMC® (trademark of JEDEC Solid State Technology Association, Arlington, Va.) and eSD, as illustrative examples. To illustrate, the data storage device 102 may correspond to an eMMC (embedded MultiMedia Card) device. As another example, the data storage device 102 may be a memory card, such as a Secure Digital SD® card, a microSD® card, a miniSD™ card (trademarks of SD-3C LLC, Wilmington, Del.), a MultiMediaCard™ (MMC™) card (trademark of JEDEC Solid State Technology Association, Arlington, Va.), or a CompactFlash® (CF) card (trademark of SanDisk Corporation, Milpitas, Calif.). The data storage device 102 may operate in compliance with a JEDEC industry specification. For example, the data storage device 102 may operate in compliance with a JEDEC eMMC specification, a JEDEC Universal Flash Storage (UFS) specification, one or more other specifications, or a combination thereof.
The controller 120 is configured to receive data and instructions from and to send data to the host device 130. The controller 120 is further configured to send data and commands to the non-volatile memory 104 and to receive data from the non-volatile memory 104. For example, the controller 120 is configured to send data and a write command to instruct the non-volatile memory 104 to store the data to a specified address. As another example, the controller 120 is configured to send a read command to the non-volatile memory 104.
The controller 120 includes an ECC engine 122 that is configured to receive data to be stored to the non-volatile memory 104 and to generate a codeword. For example, the ECC engine 122 may include an encoder 124 configured to encode data using an ECC encoding scheme, such as a Reed Solomon encoder, a Bose-Chaudhuri-Hocquenghem (BCH) encoder, a low-density parity check (LDPC) encoder, a Turbo Code encoder, an encoder configured to encode one or more other ECC encoding schemes, or any combination thereof. The ECC engine 122 may include a decoder 126 configured to decode data read from the non-volatile memory 104 to detect and correct, up to an error correction capability of the ECC scheme, any bit errors that may be present in the data.
The controller 120 includes a read voltage update engine 140 that is configured to generate the updated set of read voltages 146 by determining a first read voltage for a first page of the non-volatile memory 104 and determining a second read voltage for a second page of the non-volatile memory 104 by applying an offset value to the first read voltage. In some embodiments, the first page is a logical lower page of the non-volatile memory 104 because reading the logical lower page uses less sensing time. However, in other embodiments, the first page may be a logical middle page or a logical upper page of the non-volatile memory 104. The first read voltage may be determined using a search process. For example, the first read voltage may be determined by performing a plurality of read operations to read values representative of at least one codeword from the first page. Two or more of the plurality of read operations are performed using different test read voltages. The first read voltage may be selected based on the results of the plurality of read operations. For example, a decode operation may be performed based on results of each of the plurality of read operations, and a particular read voltage that generated fewest errors may be selected as the first read voltage. As another example, the results of the plurality of read operations may be used to estimate a location of a boundary between the first page and an adjacent page (e.g., the second page or a third page). In this example, the first read voltage may be selected based on the boundary between the first page and the adjacent page. As yet another example, a decode operation may be performed based on the results of each of the plurality of read operations and a first particular read voltage that has few enough errors to be successfully decoded is selected as the first read voltage.
To illustrate, referring to
Some storage elements originally set to the Er state may experience a threshold voltage shift that causes the threshold voltages of the storage elements to be greater than VA. Reading these storage elements using VA results in bit errors because the storage elements are read as having a “01” value (corresponding to state A) rather than having a “11” value (corresponding to the Er state). Similarly, some storage elements originally programmed to state A may experience a threshold voltage shift that causes the threshold voltages of the storage elements to be less than VA. Reading these storage elements using VA also results in bit errors because the storage elements are read as having a “11” value rather than having a “01” value. Similar shifts may occur at boundaries between other states.
The read voltage update engine 140 of
After selecting a first read voltage, corresponding to a value of VB, the read voltage update engine 140 may determine a second read voltage 222 corresponding to a second page by applying an offset value 216 to the first read voltage (as illustrated in the second graph 220 of
For some memory die, the relationship between VB and VC may vary over time, for example, as a result of a number of read and/or write cycles that the memory has been subjected to. For such memory die, the offset 216 may be determined dynamically or based on a lookup table. For example, the offset 216 may be determined based on a count of read cycles associated with the non-volatile memory, based on a count of write cycles associated with the non-volatile memory, or based on both the count of read cycles and the count of write cycles. The offset 216 may be calculated based on one or more of the counts (e.g., by the controller 120) or may be read from a lookup table (e.g., stored in the memory 152) based on one or more of the counts.
In another particular embodiment, as illustrated in a first graph 310 and a second graph 320 of
In
In this embodiment, an offset 316 may be applied to the first read voltage to determine an initial test read voltage associated with the second page (e.g., associated with a boundary between B and C). A search may be performed using the initial test read voltage as a starting point or a center point to identify the second read voltage. For example, the search may attempt to identify an optimal or near-optimal value for the second read voltage. The second read voltage may be determined based on a plurality read operations. For example, the plurality of read operations may be used to estimate a boundary, corresponding to VC, of the second page. In another example, the plurality of read operations may be used to identify a particular read voltage that is associated with a successful decode operation. To illustrated, a first read operation may be performed to read first values representative of at least one codeword from the second page of the non-volatile memory using a first test read voltage 323. The first test read voltage 323 may correspond to the first read voltage plus the offset 316. A first decode operation may be performed using the first values representative of the at least one codeword. The controller 120 may determine whether the first decode operation was successful based on a number of errors that are correctable by the first decode operation. When the first decode operation was successful, the first test read voltage 323 may be used as the second read voltage. When the first decode operation is not successful, one or more additional read operations may be performed to read values representative of the at least one codeword from the second page. Each of the one or more additional read operations may use a different test read voltage. Further, one or more additional decode operations may be performed. Each of the one or more additional decode operations uses a set of values representative of the at least one codeword generated by a corresponding read operation of the one or more of read operations. A particular test read voltage (e.g., a second test read voltage 322) that corresponds to a successful decode operation is used as the second read voltage.
During operation of the system 100 of
The controller 120 may also determine whether to update the read voltages using a full cell voltage distribution (CVD) analysis process or a quick cell voltage distribution (QCVD) analysis process. The QCVD analysis process may correspond to one of the processes described with reference to
To perform the QCVD analysis process, the read voltage update engine 140 may select a first value 170 of the first read voltage as a test read value. The group 106 may store data in a page-by-page, non-interleaved manner, such that a first ECC codeword is stored in a first logical page of a physical page of the group 106 (e.g., a ‘lower’ page corresponding to the least significant bit stored in each storage element of the physical page). A second ECC codeword may be stored in a second logical page of the physical page (e.g., an ‘upper’ page corresponding to the most significant bit stored in each storage element of the physical page). Although not shown in
The controller 120 may provide the first test read voltage at the first value 170 to the non-volatile memory 104 to read a codeword associated with the first page (e.g., the lower page). The first value 170 may correspond to the first test read voltage 211 of the first graph 210 of
The read voltage update engine 140 may select one or more additional values of test read voltages and perform corresponding read operations. For example, an Nth value 172 of the first read voltage may be used to perform a read operation. The Nth value 172 of the first read voltage may correspond to the second test value 212 of
The decoder 126 may generate ECC related information responsive to each of the representations 180-182. Alternatively, the ECC related information may be generated by a separate designated ECC related function (e.g., a separate hardware engine) rather than by the decoder 126. The read voltage update engine 140 may receive or otherwise access the ECC related information to determine or estimate a number of errors or a bit error rate (BER) for each of the representations 180-182. Alternatively, or in addition, the read voltage update engine 140 may determine any other ECC related metric.
To illustrate, when the decoder 126 fully decodes each of the representations 180-182, the decoder 126 may generate information indicating a number of corrected errors. The read voltage update engine 140 may compare the number of corrected errors resulting from reading the data with each of the values 170-172 to select the particular value 170-172 having the lowest identified number of corrected errors among the values 170-172. The selected value may be used as an updated value of the first read voltage.
In other implementations, latency associated with fully decoding each of the representations 180-182 may be avoided by estimating a bit error rate (BER) or number of errors without fully decoding the representations 180-182. For example, the decoder 126 may generate a syndrome value indicating a number of parity check equations that are unsatisfied for each of the representations 180-182. The syndrome value for each of the representations 180-182 generally indicates a relative amount of errors in each of the corresponding representations 180-182. The syndrome value may be generated using dedicated hardware circuitry with reduced latency as compared to full decoding. The ECC related information may include syndrome values for each of the representations 180-182 and the read voltage update engine 140 may search and/or sort the syndrome values to identify a lowest estimated BER of the representations 180-182 and to select a corresponding value as the updated first read voltage.
As another example, a length of time corresponding to a decoding operation may be used to estimate a number of errors or BER. To illustrate, representations of data having a greater number of errors may generally require longer decoding (e.g., more iterations for convergence, longer error location search processing, etc.) than representations of data having fewer errors. The decoder 126 may be configured to fully decode a first representation of data (e.g., the representation 180) and to store the decoding time for the first representation. For each subsequent representation of data (e.g., the representation 182), the decoder 126 may terminate decoding if the decoding time exceeds the stored decoding time, or may update the stored decoding time if the decoding time is less than the stored decoding time. The ECC related information may indicate one or more decoding times or relative decoding times of the representations 180-182 to enable the read voltage update engine 140 to identify a shortest of the decoding times of the representations 180-182 and to select a corresponding value as the first read voltage.
As another example, a number of bit values that change during a decoding operation may be used to estimate a number of errors or BER. To illustrate, during an iterative decoding process, representations of data having a greater number of errors may experience more “bit flips” prior to convergence than representations of data having a lesser number of errors. The decoder 126 may be configured to track a number of bit flips for each representation 180-182 and to indicate resulting counts of bit flips in the ECC related information to enable the read voltage update engine 140 to identify a lowest count of bit flips of the representations 180-182 and to select a corresponding value as the first read voltage.
As another example, at least a portion of the data stored in the group 106 may be reference data. The portion of each of the representations 180-182 that corresponds to the reference data may be compared to the reference data to identify errors. For example, the decoder 126 may include circuitry configured to compare a portion of each representation 180-182 to the reference data and to generate a count of detected bit errors. The resulting counts may be provided in the ECC related information to enable the read voltage update engine 140 to identify a lowest of the counts of reference data errors of the representations 180-182 and to select a corresponding value as the first read voltage.
As yet another example, the values 170-172 may be provided to the non-volatile memory 104 sequentially. The decoder 126 may decode each representation 180-182 as it is received. The decoder 126 may provide an indication, via the ECC related information, when one of the representations 180-182 is able to be fully decoded (e.g., has few enough errors that the decoder 126 is able to correct the errors). In this example, the read voltage update engine 140 may select a value corresponding to a decodable representation as the first read voltage.
After selection of the first read voltage, the read voltage update engine 140 may store data indicating the first read voltage in the updated set of read voltages 146. The read voltage update engine 140 may determine a second read voltage (corresponding to a second page of the non-volatile memory 104) by applying an offset to the first read voltage. The value of the offset may be predetermined and fixed (e.g., constant). Alternatively, the value of the offset may be determined based on information related to the non-volatile memory 104, such as a count of read and/or write cycles. In this example, the read voltage update engine 140 may access the a portion of the non-volatile memory 104 or the memory 152 to determine the count of read and/or write cycles and to read a corresponding value of the offset from a lookup table in the memory 152 or in the non-volatile memory 104. Alternatively, the read voltage update engine 140 may access a portion of the non-volatile memory 104 or the memory 152 to determine the count of read and/or write cycles and may calculate the offset based on the count. The read voltage update engine 140 may store data indicating the second read voltage in the updated set of read voltages 146
In a particular embodiment, the read voltage update engine 140 may use the first test read value and the offset to select a set of voltages to be searched to determine the second read voltage. For example, after determining the first read voltage, the read voltage update engine 140 may provide one or more test values 174 for the second read voltage to the non-volatile memory 104. One or more representations 184 (e.g., a representation corresponding to each of the test values 174) may be provided to the decoder 126. The second read voltage may be selected based on the one or more representations 184. For example, the second read voltage may be selected based on ECC related information using a selection process similar to one of the selection processes described above for the first read voltage. To illustrate, the second read voltage may be selected based on a bit error rate associated with each of the one or more representations 184, based on a number of corrected errors associated with each of the one or more representations 184, based on a syndrome value associated with each of the one or more representations 184, based on a decoding time associated with each of the one or more representations 184, based on a count of bit flips associated with each of the one or more representations 184, based on a count of detected bit errors associated with each of the one or more representations 184, or based on which of the one or more representations 184 is decodable.
By applying an offset to the first read voltage to determine the second read voltage, estimates of the first and second read voltages can be determined in a faster and less resource intensive manner than by using a full CVD analysis process. For example, a full CVD analysis process may use thirty-two (32) or more reads of two pages, resulting in latency of about 4 ms, to find “optimal” read voltages for the three boundaries illustrated in
The method 400 includes determining a first read voltage for a first page of the non-volatile memory, at 402. For example, the first read voltage may be determined by using different test values 211-215 of the read voltage VB to generate a representation of a codeword from the first page. The first read voltage may correspond to a test value that generates a representation that is decodable by the decoder 126 based on a number of errors correctable by the decoder 126. Alternately, the representations of the codeword may be used to select an optimal or near-optimal value of the first read voltage (e.g., by estimating a location of a boundary between the A state and the B state in
The method 400 may also include determining a second read voltage for a second page of the non-volatile memory by applying an offset value to the first read voltage, at 404. The offset value may be a predetermined fixed value or a value that depends on information related to the non-volatile memory. For example, the offset value may be selected from a lookup table or may be calculated. The method may also include storing data identifying the first read voltage and the second read voltage, at 406. For example, the controller 120 may store the updated set of read voltages 146. The updated set of read voltages 146 may be used during a subsequent memory operations (e.g., read operations or write operations).
The method 500 includes determining a first read voltage for a first page (e.g., a lower page) of the non-volatile memory, at 502. Determining the first read voltage for the first page may include, at 504, performing a plurality of read operations to read values representative of at least one codeword from the first page. Two or more of the plurality of read operations are performed using different test read voltages. For example, as illustrated in the first graph 210 of
Determining the first read voltage for the first page may also include, at 506, selecting the first read voltage based on results of the plurality of read operations. For example, a particular test read voltage of the test read voltages 211-215 may be selected as the first read voltage based on a bit error rate, a number of corrected errors, a syndrome value, a decoding time, a count of bit flips, a count of detected bit errors, whether a representation is decodable, other ECC related information, or a combination thereof.
The method 500 may also include determining an offset value, at 508. In a particular embodiment, the offset value is a fixed value that is based on a known or expected relationship between the first read voltage and the second read voltage. In another particular embodiment, the offset value is determined based on information associated with the non-volatile memory, such as a count of read cycles associated with the non-volatile memory, a count of write cycles associated with the non-volatile memory, or both the count of read cycles and the count of write cycles. The offset value may be calculated or may be determined based on a lookup table.
The method 500 may include determining a second read voltage for a second page (e.g., an upper page) of the non-volatile memory by applying the offset value to the first read voltage, at 510. When the non-volatile memory includes a third page (e.g., a middle page), the method 500 may include determining a third read voltage for a third page of the non-volatile memory by applying a second offset value to the first read voltage, at 512. For example, when the non-volatile memory is a 3-bit per cell (3BPC) multi-level cell (MLC) memory device, the third read voltage may be determined. The second offset value may be different than the offset value used to determine the second read voltage. The second offset value may be a predetermined fixed value that is based on a known or expected relationship between the first read voltage and the third read voltage. In another particular embodiment, the second offset value is determined based on information associated with the non-volatile memory, such as a count of read cycles associated with the non-volatile memory, a count of write cycles associated with the non-volatile memory, or both the count of read cycles and the count of write cycles. The offset value may be calculated or may be determined based on a lookup table.
The method 500 may also include storing data identifying the first read voltage and the second read voltage, at 514. For example, the data identifying the first read voltage and the second read voltage may be stored by the controller 120 as the updated set of read voltages 146. If a third read voltage has been determined, the method 500 may also store data identifying the third read voltage.
The method 500 also includes, at 516, during a read operation, using the first read voltage to read values from the first page and using the second read voltage to read values from the second page. If a third read voltage has been determined for a third page, the method 500 may also include using the third read voltage to read values from the third page.
In
In
The method 900 includes determining a first read voltage for a first page (e.g., a lower page) of the non-volatile memory, at 902. For example, as illustrated in graph 310 of
The method 900 also includes determining a first test read voltage for a second page (e.g., an upper page) of the non-volatile memory by applying an offset value to the first read voltage. For example, as illustrated in graph 310 of
The method 900 also includes performing a first decode operation using the first values representative of the at least one codeword, at 908. For example, one of the representation(s) 184 may be provided to the decoder 126, which may attempt to decode the representation.
The method 900 also includes determining whether the first decode operation is successful based on a number of errors that are correctable by the first decode operation, at 910. For example, the decoder 126 or the ECC engine 122 may generate ECC related data that indicates a number of errors corrected while decoding the representation or ECC related data that indicates whether decoding of the representation was successful.
When the first decode operation is successful, at 910, the method 900 includes storing the first test read voltage as a second read voltage for the second page of the non-volatile memory, at 914. For example, when the ECC related data indicates that the representation was successfully decoded by the decoder 126, the read voltage update engine 140 may store the updated set of read voltages including a value of the first test read voltage as the second read voltage.
When the first decode operation is not successful, at 912, the method 900 includes performing one or more additional read operations to read values representative of the at least one codeword from the second page of the non-volatile memory, at 916. Each of the one or more additional read operations uses a corresponding test read voltage. For example, when the first test read voltage 322 of
The method 900 also includes performing one or more additional decode operations, at 918. Each of the one or more additional decode operations uses a set of values representative of the at least one codeword (e.g., one of the representations 184) generated by a corresponding read operation of the one or more of read operations. Each of the read operations may use a different test read voltage (e.g., one of the values 174).
The method 900 also includes identifying a particular decode operation of the one or more additional decode operations that is successful based on the number of errors that are correctable by the particular decode operation, at 920, and storing a particular test read voltage corresponding to the particular decode operation as the second read voltage for the second page of the non-volatile memory, at 922. For example, when the decoder 126 or the ECC engine 122 generates ECC related information indicating that one of the representations 184 has been successfully decoded, the read voltage update engine 140 may store a value of the test read voltage that generated the successfully decoded representation in the updated set of voltages 146 as the second read voltage. The updated set of read voltages 146 may be used during a subsequent memory operations (e.g., read operations or write operations).
The method 1000 includes, at 1004, determining whether the CVD analysis process should include a full CVD analysis or a quick CVD (QCVD) analysis. In a particular embodiment, the full CVD analysis may be performed when the data storage device 102 has high resource availability (e.g., when no user data 132 is being read from or written to the non-volatile memory 104), when a particular number of QCVD analysis operations have been performed since a previous full CVD analysis was performed, when a QCVD operation that was most recently performed was not successful (e.g., using read voltages set based on the most recent QCVD results in codewords that are not decodable), based on other factors, or a combination thereof. The QCVD analysis process may be used when available resources of the data storage device 102 are limited (e.g., when user data 132 is being read from or written to the non-volatile memory 104), when fewer than a particular number of QCVD analysis operations have been performed since a previous full CVD analysis was performed, based on other factors, or a combination thereof.
When the full CVD analysis is to be performed, at 1004, a full voltage threshold scan CVD analysis operation may be performed, at 1006. For example, for a 2-bit per cell (2BPC) multi-level cell (MLC) implementation, read operations and corresponding ECC operations (e.g., decode operations) may be performed for thirty-two (32) different read voltages. The read operations and corresponding ECC operations may be used to determine boundary locations between states, such as values of VA, VB and VC between states A, B, and C, respectively of
When the full CVD analysis is not to be performed, at 1004, the QCVD analysis operation may be performed, beginning at 1008. The QCVD analysis operation may include or correspond to any of the methods 400, 500, or 900 of
The method 1000 may also include, after the full CVD analysis is performed or after the QCVD analysis is performed, storing updated read voltages based on results of whichever CVD analysis (e.g., a full CVD analysis or a QCVD analysis) was performed and updating a CVD time tag for the results, at 1016. The CVD time tag may be used, for example, to determine when a threshold number of QCVD analysis operations have been performed since a previous full CVD analysis.
Accordingly, the method 1000 enables selective implementation of a full CVD analysis operation or a QCVD analysis operation based on factors such as usage history of the data storage device, a number of QCVD analysis operation performed since a previous full CVD analysis operation was performed, availability of resources of the data storage device, other factors, or a combination thereof. The QCVD analysis operations described herein (such as the method 400 of
Although various components depicted herein are illustrated as block components and described in general terms, such components may include one or more microprocessors, state machines, or other circuits configured to enable the read voltage update engine 140 of
The read voltage update engine 140 may be implemented using a microprocessor or microcontroller programmed to determine a first read voltage for a first page and to determine a second read voltage for a second page by applying an offset value to the first read voltage. In a particular embodiment, the read voltage update engine 140 includes a processor executing instructions that are stored at the non-volatile memory 104. Alternatively, or in addition, executable instructions that are executed by the processor may be stored at a separate memory location that is not part of the non-volatile memory 104, such as at a read-only memory (ROM) or at the memory 152.
In a particular embodiment, the data storage device 102 may be attached or embedded within one or more host devices, such as within a housing of a host communication device. For example, the data storage device 102 may be within a packaged apparatus such as a wireless telephone, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a gaming device or console, a portable navigation device, or other device that uses internal non-volatile memory. However, in other embodiments, the data storage device 102 of
The illustrations of the embodiments described herein are intended to provide a general understanding of the various embodiments. Other embodiments may be utilized and derived from the disclosure, such that structural and logical substitutions and changes may be made without departing from the scope of the disclosure. This disclosure is intended to cover any and all subsequent adaptations or variations of various embodiments.
The above-disclosed subject matter is to be considered illustrative, and not restrictive, and the appended claims are intended to cover all such modifications, enhancements, and other embodiments, which fall within the scope of the present disclosure. Thus, to the maximum extent allowed by law, the scope of the present invention is to be determined by the broadest permissible interpretation of the following claims and their equivalents, and shall not be restricted or limited by the foregoing detailed description.
