Read/write memory cell for microcomputer

Claim 2

A pseudo-static read/write memory cell comprising: first and second driver transistors each having a current path and a control electrode, the control electrode of each driver transistor cross-coupled to one end of the current path of the other driver transistor to provide a bistable circuit; first and second storage nodes, the first storage node being coupled to said one end of said current path of the first driver transistor, and the second storage node being coupled to said one end of said current path of the second driver transistor; first and second access transistors each having a current path and a control electrode; first and second data lines for read or write of a data bit and its complement, the current paths of the first and second access transistors respectively coupling the first and second storage nodes to the first and second data lines; first and second refresh transistors each having a current path and a control electrode; the current path of the first refresh transistor directly connecting the first storage node to a voltage supply without intervening circuit elements; the current path of the second refresh transistor directly connecting the second storage node to said voltage supply line without intervening circuit elements; a first address line connected to the control electrodes of the first and second access transistors; and a second address line connected to the control electrodes of the first and second refresh transistors; and means for applying a single clock voltage to said second address line to turn on said first and second refresh transistors to refresh said cell.

Claim 3

A memory cell according to claim 1 wherein the first address line activates the control electrodes of the access transistors in ramdom sequence and the second address line activates the control electrodes of the refresh transistors in a regular repeating sequence.

Claim 4

A memory cell according to claim 2 wherein all of said transistors are insulated-gate field effect transistors, all of said current paths are source-to-drain paths, and all of said control electrodes are gate electrodes.

Claim 5

A memory cell according to claim 2 wherein the second address line activates the control electrodes of the access transistors in a time period which always terminates before the first address line ceases activating the control electrodes of the access transistors.

Claim 6

A memory cell according to claim 4 wherein the first address line activates the control electrodes of the access transistors for data write into the cell at a time period when the second address line cannot activate the control electrodes of the refresh transistors.

Claim 7

A read/write semiconductor memory array comprising a plurality of rows and columns of pseudo-static read/write memory cells; each cell having first and second driver transistors, each said driver transistor having a current path and a control electrode, the control electrode of each driver transistor cross-coupled to one end of the current path of the other driver transistor to provide a bistable circuit; each cell having first and second storage nodes, the first storage node being coupled to said one end of said current path of the first driver transistor, the second storage node being coupled to said one end of said current path of the second driver transistor; each cell having first and second access transistors, each access transistor having a current path and a control electrode; the columns having first and second data lines for read or write of data bits and complements, the current paths of the first and second access transistors of each cell in a column respectively coupling the first and second storage nodes to the first and second data lines for this column; each cell having first and second refresh transistors, each refresh transistor having a current path and a control electrode, the current path of the first refresh transistor connecting the first storage node to a voltage supply; the current path of the second refresh transistor connecting the second storage node to said voltage supply; each of the rows having a first address line connected to the control electrodes of the first and second access transistors of each cell in the row; each of the rows also having second address line connected to the control electrodes of the first and second refresh transistors of each cell in the row; and means for applying a single check voltage to said second address line to turn on said first and second refresh transistors to refresh the cells.

Claim 8

A read/write semiconductor memory array comprising a plurality of rows and columns of pseudo-static read/write memory cells; each cell having first and second driver transistors, each said driver transistor having a current path and a control electrode, the control electrode of each driver transistor cross-coupled to one end of the current path of the other driver transistor to provide a bistable circuit; each cell having first and second storage nodes, the first storage node being coupled to said one end of said current path of the first driver transistor, the second storage node being coupled to said one end of said current path of the second driver transistor; each cell having first and second access transistors, each access transistor having a current path and a control electrode; the columns having first and second data lines for read or write of data bits and complements, the current paths of the first and second access transistors of each cell in a column respectively coupling the first and second storage nodes to the first and second data lines for this column; each cell having first and second refresh transistors, each refresh transistor having a current path and a control electrode, the current path of the first refresh transistor connecting the first storage node to a voltage supply; the current path of the second refresh transistor connecting the second storage node to said voltage supply; each of the rows having a first address line connected to the control electrodes of the first and second access transistors of each cell in the row; each of the rows also having second address line connected to the control electrodes of the first and second refresh transistors of each cell in the row; and means for applying a single check voltage to said second address line to turn on said first and second refresh transistors to refresh the cells.

Claim 9

A memory array according to claim 6 wherein the first address line activates the control electrodes of the access transistors in one random selected row and the second address line activates the control electrodes of the refresh transistors in a regular repeating sequence of rows.

Claim 10

A memory array according to claim 7 wherein all of said transistors are insulated-gate field effect transistors, all of said current paths are source-to-drain paths, and all of said control electrodes are gate electrodes.

Claim 11

A memory array according to claim 7 wherein the second address line activates the control electrodes of the access transistors in a time period which always terminates before the first address line ceases activating the control electrodes of the access transistors.

Claim 12

A memory array according to claim 9 wherein the first address line activates the control electrodes of the access transistors for data write into a cell of the array at a time period when the second address line cannot activate the control electrodes of the refresh transistors in any cell in the array.

Claim 13

A microcomputer system comprising: (a) a microcomputer device formed in a single integrated circuit and having data input/output terminals and address output terminals; (b) memory external to the microcomputer device having an address input and data input/output means; (c) input/output peripheral means for transfer of information to or from external equipment; said input/output peripheral means having an address input and data input/output; (d) external address bus means coupled to the address output terminals of the microcomputer device, and to the address input of the memory means, and to said address input of the peripheral means; (e) external data bus means coupled to the data input/output terminals of the microcomputer device, and to the data input/output means of the memory means, and to said data input/output of said peripheral means; (f) the microcomputer device comprising: an arithmetic/logic unit having data input and an accumulator data output; a pseudo-static data memory having an access address input and a separate refresh address input, and having data input/output means; internal data bus means coupled to the data input and accumulator data output of the arithmetic/logic unit, and coupled to the data input/output means of the pseudo-static data memory; the data input and data output of the arithmetic/logic unit being selectively coupled to the data input/output means of the data memory by said internal data bus means; refresh address generator means for applying a repeating sequence of refresh addresses to said refresh address input, said refresh address being applied to said refresh address input by a path separate from said internal data bus means an internal program memory having an address input and having an instruction output, the program memory storing instruction words; program address means connected to the address input of the program memory means; control means receiving instruction words from said instruction output and generating controls in response to said instruction words, the controls being coupled to the arithmetic/logic unit, to the internal bus means and to control inputs of the data input/output means of the data memory; and means for applying refresh addresses to said refresh address input of the data memory transparent to the control means; internal program bus means coupled to said instruction output, to said control means, and to said program address means; timing means for establishing overlapping operating cycles during one of which data may be transferred from the data memory to the data input of the arithmetic/logic and a refresh address applied to the data memory, and also the arithmetic/logic unit produces results to the accumulator data output for one instruction, the control means receives an instruction word from the instruction output for the next instruction and the program address means applies an address to the address input of the program memory for another instruction.

Claim 14

A microcomputer system comprising: (a) a microcomputer device formed in a single integrated circuit and having data input/output terminals and address output terminals; (b) memory external to the microcomputer device having an address input and data input/output means; (c) input/output peripheral means for transfer of information to or from external equipment; said input/output peripheral means having an address input and data input/output; (d) external address bus means coupled to the address output terminals of the microcomputer device, and to the address input of the memory means, and to said address input of the peripheral means; (e) external data bus means coupled to the data input/output terminals of the microcomputer device, and to the data input/output means of the memory means, and to said data input/output of said peripheral means; (f) the microcomputer device comprising: an arithmetic/logic unit having data input and an accumulator data output; a pseudo-static data memory having an access address input and a separate refresh address input, and having data input/output means; internal data bus means coupled to the data input and accumulator data output of the arithmetic/logic unit, and coupled to the data input/output means of the pseudo-static data memory; the data input and data output of the arithmetic/logic unit being selectively coupled to the data input/output means of the data memory by said internal data bus means; refresh address generator means for applying a repeating sequence of refresh addresses to said refresh address input, said refresh address being applied to said refresh address input by a path separate from said internal data bus means an internal program memory having an address input and having an instruction output, the program memory storing instruction words; program address means connected to the address input of the program memory means; control means receiving instruction words from said instruction output and generating controls in response to said instruction words, the controls being coupled to the arithmetic/logic unit, to the internal bus means and to control inputs of the data input/output means of the data memory; and means for applying refresh addresses to said refresh address input of the data memory transparent to the control means; internal program bus means coupled to said instruction output, to said control means, and to said program address means; timing means for establishing overlapping operating cycles during one of which data may be transferred from the data memory to the data input of the arithmetic/logic and a refresh address applied to the data memory, and also the arithmetic/logic unit produces results to the accumulator data output for one instruction, the control means receives an instruction word from the instruction output for the next instruction and the program address means applies an address to the address input of the program memory for another instruction.

Claim 15

A system according to claim 11 wherein data is written from said internal data bus means into said data memory during one part of an operating cycle and read from said data memory to said internal data bus means during another different path of an operating cycle.

Claim 16

A system according to claim 12 wherein the data access of the data memory for reading to the internal data bus means may occur during at least part of the same time period that the data memory receives a refresh address.

Claim 17

A microcomputer system according to claim 13 wherein said pseudo-static data memory comprises a read/write memory array in the form of a plurality of rows and columns of pseudo-static read/write memory cells; each cell having first and second driver transistors each with a current path and a control electrode, the control electrode of each cross-coupled to one end of the current path of the other to provide a bistable circuit; each cell having first and second storage nodes respectively coupled to said one ends of said current paths of the first and second driver transistors; each cell having first and second access transistors each with a current path and a control electrode; the columns having first and second data lines for read or write of data bits and complements, the current paths of the first and second access transistors of each cell in a column respectively coupling the first and second storage nodes to the first and second data lines; each cell having first and second refresh transistors each with a current path and a control electrode, the current paths of the first and second refresh transistors respectively connecting the first and second storage nodes to voltage supply means; the rows having first address means connected to the control electrodes of the first and second access transistors of each cell in the row; each of the rows also having second address means connected to the control electrodes of the first and second refresh transistors of each cell in the row.

Claim 18

A system according to claim 14 wherein the first address means activates the control electrodes of the access transistors in one random selected row and the second address activates the control electrodes of the refresh transistors in a regular repeating sequence of rows.

Claim 19

A system according to claim 15 wherein all of said transistors are insulated-gate field effect transistors, all of said current paths are source-to-drain paths, and all of said control electrodes are gate electrodes.

Claim 20

A system according to claim 16 wherein the second address means activates the control electrodes of the access transistors in a time period which always terminates before the first address means ceases activating the control electrodes of the access transistors.

Claim 21

A system according to claim 17 wherein the first address means activates the control electrodes of the access transistors for data write into a cell of the array at a time period when the second period when the second address means cannot activate the control electrodes of the refresh transistors in any cell in the array.