Patent US6253281B1 successfully refreshed from Google Patents.
US6253281B1
Expired / Lapsed
US
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Method for updating firmware of a computer peripheral device
Assignee: NXP BV
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Filing: 1998-06-15
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Granted: 2001-06-26
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Expires: 2018-06-15
Abstract
Abstract An optical disc drive includes a system controller in the form of a microcontroller and a FLASH memory which holds program code for the micro controller. The FLASH memory is formed in two areas, the first being a protected area in which the code cannot be changed and the second being an unprotected area in which the micro controller can write updated program code. The updated code is received from a host computer over an interface ( 28 ). The code in the protected area and in the micro controller ROM is sufficient to enable the basic functions of requesting and receiving program code from the host computer and writing the received program code into the unprotected area of the FLASH memory to be performed. This enables recovery of the drive if the code in the unprotected area becomes corrupted, for example if a power supply failure occurs during transfer of the code.
Inventors
- 👤 Trevor G. R. Hall
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-11-03 07:35
CPC Classifications
G; G11; G11C; G11C29/00; G11C29/70; G11C29/74; G06; G06F; G06F12/00; G06F12/16; G06F11/00; G06F11/07; G06F11/14; G06F11/1402; G06F11/1415; G06F11/1433; G11B; G11B19/00; G11B19/02; G11B19/04; G06F11/30; G06F11/32; G06F11/324; G06F11/325; G06F11/327
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 22
Claim 1
Independent Claim
188 words
A method for updating program code contained in non-volatile memory for a microcontroller which controls the operation of an optical disk drive connected to a host computer, the method comprising the steps of: providing in a protected non-erasable area of the non-volatile memory, first program code for performing an integrity check of second program code in an unprotected rewritable area of the non-volatile memory and requesting and receiving updated second program code from the host computer; providing in a read only memory (ROM) contained in the microcontroller, third program code for erasing data from and writing data to the unprotected rewritable area of the non-volatile memory; checking the integrity of the second program code, and if the integrity check fails then: requesting the host computer to supply updated second program code; receiving the updated second program code into random access memory (RAM) within the disc drive; erasing second program code from at least a selected portion of the unprotected area of the non-volatile memory; and writing the updated second program code from the RAM into at least the selected portion of the unprotected rewritable area of non-volatile memory.
Claim 2
Independent Claim
188 words
A method for updating program code contained in non-volatile memory for a microcontroller which controls the operation of an optical disk drive connected to a host computer, the method comprising the steps of: providing in a protected non-erasable area of the non-volatile memory, first program code for performing an integrity check of second program code in an unprotected rewritable area of the non-volatile memory and requesting and receiving updated second program code from the host computer; providing in a read only memory (ROM) contained in the microcontroller, third program code for erasing data from and writing data to the unprotected rewritable area of the non-volatile memory; checking the integrity of the second program code, and if the integrity check fails then: requesting the host computer to supply updated second program code; receiving the updated second program code into random access memory (RAM) within the disc drive; erasing second program code from at least a selected portion of the unprotected area of the non-volatile memory; and writing the updated second program code from the RAM into at least the selected portion of the unprotected rewritable area of non-volatile memory.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
21 words
The method of claim 1 in which the integrity of the second program code is checked after each interruption of power.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
33 words
The method of claim 1 in which the integrity of the second program code is checked after writing updated second program code to at least the selected portion of the unprotected rewritable area.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
21 words
The method of claim 1 further comprising the steps of activating a visible and/or audible indication if the integrity check fails.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
14 words
The method of claim 1 in which the non volatile memory includes FLASH memory.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
34 words
The method of claim 1 further comprising temporarily storing data read from a CD or DVD formatted disk in the RAM and transmitting the temporarily stored data from the RAM to the host computer.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
24 words
The method of claim 1 further comprising the step of reading a CD or DVD formatted disk depending on the updated second program code.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
24 words
The method of claim 1 , further comprising the step of writing to a CD or DVD depending on the updated second program code.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
95 words
The method of claim 1 in which: the integrity is checked after each interruption of power; the integrity is checked after each writing to the second non-protected area; the method further comprises the steps of activating a visible and/or audible indication if the integrity check fails; the non volatile memory includes FLASH memory; the method further comprises the step of reading a CD ROM or DVD ROM formatted disk depending on the updated second program code; and the method further comprises the step of writing to the disk depending on the updated second program code.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
168 words
An optical disc drive comprising: a micro controller for controlling the operation of the disc drive in response to program code; non volatile memory for storing program code, the non volatile memory including a first protected area where code is protected from erasure and a second non-protected area where code can be rewritten under the control of the micro controller, the first area containing program code to enable the micro controller to verify the integrity of the program code in the second area; means for checking the integrity of the program code in the second area; means for requesting updated program code from a host computer to which the disc drive is connected when the integrity check fails; and means for receiving the updated program code into a random access memory (RAM); and wherein: the micro controller includes program code stored in read only memory for erasing the second area of non-volatile memory and writing updated program code from the RAM into the second area of non-volatile memory.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
168 words
An optical disc drive comprising: a micro controller for controlling the operation of the disc drive in response to program code; non volatile memory for storing program code, the non volatile memory including a first protected area where code is protected from erasure and a second non-protected area where code can be rewritten under the control of the micro controller, the first area containing program code to enable the micro controller to verify the integrity of the program code in the second area; means for checking the integrity of the program code in the second area; means for requesting updated program code from a host computer to which the disc drive is connected when the integrity check fails; and means for receiving the updated program code into a random access memory (RAM); and wherein: the micro controller includes program code stored in read only memory for erasing the second area of non-volatile memory and writing updated program code from the RAM into the second area of non-volatile memory.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
24 words
The drive of claim 10 further comprising means to initiate checking program code integrity in the second non-protected area after each interruption of power.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
30 words
The drive of claim 10 further comprising means to initiate checking program code integrity in the second non-protected area after each writing of updated program code into the second area.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
20 words
The drive of claim 10 further comprising means to provide a visible and/or audible indication if the integrity check fails.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
13 words
The drive of claim 10 in which the non-volatile memory includes FLASH memory.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
32 words
The drive of claim 10 further comprising means for reading an optical disc according to the CD ROM or DVD ROM formats depending on the program code in the second non-protected area.
Claim 18
Dependent Claim
26 words
The drive of claim 15 in which the RAM is arranged for temporarily storing data read from the optical disc before transfer to the host computer.
Claim 19
Dependent Claim
24 words
The drive of claim 10 further comprising means to write to an optical disk depending on the program code in the second non-protected area.
Claim 20
Dependent Claim
154 words
The drive at claim 10 in which: the drive further comprises means to initiate checking program code integrity in the second non-protected area after each interruption of power; the drive further comprises means to initiate checking program code integrity in the second non-protected area after each writing of updated program code into the second area; the drive further comprises means to provide a visible and/or audible indication if the integrity check fails; the RAM includes RAM associated with block decoder means for temporarily storing data read from an optical disc before transfer to the host computer; the non-volatile memory includes FLASH memory; the drive further comprises means for reading from an optical disc according to the CD ROM or DVD ROM formats depending on the program code in the second non-protected area; and the drive further comprises means for writing to an optical disk depending on the program code in the second non-protected area.
Claim 21
Dependent Claim
173 words
A computer peripheral device connected to a host computer, comprising: a micro controller for controlling the operation of the peripheral device in response to program code; non volatile memory for storing program code, the non volatile memory including a first protected area where code is protected from erasure and a second non-protected area where code can be rewritten under the control of the micro controller, the first area containing program code to enable the micro controller to verify the integrity of the program code in the second area; means for checking the integrity of the program code in the second area; means for requesting updated program code from a host computer to which the disc drive is connected when the integrity check fails; and means for receiving the updated program code into a random access memory (RAM); and wherein: the micro controller includes program code stored in read only memory for erasing the second area of non-volatile memory and writing updated program code from the RAM into the second area of non-volatile memory.
Claim 22
Dependent Claim
173 words
A computer peripheral device connected to a host computer, comprising: a micro controller for controlling the operation of the peripheral device in response to program code; non volatile memory for storing program code, the non volatile memory including a first protected area where code is protected from erasure and a second non-protected area where code can be rewritten under the control of the micro controller, the first area containing program code to enable the micro controller to verify the integrity of the program code in the second area; means for checking the integrity of the program code in the second area; means for requesting updated program code from a host computer to which the disc drive is connected when the integrity check fails; and means for receiving the updated program code into a random access memory (RAM); and wherein: the micro controller includes program code stored in read only memory for erasing the second area of non-volatile memory and writing updated program code from the RAM into the second area of non-volatile memory.
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USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 2004-06-25 | 2004-12-25 | 2005-06-26 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 2008-06-25 | 2008-12-25 | 2009-06-26 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 2012-06-25 | 2012-12-25 | 2013-06-26 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |