EEPROM Information Storage via ECC Bit Modification
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Solution Overview
Problem
Non-volatile memories, such as EEPROMs, face data corruption due to 'single bit fails' caused by defective memory locations, which existing error correction codes can only partially address, and there is a need for a method to store and extract information without altering the initial memory content or requiring additional circuitry.
Innovation Solution
A method for storing information in non-volatile memories by modifying specific bits in digital words to define the information, using error correction codes to mask and correct errors, allowing the information to be extracted without additional memory or circuitry, and ensuring the information is ephemeral during reprogramming.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If error correction codes are used to correct defective memory locations, then data reliability is improved, but additional circuitry and memory resources are required
Solution Approach 1:
The patent makes the error correction code multi-functional by using it both for correcting data errors and for extracting hidden information. The same ECC circuitry that corrects single bit fails is configured to detect and report error positions, which are then used to retrieve stored information through a lookup table, eliminating the need for separate information extraction hardware
Solution Approach 2:
The patent combines the error correction function with the information storage and extraction function into a unified system. The ECC syndrome calculation serves dual purposes: correcting data errors and identifying hidden information locations, thereby merging multiple functions into a single integrated approach that reduces overall device complexity
2Quantity of substance
If information is stored in the memory plane by modifying digital words, then no additional memory location is required, but the initial memory content is altered
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary error correction code calculation to the modified digital words before storing them in the memory plane. By pre-calculating and embedding the ECC data along with the modified words containing hidden information, the system ensures that the initial memory content can be recovered through error correction, thus preserving the original information while still allowing hidden data storage
Solution Approach 2:
The patent converts the potential harm of altering initial memory content into a benefit by using the modification process to embed hidden information. The deliberate modifications to store information are designed to work with the error correction mechanism, transforming what could be seen as data corruption into a useful feature for information hiding and retrieval
3Device complexity
If modified digital words are stored in the memory plane, then information can be extracted without additional circuitry, but the information becomes inaccessible during conventional read operations
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a dynamic information extraction process that activates only when needed. The system maintains the modified digital words in the memory plane during normal operations, keeping them inaccessible but intact. When information extraction is required, the system dynamically calculates ECC syndromes, detects error positions, and retrieves hidden information through a lookup table, providing on-demand access without affecting normal read operations
Data Source
AI summary
Method for processing a non-volatile memory designed to store words containing data bits and control bits allowing an error correction with an error correction code, the method comprising the storage of information in the memory plane comprising an operation for writing in the memory plane at least one digital word modified with respect to at least one initial digital word not having any erroneous bit, said at least one modified digital word containing a bit having a modified value with respect to the value of this bit in said at least one initial digital word, the other bits of the modified digital word having values identical to those of these same bits in the initial digital word, the position of the modified bit in said at least one modified digital word defining the value of the digital information.