Memory Chip Selection Using Actual Capacity Measurements
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Solution Overview
Problem
Memory devices constructed from multiple units often fail to meet target storage or performance capacities due to variations in actual unit capacities, leading to inefficiencies and increased costs, as some units are discarded or downgraded, and excess capacity is wasted.
Innovation Solution
A method and system that measure and select memory units based on their actual capacities to form sets that meet or exceed the target capacity, allowing low-capacity units to be utilized with high-capacity units, thereby reducing waste and manufacturing costs, and ensuring the memory device meets its specified requirements.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If memory units are selected based on nominal storage capacity, then assembly is simplified, but actual target capacity cannot be met due to manufacturing variations
Solution Approach 1:
The patent measures and records the actual storage capacity of each memory unit before assembly. This preliminary measurement allows the selection algorithm to compensate for manufacturing variations and ensure the assembled multi-chip package meets the target capacity, resolving the contradiction between assembly simplicity and target capacity achievement.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the selection criterion from nominal capacity to actual measured capacity. By using the measured actual capacity values as the basis for selection and combination, the system can precisely control the total capacity of assembled devices to meet targets, while still maintaining automated assembly processes.
2Reliability
If low-capacity memory units are discarded, then device reliability is improved, but manufacturing cost and waste increase
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of discarding low-capacity units, the patent recovers their utility by strategically combining them with high-capacity units. The selection algorithm ensures that units with lower actual capacity are paired with units having higher actual capacity, allowing all units to be utilized effectively while maintaining device reliability and meeting target capacities.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent merges memory units with different actual capacities into complementary sets. By combining low-capacity and high-capacity units in carefully selected groups, the system creates balanced multi-chip packages that meet target capacities, thereby utilizing all available units and minimizing waste.
3Quantity of substance
If high-capacity memory units are used exclusively, then target capacity is exceeded, but manufacturing cost increases unnecessarily
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the selection basis from nominal capacity specifications to actual measured capacities. This allows the system to identify and utilize the true capacity of each unit, enabling precise matching of units to achieve target capacities without unnecessary excess, thereby reducing waste of high-capacity units.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies different roles to different memory units based on their actual capacities. Rather than treating all units uniformly, the selection algorithm assigns specific positions in multi-chip packages to units with appropriate actual capacities, optimizing the overall device performance while minimizing waste.
4Productivity
If memory units are sorted by actual capacity, then optimal sets can be formed, but measurement and selection complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent performs preliminary measurement and recording of actual capacities for all memory units before the assembly process. This upfront data collection enables subsequent automated selection algorithms to efficiently form optimal sets without requiring complex real-time measurements during assembly, thus improving yield while managing complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The system uses the measured actual capacity data to automatically perform the selection and sorting functions. The selection algorithm autonomously identifies optimal combinations of memory units based on the pre-collected capacity data, reducing the need for manual intervention and managing the complexity of the selection process.
Data Source
AI summary
A method includes accepting a definition of a type of multi-unit memory device (28) including a set of memory units (24), each having a respective nominal storage capacity, the definition specifying a target memory size of the memory device such that a sum of nominal storage capacities of the memory units in the set is equal to the target memory size. A plurality of the memory units is accepted. The memory units have respective actual storage capacities, at least some of which differ from the respective nominal storage capacity. Multi-unit memory devices including respective sets of the memory units are assembled, such that at least one of the sets includes at least a first memory unit having a first actual capacity that is less than the respective nominal capacity and at least a second memory unit having a second actual capacity that is greater than the nominal capacity.