Patents by Inventor Robert E. Palmer
Robert E. Palmer has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).
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Patent number: 9565041Abstract: An integrated receiver supports adaptive receive equalization. An incoming bit stream is sampled using edge and data clock signals derived from a reference clock signal. A phase detector determines whether the edge and data clock signals are in phase with the incoming data, while some clock recovery circuitry adjusts the edge and data clock signals as required to match their phases to the incoming data. The receiver employs the edge and data samples used to recover the edge and data clock signals to note the locations of zero crossings for one or more selected data patterns. The pattern or patterns may be selected from among those apt to produce the greatest timing error. Equalization settings may then be adjusted to align the zero crossings of the selected data patterns with the recovered edge clock signal.Type: GrantFiled: May 4, 2015Date of Patent: February 7, 2017Assignee: Rambus Inc.Inventor: Robert E. Palmer
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Patent number: 9437276Abstract: A system includes a memory controller and a memory device having a command interface and a plurality of memory banks, each with a plurality of rows of memory cells. The memory controller transmits an auto-refresh command to the memory device. Responsive to the auto-refresh command, during a first time interval, the memory device performs refresh operations to refresh the memory cells and the command interface of the memory device is placed into a calibration mode for the duration of the first time interval. Concurrently, during at least a portion of the first time interval, the memory controller performs a calibration of the command interface of the memory device. The auto-refresh command may specify an order in which memory banks of the memory device are to be refreshed, such that the memory device sequentially refreshes a respective row in the plurality of memory banks in the specified bank order.Type: GrantFiled: April 18, 2016Date of Patent: September 6, 2016Assignee: RAMBUS INC.Inventors: Frederick A. Ware, Robert E. Palmer, John W. Poulton
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Patent number: 9419598Abstract: A controllable delay element includes a delay element to provide a variable delay from an input signal to an output signal. The variable delay can be controlled by a digital delay input. The delay element has a delay range that is controlled in response to a delay range input. The delay range of the delay element can be calibrated to a desired range of delays in response to a relative delay between a first timing reference and a second timing reference. A common timing reference is applied to a plurality of receivers and a strobe receiver. The delay through the strobe receiver is adjusted to measure the delay mismatches between the plurality of receivers. The mismatches are used to select a value for the delay through the strobe receiver.Type: GrantFiled: November 12, 2014Date of Patent: August 16, 2016Assignee: Rambus Inc.Inventors: Robert E. Palmer, Michael D. Bucher, Andrew M. Fuller
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Publication number: 20160231963Abstract: A system includes a memory controller and a memory device having a command interface and a plurality of memory banks, each with a plurality of rows of memory cells. The memory controller transmits an auto-refresh command to the memory device. Responsive to the auto-refresh command, during a first time interval, the memory device performs refresh operations to refresh the memory cells and the command interface of the memory device is placed into a calibration mode for the duration of the first time interval. Concurrently, during at least a portion of the first time interval, the memory controller performs a calibration of the command interface of the memory device. The auto-refresh command may specify an order in which memory banks of the memory device are to be refreshed, such that the memory device sequentially refreshes a respective row in the plurality of memory banks in the specified bank order.Type: ApplicationFiled: April 18, 2016Publication date: August 11, 2016Inventors: Frederick A. Ware, Robert E. Palmer, John W. Poulton
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Patent number: 9368172Abstract: A memory controller that extends the window when reading data from the memory device to compensate for fluctuations in a read strobe delay. The memory controller includes a communication port that receives a timing reference signal for reading data from a memory device. A control circuit generates a gating signal indicative of a read window. A gating adjustment circuit generates an adjusted gating signal indicative of an adjusted read window based on the gating signal and the timing reference signal. A gating circuit generates a first gated timing reference signal for reading data by gating a delayed version of the timing reference signal with the adjusted gating signal.Type: GrantFiled: December 16, 2014Date of Patent: June 14, 2016Assignee: Rambus Inc.Inventors: Robert E. Palmer, Barry W. Daly, William F. Stonecypher
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Publication number: 20160147281Abstract: In an integrated circuit device that outputs data values during respective transmit intervals defined by transitions of a transmit clock, the phase of the transmit clock is shifted by half a transmit interval to enable a timing calibration operation. Thereafter, a sequence of data values is transmitted to another integrated circuit device in response to the phase-shifted transmit clock and a samples of the sequence of data values are received from the other integrated circuit device. The received samples are compared with the sequence of data values to determine a phase update value, including comparing at least one received sample with two adjacent data values within the sequence of data values, and the phase of the transmit clock is incrementally advanced or retarded according to the phase update value.Type: ApplicationFiled: November 24, 2015Publication date: May 26, 2016Inventors: Frederick A. Ware, Robert E. Palmer, John W. Poulton, Andrew M. Fuller
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Patent number: 9318183Abstract: A system includes a memory controller and a memory device having a command interface and a plurality of memory banks, each with a plurality of rows of memory cells. The memory controller transmits an auto-refresh command to the memory device. Responsive to the auto-refresh command, during a first time interval, the memory device performs refresh operations to refresh the memory cells and the command interface of the memory device is placed into a calibration mode for the duration of the first time interval. Concurrently, during at least a portion of the first time interval, the memory controller performs a calibration of the command interface of the memory device. The auto-refresh command may specify an order in which memory banks of the memory device are to be refreshed, such that the memory device sequentially refreshes a respective row in the plurality of memory banks in the specified bank order.Type: GrantFiled: November 10, 2015Date of Patent: April 19, 2016Assignee: RAMBUS INC.Inventors: Frederick A. Ware, Robert E. Palmer, John W. Poulton
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Publication number: 20160064066Abstract: A system includes a memory controller and a memory device having a command interface and a plurality of memory banks, each with a plurality of rows of memory cells. The memory controller transmits an auto-refresh command to the memory device. Responsive to the auto-refresh command, during a first time interval, the memory device performs refresh operations to refresh the memory cells and the command interface of the memory device is placed into a calibration mode for the duration of the first time interval. Concurrently, during at least a portion of the first time interval, the memory controller performs a calibration of the command interface of the memory device. The auto-refresh command may specify an order in which memory banks of the memory device are to be refreshed, such that the memory device sequentially refreshes a respective row in the plurality of memory banks in the specified bank order.Type: ApplicationFiled: November 10, 2015Publication date: March 3, 2016Inventors: Frederick A. Ware, Robert E. Palmer, John E. Poulton
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Patent number: 9229523Abstract: A memory controller component of a memory system stores memory access requests within a transaction queue until serviced so that, over time, the transaction queue alternates between occupied and empty states. The memory controller transitions the memory system to a low power mode in response to detecting the transaction queue is has remained in the empty state for a predetermined time. In the transition to the low power mode, the memory controller disables oscillation of one or more timing signals required to time data signaling operations within synchronous communication circuits of one or more attached memory devices and also disables one or more power consuming circuits within the synchronous communication circuits of the one or more memory devices.Type: GrantFiled: April 23, 2015Date of Patent: January 5, 2016Assignee: Rambus Inc.Inventors: Frederick A. Ware, Robert E. Palmer, John W. Poulton, Andrew M. Fuller
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Patent number: 9196348Abstract: A system includes a memory controller and a memory device having a command interface and a plurality of memory banks, each with a plurality of rows of memory cells. The memory controller transmits an auto-refresh command to the memory device. Responsive to the auto-refresh command, during a first time interval, the memory device performs refresh operations to refresh the memory cells and the command interface of the memory device is placed into a calibration mode for the duration of the first time interval. Concurrently, during at least a portion of the first time interval, the memory controller performs a calibration of the command interface of the memory device. The auto-refresh command may specify an order in which memory banks of the memory device are to be refreshed, such that the memory device sequentially refreshes a respective row in the plurality of memory banks in the specified bank order.Type: GrantFiled: February 3, 2015Date of Patent: November 24, 2015Assignee: RAMBUS INC.Inventors: Frederick A. Ware, Robert E. Palmer, John W. Poulton
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Publication number: 20150304141Abstract: An integrated receiver supports adaptive receive equalization. An incoming bit stream is sampled using edge and data clock signals derived from a reference clock signal. A phase detector determines whether the edge and data clock signals are in phase with the incoming data, while some clock recovery circuitry adjusts the edge and data clock signals as required to match their phases to the incoming data. The receiver employs the edge and data samples used to recover the edge and data clock signals to note the locations of zero crossings for one or more selected data patterns. The pattern or patterns may be selected from among those apt to produce the greatest timing error. Equalization settings may then be adjusted to align the zero crossings of the selected data patterns with the recovered edge clock signal.Type: ApplicationFiled: May 4, 2015Publication date: October 22, 2015Applicant: Rambus Inc.Inventor: Robert E. Palmer
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Publication number: 20150227188Abstract: A memory controller component of a memory system stores memory access requests within a transaction queue until serviced so that, over time, the transaction queue alternates between occupied and empty states. The memory controller transitions the memory system to a low power mode in response to detecting the transaction queue is has remained in the empty state for a predetermined time. In the transition to the low power mode, the memory controller disables oscillation of one or more timing signals required to time data signaling operations within synchronous communication circuits of one or more attached memory devices and also disables one or more power consuming circuits within the synchronous communication circuits of the one or more memory devices.Type: ApplicationFiled: April 23, 2015Publication date: August 13, 2015Inventors: Frederick A. Ware, Robert E. Palmer, John W. Poulton, Andrew M. Fuller
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Publication number: 20150221354Abstract: A memory controller that extends the window when reading data from the memory device to compensate for fluctuations in a read strobe delay. The memory controller includes a communication port that receives a timing reference signal for reading data from a memory device. A control circuit generates a gating signal indicative of a read window. A gating adjustment circuit generates an adjusted gating signal indicative of an adjusted read window based on the gating signal and the timing reference signal. A gating circuit generates a first gated timing reference signal for reading data by gating a delayed version of the timing reference signal with the adjusted gating signal.Type: ApplicationFiled: December 16, 2014Publication date: August 6, 2015Inventors: Robert E. Palmer, Barry W. Daly, William F. Stonecypher
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Publication number: 20150187412Abstract: A system includes a memory controller and a memory device having a command interface and a plurality of memory banks, each with a plurality of rows of memory cells. The memory controller transmits an auto-refresh command to the memory device. Responsive to the auto-refresh command, during a first time interval, the memory device performs refresh operations to refresh the memory cells and the command interface of the memory device is placed into a calibration mode for the duration of the first time interval. Concurrently, during at least a portion of the first time interval, the memory controller performs a calibration of the command interface of the memory device. The auto-refresh command may specify an order in which memory banks of the memory device are to be refreshed, such that the memory device sequentially refreshes a respective row in the plurality of memory banks in the specified bank order.Type: ApplicationFiled: February 3, 2015Publication date: July 2, 2015Inventors: Frederick A. Ware, Robert E. Palmer, John W. Poulton
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Patent number: 9054906Abstract: An integrated receiver supports adaptive receive equalization. An incoming bit stream is sampled using edge and data clock signals derived from a reference clock signal. A phase detector determines whether the edge and data clock signals are in phase with the incoming data, while some clock recovery circuitry adjusts the edge and data clock signals as required to match their phases to the incoming data. The receiver employs the edge and data samples used to recover the edge and data clock signals to note the locations of zero crossings for one or more selected data patterns. The pattern or patterns may be selected from among those apt to produce the greatest timing error. Equalization settings may then be adjusted to align the zero crossings of the selected data patterns with the recovered edge clock signal.Type: GrantFiled: January 21, 2014Date of Patent: June 9, 2015Assignee: Rambus Inc.Inventor: Robert E. Palmer
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Publication number: 20150145581Abstract: A controllable delay element includes a delay element to provide a variable delay from an input signal to an output signal. The variable delay can be controlled by a digital delay input. The delay element has a delay range that is controlled in response to a delay range input. The delay range of the delay element can be calibrated to a desired range of delays in response to a relative delay between a first timing reference and a second timing reference. A common timing reference is applied to a plurality of receivers and a strobe receiver. The delay through the strobe receiver is adjusted to measure the delay mismatches between the plurality of receivers. The mismatches are used to select a value for the delay through the strobe receiver.Type: ApplicationFiled: November 12, 2014Publication date: May 28, 2015Inventors: Robert E. Palmer, Michael D. Bucher, Andrew M. Fuller
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Patent number: 9043633Abstract: An integrated-circuit memory controller outputs to a memory device a first signal in a first state to enable operation of synchronous data transmission and reception circuits within the memory device. A transaction queue within the memory controller stores memory read and write requests that, to be serviced, require operation of the synchronous data transmission and reception circuits, respectively, within the memory device. Power control circuitry within the memory controller determines that the transaction queue has reached a predetermined state and, in response, outputs the first signal to the memory device in a second state to disable operation of the synchronous data transmission and reception circuits within the memory device.Type: GrantFiled: November 18, 2014Date of Patent: May 26, 2015Assignee: Rambus Inc.Inventors: Frederick A. Ware, Robert E. Palmer, John W. Poulton, Andrew M. Fuller
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Publication number: 20150074437Abstract: An integrated-circuit memory controller outputs to a memory device a first signal in a first state to enable operation of synchronous data transmission and reception circuits within the memory device. A transaction queue within the memory controller stores memory read and write requests that, to be serviced, require operation of the synchronous data transmission and reception circuits, respectively, within the memory device. Power control circuitry within the memory controller determines that the transaction queue has reached a predetermined state and, in response, outputs the first signal to the memory device in a second state to disable operation of the synchronous data transmission and reception circuits within the memory device.Type: ApplicationFiled: November 18, 2014Publication date: March 12, 2015Inventors: Frederick A. Ware, Robert E. Palmer, John W. Poulton, Andrew M. Fuller
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Patent number: 8949520Abstract: A system includes a memory controller and a memory device having a command interface and a plurality of memory banks, each with a plurality of rows of memory cells. The memory controller transmits an auto-refresh command to the memory device. Responsive to the auto-refresh command, during a first time interval, the memory device performs refresh operations to refresh the memory cells and the command interface of the memory device is placed into a calibration mode for the duration of the first time interval. Concurrently, during at least a portion of the first time interval, the memory controller performs a calibration of the command interface of the memory device. The auto-refresh command may specify an order in which memory banks of the memory device are to be refreshed, such that the memory device sequentially refreshes a respective row in the plurality of memory banks in the specified bank order.Type: GrantFiled: January 13, 2010Date of Patent: February 3, 2015Assignee: Rambus Inc.Inventors: Frederick A. Ware, Robert E. Palmer, John W. Poulton
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Patent number: 8918669Abstract: In a low-power signaling system, an integrated circuit device includes an open loop-clock distribution circuit and a transmit circuit that cooperate to enable high-speed transmission of information-bearing symbols unaccompanied by source-synchronous timing references. The open-loop clock distribution circuit generates a transmit clock signal in response to an externally-supplied clock signal, and the transmit circuit outputs a sequence of symbols onto an external signal line in response to transitions of the transmit clock signal. Each of the symbols is valid at the output of the transmit circuit for a symbol time and a phase offset between the transmit clock signal and the externally-supplied clock signal is permitted to drift by at least the symbol time.Type: GrantFiled: July 9, 2009Date of Patent: December 23, 2014Assignee: Rambus Inc.Inventors: Frederick A. Ware, Robert E. Palmer, John W. Poulton, Andrew M. Fuller