Importance

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Abstract

In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention, a controller device is disclosed for use in a digital system having a host and nonvolatile memory devices. The controller device is coupled to the host and at least two nonvolatile memory devices. The host stores digital information in the nonvolatile memory unit and reads the stored digital information from the nonvolatile memory unit under the direction of the controller, the memory unit being organized into blocks of sectors of information. The controller device erases the digital information stored in the blocks of the nonvolatile memory devices in-parallel form. The controller device includes a space manager circuit responsive to address information from the host and operative to read, write or erase information in the nonvolatile memory unit based upon the host address information. The space manager assigns a predetermined number of blocks, in sequential order, to each of the nonvolatile memory devices, forms `super` blocks, each `super` block having blocks arranged inparallel, identifies a particular `super` block having at least two blocks, a first block being located in a first nonvolatile memory device and a second block being located in a second nonvolatile memory device, for erasure of the particular `super` block. The first block within the first nonvolatile memory device is first selected for erasure thereof and an erase operation to be performed on the selected first block is initiated. Thereafter, a second block within the second nonvolatile memory device is selected for erasure thereof and an erase operation to be performed on the selected second block is initiated. Thereafter, the first and second block of the particular `super` block are erased so that erasure of the second block is performed without waiting for completion of the erasure of the first block. The status of the first and second nonvolatile memory devices is indicated as being busy during erasure of the first and second blocks, wherein the speed of erase operations in the digital system is substantially increased due to the blocks of the `super` block being arranged in-parallel and overlapping of the erase operations of the blocks within the `super` blocks thereby increasing the overall performance of the digital system.

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First Claim