International Business Machines Corporation

Infoprintsolutions Company, LLC

Other

Seagate LLC

Stephen Dale Hanna

Gerald Donald Boldt

Steven G Ludwig

John Thomas Varga

Jean Margaret Aschenbrenner

David E Finlay

Robert E Vogelsberg

Scott David Mastie

Phillip Keith Hoskins

Howard C Jackson

Lisa L Fischer

Joshua Ruben Engel

Ruben Dominguez, Jr

David C Stevenson

Timothy Lawrence Canepa

Charles H Morris, Iii

Jesus C Lopez

Joanna Jean Eastment

Donald W Zegafuse, Jr, Deceased

Charles Harwood Morris, Iii

Hao That Ton

Methods and structure for preventing lower page corruption in flash memory. One embodiment is a flash storage device that includes Multi-Level Cell (MLC) flash memory, Single-Level Cell (SLC) flash memory, and a controller coupled to the MLC flash memory and the SLC flash memory. The controller is configured to program host data to a lower page of the MLC flash memory, to generate an erasure code for the host data, and to store the erasure code in the SLC flash memory. The controller is also configured to detect an interrupted write operation to an upper page linked to the lower page, to retrieve the erasure code from the SLC flash memory, and to correct the host data of the lower page of the MLC flash memory using the erasure code.

Erasure codes to prevent lower page corruption in flash memory

Provided are a method, system and program for checking and conditional processing of a print job printed with multiple transfer media. A print job indicates first print content to print using a first transfer medium and second print content to print using a second transfer medium. The first print content is printed onto a print medium with the first transfer medium. The printed first print content is read to determine whether the printed first print content satisfies a quality requirement. The second print content is printed onto the print medium with the second transfer medium in response to determining that the quality requirement is satisfied. Information is printed indicating an error on the print medium in response to determining that the print quality requirement is not satisfied.

Checking and conditional processing of a print job printed with multiple transfer media

A printer, fax machine, copier, scanner, or any other office device used by multiple users from multiple locations is provided with improved apparatus and/or software for locking out all incoming commands from reaching the device's internal controller except for commands coming from a newly-designated primary controller used by the service technician. This lockout can be used with any type of office machine that has it's own internal controller, so it applies equally to all types of office machines and systems generally used in today's office environments.

Method and apparatus for control lockout and transfer during service for systems controlled by multiple devices

A printer system includes a printer engine that produces an engine power status signal and a printer controller that produces a controller power status signal. A power management interface receives the engine power status signal and the controller power status signal and alters the power status of the printer controller by generating a power management signal based on the power status of the printer controller and the printer engine. The interface preferably alters the power status of the printer controller such that the power status of the printer controller tracks the power status of the engine. The interface may assert the power management signal in response to a transition in the engine power status signal and may format the power management signal according to an industry stand such as the PCI defined PME signal. The interface may be implemented as a board inserted in a PCI connector of the printer controller.

Power management in a printer system

Disclosed is a method, system, and logic for processing pixel data. Line work data and control data is received for pixels on a sheet from at least one object. The control data for one pixel indicates whether to use the line work data for the pixel or contone data for the pixel from the object. Multiple objects may provide line work data and control data for a same pixel. Line work data and control data from one object are outputted indicating to use contone data or the line work data for the pixel.

Method, system, and logic for selecting pixel data from multiple objects

Device emulation implemented in programmable circuits. In one aspect, an interface for providing control of a hardware device includes functional code embedded in circuitry of the interface. Emulator code is embedded in programmable circuitry of the interface to emulate the hardware device during testing of the functional code and the interface. Another aspect diagnoses errors in a system having an interface and a connected hardware device, using emulator code embedded in a programmable circuit of the interface.

Device emulation in programmable circuits

A method and system for scaling a phase lock loop (PLL) based clock, includes: selecting a clock frequency; selecting a reference frequency, multipliers, and an output divider for an output frequency of a PLL, where the output frequency is higher than the clock frequency; applying the multipliers and the output divider to the reference frequency to generate the output frequency, outputted to a programmable logic chip; and applying a counter factor to the output frequency by the programmable logic chip to generate the clock frequency. By scaling the reference frequency in more than one step, the middle ranges of the multipliers are widened, allowing for a greater granularity of control over the increments by which the reference frequency can be adjusted. Smaller frequency errors result. The printer emulator utilizing the present invention has a set of more exactly generated clock frequencies that emulate a variety of printer speeds and resolutions.

Clock scaling to optimize PLL clock generation accuracy

A method and apparatus for data transmission transmits both compressed and noncompressed data over each of a plurality of transmission paths. A data identification pattern is used to request a type of data from a memory having a plurality of data types stored within it. A handshaking control module is provided to select the correct type of data from the memory and place it on the output of the memory. The requested data type is then transmitted to a data decompression module via an interface. The data transmission can occur on any one of a plurality of data transmission paths when the data being transmitted is either Linework or Linework control data. When the data decompression module receives the data, it is then routed to any one of a plurality of data decompression systems based upon the results of the evaluation of the data identification pattern. The routing of the received data is wholly dependent upon the data identification pattern and independent of which transmission path the data was received on.

Compressed data transmission over a plurality of transmission paths

Method, system, and program for processing pixel data. A first and second logic units each receive line work data and control data for pixels on a sheet from at least one object. The control data for one pixel indicates whether to use the line work data for the pixel or contone data for the pixel. Multiple objects may provide line work data and control data for a same pixel. The first and second logic units output control data indicating to use contone data or line work data for the pixel. A third logic unit receives the line work and control data outputted from the first and second logic units. The third logic unit then outputs control data indicating to use the contone data or line work data for the pixel.

Method, system, and logic using multiplexers to select data for pixels from multiple objects

An apparatus for evaluating at least one timer in the event of a timeout condition in a system includes circuitry that generates an indication that certain system conditions have occurred, clock circuitry, enabled by the indication, that generates a timeout counter enable signal, and a number of timer units, coupled to the clock circuitry, where each of the timer units is incremented an incrementing signal and reset by a monitored signal that represents conditions in the system. The apparatus includes comparison circuitry coupled to the timeout units, such that when at least one of the timer units reaches a predetermined count, the count, or the maximum count reached to this point, of each of the timer units is stored.

Timer/timeout evaluation system that saves the counts of all timers when at least one timer has timed out

Disclosed is a method, system, and program for receiving line work data and control data for pixels on a sheet from objects. The control data for one pixel indicates whether to use the line work color data for the pixel or contone raster object for the pixel. Further, multiple objects may provide line work data and control data for a same pixel. Line work and control data are simultaneously decompressed for a same set of pixels from the multiple objects and decompressed line work and control data are simultaneously aligned for a same set of pixels from the multiple objects. The simultaneously aligned line work and control data for the pixel from the multiple objects are buffered in a third buffer.

Method, system, and program for decompressing and aligning line work data from multiple objects

Disclosed is a method, system, and program for error checking raster objects including pixel information for a print job. A plurality of raster objects form the print job. A raster object is received including sequence information indicating an ordering of the raster object with respect to other raster objects in the print job. A determination is made from the sequence information as to whether the raster object is received in a correct order with respect to other raster objects in the print job. This ensures that the pixel information for the raster object is intended for a current pixel line being processed. An indication of error status is made if the sequence information indicates that the raster object was not received in the correct order with respect to the other raster objects in the print job.

Method, system, and program for error checking raster objects

A method of compressing pixel information is described. The pixel data is received in a data stream and compressed into a compressed data format by identifying a run of consecutive bytes of the data stream based on the similarity of the consecutive data bytes in the data stream. A mode bit of a compression byte is used to indicate whether a run of consecutive bytes is identified. Count bits of the compression byte are used to indicate the number of times the data bytes are repeated and zero counts may be used to indicate particular types of runs, for example, runs to the end of a scan line and the end of an object. Where a pixel byte is represented by 8 bits, the data stream may be compressed in multiples of four bytes at a time. If a pixel is represent by less than 8 bits, the compression method may look for repetitions of similar bytes one byte at a time.

Color image data and control bit compression scheme with run length encoding

A method and apparatus for error checking in a digital scanning device. An error detection pattern is written into each of a plurality of parallel data streams. Each of the data streams is then transmitted through a separate parallel data channel. The error detection patterns in the data streams are then concurrently compared to one another to check for an error condition of the data stream. If the error detection patterns are not received substantially concurrently, an error condition is considered to have occurred. The error detection pattern may comprise end of scan, end of sheet or First-In First-Out (FIFO) buffer data. While all error conditions are false, printing and data transmission continue. Printing and data transmission are terminated if any error condition is true, and an error notification message is generated.

Growing community of inventors

Longmont, CO, United States of America

Stephen Dale Hanna