Flash Drives

[Cham]

I want to embark on a somewhat ambitious project. I'm interested in making a flash drive from scratch. I don't care about the size. I just want to see if I can. I know this is kind of a big topic to just dive into, but I couldn't find much on the internet. I do know that the USB port will connect to an ic that makes up the flash rom, but I have to admit my ignorance in that I don't know, nor could I find much more about the operation of flash drives. Any bit helps, especially schematics. You all tend to be far more resourceful than the internet.

 

[Old Steve]

I want to embark on a somewhat ambitious project. I'm interested in making a flash drive from scratch. I don't care about the size. I just want to see if I can. I know this is kind of a big topic to just dive into, but I couldn't find much on the internet. I do know that the USB port will connect to an ic that makes up the flash rom, but I have to admit my ignorance in that I don't know, nor could I find much more about the operation of flash drives. Any bit helps, especially schematics. You all tend to be far more resourceful than the internet.

One way is a micro-controller, a USB to TTL module and an EEPROM. It would be crude, but it would work.

 

[Alec_t]

Because of the limited number of write cycles possible with flash memory you will need to find a 'wear levelling' method, as is used in commercial flash drives.

 

[Cham]

@Old Steve I'm certainly okay with a crude solution. I don't exactly have the machinery to make an efficient solution.

@Alec_t What technique is wear levelling do you think works the best for this?

 

[Alec_t]

I don't know which is best. I daresay each manufacturer has their own preferred algorithm.

 

[Old Steve]

what sort of data do you need to store, how large does your drive need to be, and how often will it be written to and erased?
Is this an attempt at a serious, fast, albeit physically over-sized high-capacity flash drive, or just something for fun, to store small amounts of data at irregular intervals?
I suspect that wear levelling may be the least of your worries. And if you do implement it, to prolong the usable life of the drive, the area where you store the info so that you can use the drive's storage space evenly will be written to and read more often than the rest. From what little I've read, commercial manufacturers use an area with a much longer life for storing the 'levelling' info.

 

[Cham]

@Old Steve For all ivare it could be a 1GB flash drive, so long as it functions like the commercially made flash drives. It'll certainly be oversized, but it's just a first draft for a project that I will probably continue in college. I suppose wear levelling may have to come later.

 

[Cham]

@Alec_t Okay, thank you very much for the help!

 

[Old Steve]

@Old Steve For all ivare it could be a 1GB flash drive, so long as it functions like the commercially made flash drives. It'll certainly be oversized, but it's just a first draft for a project that I will probably continue in college. I suppose wear levelling may have to come later.

Well 1GB is pretty serious. You'll definitely have your work cut out for you, especially if you want it to function like a commercially made drive in terms of speed etc.
Definitely out of my league. Good luck.

 

[Cham]

@Old Steve Thank you! It's probably out of my league too, but it doesn't hurt to try.