G
SECTION G — PHYSICS
 G

Note(s)

  1. In this section, the following term is used with the meaning indicated:
    • "variable" (as a noun) means a feature or property (e.g., a dimension, a physical condition such as temperature, a quality such as density or colour) which, in respect of a particular entity (e.g., an object, a quantity of a substance, a beam of light) and at a particular instant, is capable of being measured; the variable may change, so that its numerical expression may assume different values at different times, in different conditions or in individual cases, but may be constant in respect of a particular entity in certain conditions or for practical purposes (e.g., the length of a bar may be regarded as constant for many purposes).
  2. Attention is drawn to the definitions of terms or expressions used, appearing in the notes of several of the classes in this section, in particular those of "measuring" in class G01 and "control" and "regulation" in class G05.
  3. Classification in this section may present more difficulty than in other sections, because the distinction between different fields of use rests to a considerable extent on differences in the intention of the user rather than on any constructional differences or differences in the manner of use, and because the subjects dealt with are often in effect systems or combinations, which have features or parts in common, rather than "things", which are readily distinguishable as a whole. For example, information (e.g., a set of figures) may be displayed for the purpose of education or advertising (G09), for enabling the result of a measurement to be known (G01), for signalling the information to a distant point or for giving information which has been signalled from a distant point (G08). The words used to describe the purpose depend on features that may be irrelevant to the form of the apparatus concerned, for example, such features as the desired effect on the person who sees the display, or whether the display is controlled from a remote point. Again, a device which responds to some change in a condition, e.g., in the pressure of a fluid, may be used, without modification of the device itself, to give information about the pressure (G01L) or about some other condition linked to the pressure (another subclass of class G01, e.g., G01K for temperature), to make a record of the pressure or of its occurrence (G07C), to give an alarm (G08B), or to control another apparatus (G05).

    The classification scheme is intended to enable things of a similar nature (as indicated above) to be classified together. It is therefore particularly necessary for the real nature of any technical subject to be decided before it can be properly classified.

  
INSTRUMENTS
 G11
INFORMATION STORAGE
 G11C
STATIC STORES (information storage based on relative movement between record carrier and transducer G11B; semiconductor devices for storage H01L, e.g. H01L 27/108-H01L 27/115; pulse technique in general H03K, e.g. electronic switches H03K 17/00)
 G11C

Note(s)

  1. This subclass covers devices or arrangements for storage of digital or analogue information:
    1. in which no relative movement takes place between an information storage element and a transducer;
    2. which incorporate a selecting-device for writing-in or reading-out the information into or from the store.
  2. This subclass does not cover elements not adapted for storage and not provided with such means as referred to in Note (3) below, which elements are classified in the appropriate subclass, e.g. of H01, H03K.
  3. In this subclass, the following terms are used with the meaning indicated: [8]
    • "storage element" is an element which can hold at least one item of information and is provided with means for writing-in or reading-out this information; [8]
    • "memory" is a device, including storage elements, which can hold information to be extracted when desired. [8]
 G11C
Subclass index
WRITING OR READING INFORMATION 7/00
ADDRESS SELECTING 8/00
DIGITAL STORES CHARACTERISED BY THE TYPE OF ELEMENT
Electric, magnetic types; details thereof 11/00; 5/00
Mechanical types 23/00
Fluidic types 25/00
Other types 13/00
DIGITAL STORES CHARACTERISED BY BACK-UP MEANS 14/00
ERASABLE PROGRAMMABLE READ-ONLY MEMORIES 16/00
DIGITAL STORES CHARACTERISED BY INFORMATION DISPLACEMENT
Shift; circulation 19/00; 21/00
STORES CHARACTERISED BY FUNCTION
Associative; analogue; for reading-out only 15/00; 27/00; 17/00
CHECKING OF STORES 29/00
SUBJECT MATTER NOT PROVIDED FOR IN OTHER GROUPS OF THIS SUBCLASS 99/00
P:120 G11C 5/00
Details of stores covered by group G11C 11/00
 G11C 5/02
·  Disposition of storage elements, e.g. in the form of a matrix array
 G11C 5/06
·  Arrangements for interconnecting storage elements electrically, e.g. by wiring
 G11C 5/12
·  Apparatus or processes for interconnecting storage elements, e.g. for threading magnetic cores
 G11C 5/14
·  Power supply arrangements (auxiliary circuits for stores using semiconductor devices G11C 11/4063, G11C 11/413, G11C 11/34; in general G05F, H02J, H02M)  [5,7]
P:130 G11C 7/00
Arrangements for writing information into, or reading information out from, a digital store (G11C 5/00 takes precedence; auxiliary circuits for stores using semiconductor devices G11C 11/4063, G11C 11/413, G11C 11/34)  [2,5]
 G11C 7/02
·  with means for avoiding parasitic signals
 G11C 7/04
·  with means for avoiding disturbances due to temperature effects
 G11C 7/06
·  Sense amplifiers; Associated circuits (amplifiers per se H03F, H03K)  [1,7]
 G11C 7/10
·  Input/output (I/O) data interface arrangements, e.g. I/O data control circuits, I/O data buffers (level conversion circuits in general H03K 19/0175)  [7]
P:140 G11C 8/00
Arrangements for selecting an address in a digital store (auxiliary circuits for stores using semiconductor devices G11C 11/4063, G11C 11/413, G11C 11/34)  [2,5]
 G11C 8/02
·  using selecting matrix  [2]
 G11C 8/04
·  using a sequential addressing device, e.g. shift register, counter (using first in first out (FIFO) registers for changing speed of digital data flow G06F 5/06; using last in first out (LIFO) registers for processing digital data by operating upon their order G06F 7/00)  [5]
P:70 G11C 11/00
Digital stores characterised by the use of particular electric or magnetic storage elements; Storage elements therefor (G11C 14/00-G11C 21/00 take precedence)  [5]
 G11C 11/02 - 
G11C 11/54

Note(s)

Group G11C 11/56 takes precedence over groups G11C 11/02-G11C 11/54[2]

 G11C 11/02
·  using magnetic elements
 G11C 11/18
·  using Hall-effect devices
 G11C 11/19
·  using non-linear reactive devices in resonant circuits  [2]
 G11C 11/21
·  using electric elements  [2]
 G11C 11/22
·  ·  using ferroelectric elements  [2]
 G11C 11/34
·  ·  using semiconductor devices  [2]
 G11C 11/36
·  ·  ·  using diodes, e.g. as threshold elements  [2]
 G11C 11/39
·  ·  ·  using thyristors  [5]
 G11C 11/40
·  ·  ·  using transistors  [2]
 G11C 11/401
·  ·  ·  ·  forming cells needing refreshing or charge regeneration, i.e. dynamic cells  [5]
 G11C 11/402
·  ·  ·  ·  ·  with charge regeneration individual to each memory cell, i.e. internal refresh  [5]
 G11C 11/403
·  ·  ·  ·  ·  with charge regeneration common to a multiplicity of memory cells, i.e. external refresh  [5]
 G11C 11/406
·  ·  ·  ·  ·  Management or control of the refreshing or charge-regeneration cycles  [5]
 G11C 11/4063
·  ·  ·  ·  ·  Auxiliary circuits, e.g. for addressing, decoding, driving, writing, sensing or timing  [7]
 G11C 11/407
·  ·  ·  ·  ·  ·  for memory cells of the field-effect type  [5]
 G11C 11/408
·  ·  ·  ·  ·  ·  ·  Address circuits  [5]
 G11C 11/409
·  ·  ·  ·  ·  ·  ·  Read-write (R-W) circuits  [5]
 G11C 11/41
·  ·  ·  ·  forming cells with positive feedback, i.e. cells not needing refreshing or charge regeneration, e.g. bistable multivibrator or Schmitt trigger  [5]
 G11C 11/411
·  ·  ·  ·  ·  using bipolar transistors only  [5]
 G11C 11/412
·  ·  ·  ·  ·  using field-effect transistors only  [5]
 G11C 11/413
·  ·  ·  ·  ·  Auxiliary circuits, e.g. for addressing, decoding, driving, writing, sensing, timing or power reduction  [5]
 G11C 11/414
·  ·  ·  ·  ·  ·  for memory cells of the bipolar type  [5]
 G11C 11/417
·  ·  ·  ·  ·  ·  for memory cells of the field-effect type  [5]
 G11C 11/418
·  ·  ·  ·  ·  ·  ·  Address circuits  [5]
 G11C 11/419
·  ·  ·  ·  ·  ·  ·  Read-write (R-W) circuits  [5]
 G11C 11/46
·  using thermoplastic elements
 G11C 11/48
·  using displaceable coupling elements, e.g. ferromagnetic cores, to produce change between different states of mutual or self-inductance
 G11C 11/50
·  using actuation of electric contacts to store the information (mechanical stores G11C 23/00; switches providing a selected number of consecutive operations of the contacts by a single manual actuation of the operating part H01H 41/00)
 G11C 11/54
·  using elements simulating biological cells, e.g. neuron
 G11C 11/56
·  using storage elements with more than two stable states represented by steps, e.g. of voltage, current, phase, frequency (counting arrangements comprising multi-stable elements of this type H03K 25/00, H03K 29/00)  [2]
P:100 G11C 13/00
Digital stores characterised by the use of storage elements not covered by groups G11C 11/00, G11C 23/00, or G11C 25/00
 G11C 13/02
·  using elements whose operation depends upon chemical change (using electrochemical charge G11C 11/00)
 G11C 13/04
·  using optical elements
P:10 G11C 14/00
Digital stores characterised by arrangements of cells having volatile and non-volatile storage properties for back-up when the power is down  [5]
P:20 G11C 15/00
Digital stores in which information comprising one or more characteristic parts is written into the store and in which information is read-out by searching for one or more of these characteristic parts, i.e. associative or content-addressed stores (in which information is addressed to a specific location G11C 11/00)  [2]
P:30 G11C 16/00
Erasable programmable read-only memories (G11C 14/00 takes precedence)  [5]
 G11C 16/02
·  electrically programmable  [5]
 G11C 16/04
·  ·  using variable threshold transistors, e.g. FAMOS  [5]
 G11C 16/06
·  ·  Auxiliary circuits, e.g. for writing into memory (in general G11C 7/00)  [5]
P:40 G11C 17/00
Read-only memories programmable only once; Semi-permanent stores, e.g. manually-replaceable information cards (erasable programmable read-only memories G11C 16/00; coding, decoding or code conversion, in general H03M)  [2,5]
 G11C 17/04
·  using capacitive elements (G11C 17/06, G11C 17/14 take precedence)  [2,5]
 G11C 17/06
·  using diode elements (G11C 17/14 takes precedence)  [2,5]
 G11C 17/08
·  using semiconductor devices, e.g. bipolar elements (G11C 17/06, G11C 17/14 take precedence)  [5]
 G11C 17/14
·  in which contents are determined by selectively establishing, breaking or modifying connecting links by permanently altering the state of coupling elements, e.g. PROM  [5]
P:50 G11C 19/00
Digital stores in which the information is moved stepwise, e.g. shift registers (counting chains H03K 23/00)
P:60 G11C 21/00
Digital stores in which the information circulates (stepwise G11C 19/00)
P:90 G11C 23/00
Digital stores characterised by movement of mechanical parts to effect storage, e.g. using balls; Storage elements therefor (storing by actuating contacts G11C 11/48)
P:80 G11C 25/00
Digital stores characterised by the use of flowing media; Storage elements therefor
P:110 G11C 27/00
Electric analogue stores, e.g. for storing instantaneous values
P:0 G11C 29/00
Checking stores for correct operation; Testing stores during standby or offline operation  [1,8]
 G11C 29/02
·  Detection or location of defective auxiliary circuits, e.g. defective refresh counters  [8]
 G11C 29/04
·  Detection or location of defective memory elements  [8]
 G11C 29/52
·  Protection of memory contents; Detection of errors in memory contents  [8]
 G11C 29/54
·  Arrangements for designing test circuits, e.g. design for test (DFT) tools  [8]
 G11C 29/56
·  External testing equipment for static stores, e.g. automatic test equipment (ATE); Interfaces therefor  [8]
P:150 G11C 99/00
Subject matter not provided for in other groups of this subclass  [8]