Patent ID: 7971123

Claim:
A method for operating a memory cell collection storing binary data, the method comprising: dividing a characteristic parameter of the memory cell collection into a plurality of characteristic parameter bands; assigning a binary multi-bit value to each of the plurality of characteristic parameter bands; converting the binary multi-bit values to be stored in the memory cell collection to characteristic parameter values, the characteristic parameter values being in the characteristic parameter band associated with the assigned binary multi-bit value corresponding to the binary multi-bit value; storing the binary multi-bit values in the memory cell collection as the characteristic parameter values; storing a stored count for each binary multi-bit value, the stored count being equal to the number of occurrences the binary multi-bit value is stored in the memory cell collection; converting the stored characteristic parameter values to retrieved binary multi-bit values according to the assigned binary multi-bit values; determining a retrieved count for each binary multi-bit value, the retrieved count being equal to the number of occurrences the binary multi-bit value is retrieved from the memory cell collection; and if the stored count of each binary multi-bit value is not equal to the retrieved count of each binary multi-bit value, the method further comprising: a) for each memory cell in the memory cell collection, calculating a band probability that the stored characteristic parameter value belongs to the characteristic parameter band assigned to the binary multi-bit value; b) identifying at least one error memory cell in the memory cell collection having a low band probability; c) assigning the error memory cell a corrected binary multi-bit value with the characteristic parameter value within the characteristic parameter band adjacent to the characteristic parameter band associated with the retrieved binary multi-bit value such that the retrieved count is equal to the stored count for each binary multi-bit value.