IP Library Granted Patent US 11,334,504
Granted Patent B2
US 11,334,504 · App. 16/896,157 · Granted May 17, 2022

Hybrid architecture for signal processing and signal processing accelerator

Inventor: Steven Perry (High Wycombe, GB)
Assignee: Altera Corporation
G06F13/1668G06F13/4234G06F30/327G06F30/34H03K19/1776H03K19/17728H03K19/17736H03K19/17748
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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 11,334,504
App. No.
16/896,157
Granted
May 17, 2022
Kind
B2
Abstract

Systems and methods for configuring a SPA are disclosed. The SPA comprises a plurality of input ports, a plurality of data memory units, signal processing circuitry, and an enable block including at least two counters. Each counter determines an amount of unprocessed data that is stored in a respective one of the plurality of data memory units, and the enable block is configured to disable the signal processing circuitry until a predetermined amount of data is received over the input ports.

Claims (31)

1. An integrated circuit system, comprising:

programmable logic circuitry in a first region of the integrated circuit system;

a two-dimensional array of instruction set architecture (ISA)-based signal processors in a second region of the integrated circuit system different from the first region;

an interconnect network that enables communication between ISA-based signal processors of the two-dimensional array of ISA-based signal processors; and

a hardened processing system configured to transmit instructions over the interconnect network to the two-dimensional array of ISA-based signal processors to configure the contents of one or more ISA-based signal processors of the two-dimensional array of ISA-based signal processors.

2. The integrated circuit system of claim 1 , wherein the programmable logic circuitry comprises field programmable gate array (FPGA) circuitry configured to send data to or receive data from the two-dimensional array of ISA-based signal processors.

3. The integrated circuit system of claim 1 , wherein the two-dimensional array of ISA-based signal processors has vector processing functionality.

4. The integrated circuit system of claim 1 , wherein the two-dimensional array of ISA-based signal processors is programmable to perform digital pre-distortion (DPD) processing.

5. The integrated circuit system of claim 1 , wherein the two-dimensional array of ISA-based signal processors comprises distributed memory, wherein each ISA-based signal processor of the array of ISA-based signal processors is associated with at least one memory block of the distributed memory.

6. The integrated circuit system of claim 1 , wherein the interconnect network connects a first ISA-based signal processor of the array of ISA-based signal processors to a second ISA-based signal processor of the two-dimensional array of ISA-based signal processors to skip a third ISA-based signal processor located between the first ISA-based signal processor and the second ISA-based signal processor in the two-dimensional array of ISA-based signal processors.

7. The integrated circuit system of claim 6 , wherein the two-dimensional array of ISA-based signal processors comprises at least a first row, a second row, and a third row of ISA-based signal processors, and a first column, a second column, and a third column of ISA-based signal processors.

8. The integrated circuit system of claim 1 , wherein an ISA-based signal processor of the two-dimensional array of ISA-based signal processors comprises an instruction unit, a program counter, or a combination thereof.

9. The integrated circuit system of claim 8 , wherein the instruction unit stores microcode for the ISA-based signal processor.

10. The integrated circuit system of claim 8 , wherein the program counter controls a sequence of processing steps in the ISA-based signal processor.

11. The integrated circuit system of claim 1 , wherein the two-dimensional array of ISA-based signal processors comprises at least a first row, a second row, and a third row of ISA-based signal processors, and a first column, a second column, and a third column of ISA-based signal processors.

12. An integrated circuit system, comprising:

programmable logic circuitry in a first region of the integrated circuit system;

a two-dimensional array of instruction set architecture (ISA)-based signal processors in a second region of the integrated circuit system different from the first region;

an interconnect network that enables communication between ISA-based signal processors of the two-dimensional array of ISA-based signal processors to bypass at least one ISA-based signal processors of the two-dimensional array of ISA-based signal processors in transmitting at least one signal in the communication between other ISA-based signal processors of the two-dimensional array of ISA-based signal processors; and

a hardened processing system configured to transmit instructions over the interconnect network to the two-dimensional array of ISA-based signal processors to configure contents of one or more ISA-based signal processors of the two-dimensional array of ISA-based signal processors.

13. The integrated circuit system of claim 12 , wherein the two-dimensional array of ISA-based signal processors comprises at least a first row, a second row, and a third row of ISA-based signal processors, and a first column, a second column, and a third column of ISA-based signal processors.

14. The integrated circuit system of claim 12 , wherein the two-dimensional array of ISA-based signal processors is programmable to perform digital pre-distortion (DPD) processing.

15. The integrated circuit system of claim 12 , wherein the interconnect network is configured to enable a first ISA-based signal processor of the two-dimensional array of ISA-based signal processors to stream data directly to a second ISA-based signal processor of the two-dimensional array of ISA-based signal processors.

16. The integrated circuit system of claim 15 , wherein the interconnect network communicatively connects the first ISA-based signal processor directly to the second ISA-based signal processor using unidirectional routing circuitry.

17. The integrated circuit system of claim 12 , wherein an ISA-based signal processor of the two-dimensional array of ISA-based signal processors comprises an instruction unit, a program counter, or a combination thereof.

18. The integrated circuit system of claim 17 , wherein the instruction unit stores microcode for the ISA-based signal processor.

19. A method, comprising:

receiving input data at a two-dimensional array of instruction set architecture (ISA)-based signal processors in a first region of an integrated circuit separate from a second region comprising programmable logic circuitry of the integrated circuit;

routing communication between at least a portion of the two-dimensional array of ISA-based signal processors via an interconnect network; and

transmitting instructions, via a hardened processing system, to the two-dimensional array of ISA-based signal processors to cause the two-dimensional array of ISA-based signal processors to perform a corresponding function.

20. The method of claim 19 , wherein the two-dimensional array of ISA-based signal processors has vector processing functionality.

Assignments (1)
SECURITY INTEREST Recorded Sep 12, 2025
From: ALTERA CORPORATION
To: BARCLAYS BANK PLC, AS COLLATERAL AGENT
Reel/Frame 073431/0309 →