SOC chip interconnection system based on Ethernet and PCIe bus

Abstract

The invention relates to an SOC chip interconnection system based on the Ethernet and a PCIe bus, and belongs to the technical field of computer application. According to the invention, the plurality of SOC chips are simultaneously interconnected and intercommunicated with the plurality of CPUs through the Ethernet and the PCIe bus, and the SOC chips and the CPU chips can also be different in model specification. Through the novel interconnection method, the computer system constructed based on the SOC chip has better expandability, module-level upgrading and replacement can be conveniently carried out, and data communication can be carried out among modules of different models.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The invention belongs to the technical field of computer application, and in particular relates to a SOC chip interconnection system based on Ethernet and PCIe bus. Background Art

[0002] With the development of information technology, computers have played an important role in all walks of life, especially in the field of intelligent technology applications represented by smart cars, where computers have played an irreplaceable role. With the continuous development of computer technology, computer architecture is also constantly innovating. Traditional computers with CPU as the core can no longer meet the needs of intelligent applications. A large number of dedicated or general-purpose SOC chips have been introduced, and new computer systems based on SOC chips have been built. However, the current SOC chips are still focused on a specific field, such as unmanned driving, video encoding and decoding, etc., and the general computing power needs to be strengthened. Therefore, in the actual application process, it is often necessary to coordinate the computer system with CPU as the core and the computer system with SOC chip as the core to complete important tasks. At the same time, due to the uneven performance level of SOC chips, multiple SOC chips are often required to be interconnected with CPU in different application scenarios. Since the current SOC chip design is in a state of flourishing, the external interfaces are different, which brings great challenges to the interconnection between the computer system with CPU as the core and the computer system with SOC chip as the core. Therefore, it is necessary to propose a new type of SOC chip interconnection system. Summary of the invention

[0003] 1. Technical issues to be resolved

[0004] The technical problem to be solved by the present invention is how to provide a SOC chip interconnection system based on Ethernet and PCIe bus to solve the problem that the interconnection mode between CPU and multiple SOC chips in existing heterogeneous computers is not unified and it is difficult to achieve universal interconnection and intercommunication.

[0005] (II) Technical solution

[0006] In order to solve the above technical problems, the present invention proposes a SOC chip interconnection system based on Ethernet and PCIe bus, the system comprising: a CPU module, a SOC module, an Ethernet switch module and a PCIe SWITCH module;

[0007] The CPU module is a computer system with the CPU as the core, including: a CPU, a bridge chip and a network card, wherein the CPU is connected to the bridge chip through a high-speed bus, the bridge chip provides at least two PCIe interfaces, one of which is connected to the network card, and the other is externally led, and the network card provides at least one Ethernet interface externally;

[0008] The SOC module is a computer system with SOC as the core, including: SOC, wherein the SOC provides computing power and internally integrates a PCIe controller and an Ethernet controller, and the SOC module provides at least one PCIe interface and at least one Ethernet interface externally;

[0009] The Ethernet switching module is a module with a three-layer Ethernet switching function, including: an Ethernet switching chip and an embedded CPU, which are used to complete the network protocol processing and switching transmission of data messages, support two-layer and three-layer switching, and provide an Ethernet interface to the outside for connecting to a CPU module or a SOC module;

[0010] The PCIe SWITCH module is a module with PCIe bus data exchange function, including: a PCIe SWITCH chip used for data exchange between PCIe ports; the PCIe SWITCH module provides a PCIe port for connecting a CPU module or a SOC module.

[0011] (III) Beneficial effects

[0012] The present invention proposes a SOC chip interconnection system based on Ethernet and PCIe bus. By using an Ethernet switching module and a PCIe SWITCH module simultaneously to exchange data between a CPU module and a SOC module, the present invention can enable a plurality of different types of CPUs to communicate data with a plurality of different types of SOC chips using the same interconnection method, so that the device has universal capabilities, and any module can be upgraded and replaced according to actual conditions, which can effectively save costs and reduce the complexity of heterogeneous computer systems. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0013] Figure 1 It is a topological diagram of the novel interconnection method of the present invention;

[0014] Figure 2 This is the CPU module topology diagram;

[0015] Figure 3 It is the topology diagram of SOC module;

[0016] Figure 4 This is the topology diagram of the Ethernet switch module;

[0017] Figure 5 This is the topology diagram of the PCIe SWITCH module. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0018] In order to make the purpose, content and advantages of the present invention more clear, the specific implementation methods of the present invention are further described in detail below in conjunction with the drawings and examples.

[0019] The technical problem to be solved by the present invention is: how to design a universal, simple and low-cost interconnection method between a CPU and a plurality of SOC chips.

[0020] The present invention relates to a SOC chip interconnection system based on Ethernet and PCIe bus, and belongs to the field of computer application technology. The SOC chip interconnection system based on Ethernet and PCIe bus proposed by the present invention can enable multiple SOC chips to interconnect with multiple CPUs through Ethernet and PCIe bus at the same time, and these SOC chips and CPU chips can also be of different models and specifications. Through this new interconnection method, the computer system built based on SOC chip has better scalability, can be conveniently upgraded and replaced at module level, and can also communicate data between modules of different models.

[0021] The present invention aims at the problem that the interconnection mode between the CPU and multiple SOC chips in the existing heterogeneous computers is not unified and it is difficult to achieve universal interconnection and intercommunication, and proposes a novel interconnection method between the CPU and multiple SOC chips based on Ethernet and PCIe bus. In this interconnection method, Ethernet and PCIe bus need to be used at the same time, which is compatible with the current mainstream CPU and SOC chips and meets the needs of different computer systems and applications. Through this interconnection method, data can be transmitted between the CPU and SOC chips through Ethernet and PCIe bus.

[0022] The computer system using this interconnection method includes: a CPU module, a SOC module, an Ethernet switch module and a PCIeSWITCH module.

[0023] The CPU module refers to a computer system with CPU as the core, including CPU, memory, SATA disk, bridge chip, network card and other parts, which constitute a basic computer system. In this CPU module, CPU is the computing core, memory and SATA disk provide data storage function for CPU, bridge chip provides PCIe bus expansion capability, and network card provides network communication capability. In this module, CPU is connected to bridge chip through high-speed bus, bridge chip provides at least two PCIe interfaces, and connects to network card through one PCIe interface, and another PCIe interface is led out to the outside, and network card provides at least one Ethernet interface to the outside.

[0024] The SOC module refers to a computer system with SOC as the core, including SOC, memory, eMMC and other parts, which constitute a basic computer system. In this SOC module, SOC provides computing power, and PCIe controller and Ethernet controller are integrated internally. Memory and eMMC provide data storage capabilities for the SOC module. The SOC module must provide at least one PCIe interface and at least one Ethernet interface to the outside.

[0025] The Ethernet switching module refers to a module with a three-layer Ethernet switching function, which is mainly composed of an Ethernet switching chip, an embedded CPU, etc., and has high-speed Ethernet switching capabilities. It is used to complete the network protocol processing and switching transmission functions of data messages, and supports two-layer and three-layer switching. The Ethernet switching module must provide at least eight Ethernet interfaces to the outside, which can be used to connect to up to eight CPU modules or SOC modules. When the total number of CPU modules and SOC modules is more than eight, the Ethernet switching module can be upgraded to support more interfaces.

[0026] The PCIe SWITCH module is a module with PCIe bus data exchange function, mainly composed of PCIeSWITCH chip, capable of data exchange between PCIe ports, supporting standard PCIe exchange mode and virtual exchange mode, at least supporting PCIe 3.0 specification, and backward compatible, link width can be configured as X16, X8, X4, etc., the PCIeSWITCH module must provide at least eight PCIe ports to the outside. It can be used to connect to up to eight CPU modules or SOC modules. When the total number of CPU modules and SOC modules is more than eight, the PCIe SWITCH module can be upgraded to support more interfaces.

[0027] The interconnection system of the present invention uses Ethernet and PCIe bus to realize data interconnection and intercommunication between CPU module and SOC module in the field of intelligent technology application represented by intelligent automobile. Through this interconnection method, it can be compatible with the mainstream domestic CPU chips and domestic SOC chips on the market, such as Loongson CPU, Feiteng CPU, Ascend SOC chip, Suanneng SOC chip, etc., and can realize arbitrary data communication between multiple CPU chips and multiple SOC chips, wherein the business data transmitted through Ethernet channel and PCIe channel can be flexibly configured by software, so as to achieve the technical purpose of using an interconnection method to realize data interconnection and intercommunication between different CPUs and different SOCs. In this interconnection method, data interaction is carried out between several CPU modules and several SOC modules through Ethernet switching module and PCIe SWITCH module, wherein the data interaction in Ethernet channel depends on the setting of IP address, which is flexibly configured by software, and the RC node and EP node in PCIe channel can also be flexibly configured by software, therefore, in this interconnection method, the interconnection topology relationship of the system is flexible and software configurable, which can meet the needs of various usage scenarios such as intelligent automobiles, and has strong convenience.

[0028] Embodiment 1:

[0029] In a heterogeneous computer system of a smart car, there are two CPUs and two SOC chips. Now, to achieve the interconnection between the two CPUs and the two SOC chips, the required implementation method is as follows:

[0030] 1. Use an Ethernet switch module to connect one Ethernet line of each of the two CPUs to different ports of the Ethernet switch module, and connect one Ethernet line of each of the two SOCs to different ports of the Ethernet switch module.

[0031] 2. Use a PCIe SWITCH module to connect one PCIe channel of each of the two CPUs to different ports of the PCIe SWITCH module, and connect one PCIe channel of each of the two SOCs to different ports of the PCIe SWITCH module.

[0032] 3. The computer system starts working, and the two CPUs and two SOC chips can use Ethernet and PCIe for data communication at the same time.

[0033] The present invention proposes a SOC chip interconnection system based on Ethernet and PCIe bus. By using the Ethernet switching module and the PCIe SWITCH module simultaneously for data exchange between the CPU module and the SOC module, multiple CPUs of different models and multiple SOC chips of different models can use the same interconnection method for data communication, so that the device has universal capabilities, and any module can be upgraded and replaced according to actual conditions, which can effectively save costs and reduce the complexity of heterogeneous computer systems.

[0034] The above is only a preferred embodiment of the present invention. It should be pointed out that for ordinary technicians in this technical field, several improvements and modifications can be made without departing from the technical principles of the present invention. These improvements and modifications should also be regarded as the scope of protection of the present invention.

Claims

1. A SOC chip interconnection system based on Ethernet and PCIe bus, characterized in that: The system includes: CPU module, SOC module, Ethernet switch module and PCIe SWITCH module; The CPU module is a computer system with the CPU as the core, including: a CPU, a bridge chip and a network card, wherein the CPU is connected to the bridge chip through a high-speed bus, the bridge chip provides at least two PCIe interfaces, one of which is connected to the network card, and the other is externally led, and the network card provides at least one Ethernet interface externally; The SOC module is a computer system with SOC as the core, including: SOC, wherein the SOC provides computing power and internally integrates a PCIe controller and an Ethernet controller, and the SOC module provides at least one PCIe interface and at least one Ethernet interface externally; The Ethernet switching module is a module with a three-layer Ethernet switching function, including: an Ethernet switching chip and an embedded CPU, which are used to complete the network protocol processing and switching transmission of data messages, support two-layer and three-layer switching, and provide an Ethernet interface to the outside for connecting to a CPU module or a SOC module; The PCIe SWITCH module is a module with PCIe bus data exchange function, including: a PCIe SWITCH chip used for data exchange between PCIe ports; the PCIe SWITCH module provides a PCIe port for connecting a CPU module or a SOC module.

2. The SOC chip interconnection system based on Ethernet and PCIe bus as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that: The CPU module also includes: memory and SATA disk. In the CPU module, the CPU is the computing core, the memory and SATA disk provide data storage function for the CPU, the bridge chip provides PCIe bus expansion capability, and the network card provides network communication capability.

3. The SOC chip interconnection system based on Ethernet and PCIe bus as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that: The SOC module also includes: memory and eMMC, forming a basic computer system. In the SOC module, the SOC provides computing power, and the memory and eMMC provide data storage capabilities for the SOC module.

4. The SOC chip interconnection system based on Ethernet and PCIe bus as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that: The Ethernet switching module provides at least eight Ethernet interfaces for connecting to up to eight CPU modules or SOC modules. When the total number of CPU modules and SOC modules is more than eight, the Ethernet switching module is upgraded to support more interfaces.

5. The SOC chip interconnection system based on Ethernet and PCIe bus as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that: The PCIe SWITCH module has the ability to exchange data between PCIe ports, supports standard PCIe switching mode and virtual switching mode, supports at least PCIe 3.0 specification, and is backward compatible, and the link width is configured as X16, X8 or X4.

6. The SOC chip interconnection system based on Ethernet and PCIe bus as claimed in claim 5, characterized in that: The PCIe SWITCH module provides at least eight PCIe ports externally. When the total number of CPU modules and SOC modules is more than eight, the PCIe SWITCH module is upgraded to support more interfaces.

7. The SOC chip interconnection system based on Ethernet and PCIe bus according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that: The system uses both Ethernet and PCIe buses to achieve data interconnection between the CPU module and the SOC module.

8. The SOC chip interconnection system based on Ethernet and PCIe bus as claimed in claim 7, characterized in that: The CPU in the CPU module is a Loongson CPU or a Feiteng CPU.

9. The SOC chip interconnection system based on Ethernet and PCIe bus as claimed in claim 7, characterized in that: The SOC in the SOC module is an Ascend SOC chip or a computing SOC chip.

10. The SOC chip interconnection system based on Ethernet and PCIe bus as claimed in claim 7, characterized in that: Several CPU modules and several SOC modules exchange data through Ethernet switching modules and PCIe SWITCH modules. The data interaction in the Ethernet channel depends on the IP address, which is flexibly configured through software. The RC nodes and EP nodes in the PCIe channel are flexibly configured through software.

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