Buffer Manager Pointer Cache for Packet Buffer Allocation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing electronic apparatuses face challenges in managing packet buffers efficiently, leading to head-of-line blocking issues and inefficient data transmission due to reliance on polling mechanisms and ready signals, which fail to predict flow rates and can hinder parallel computations.
Innovation Solution
An electronic apparatus with a buffer manager that monitors and manages available pointers for packet buffer spaces, allowing for dynamic allocation and deallocation of buffer memory resources, enabling the processing unit and communication transceiver to efficiently transmit and receive packets without relying on back-pressure flow control.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If polling communication manner is used to share packet buffer usage status, then the processor and communication circuit can coordinate buffer access, but it occupies data bus time and reduces transmission efficiency
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the buffer status information (available pointer quantity) from the polling communication mechanism and places it directly into the data bus transaction data path. This allows the buffer status to be transmitted along with packet data without requiring separate polling cycles, thereby eliminating the occupation of data bus time for status inquiry while maintaining reliable buffer access coordination.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent merges the buffer status indication function with the existing packet data transmission function. The available pointer quantity is integrated into the data bus communication stream, combining what were previously separate operations (status polling and data transfer) into a unified transmission mechanism, thus improving productivity without sacrificing reliability.
2Reliability
If ready signal is used to indicate packet buffer status, then the processor can be notified when buffer is available, but it cannot predict flow rate and causes head of line blocking
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements preliminary action by providing the available pointer quantity information in advance within the data bus transaction, before the processor needs to wait for buffer availability. This allows the processor to predict upcoming buffer status and plan parallel computations accordingly, eliminating the head of line blocking problem caused by sequential ready signal waiting.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces feedback by continuously providing buffer status information (available pointer quantity) to the processor through the data bus. This real-time feedback mechanism enables the processor to adjust its computation and transmission rates dynamically, predicting flow rates and avoiding head of line blocking while maintaining reliable buffer status indication.
3Reliability
If back-pressure flow control is implemented using ready signal, then packet buffer overflow is prevented, but transmission speed is reduced due to processor waiting
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the mechanical waiting mechanism (processor halting until ready signal changes) with an information-based control mechanism. The available pointer quantity is transmitted through the data bus, allowing the processor to make informed decisions about transmission timing without physically waiting, thus maintaining buffer overflow prevention while significantly improving transmission speed.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the control parameter from a binary ready signal (0 or 1) to a quantitative available pointer quantity value. This parameter change provides the processor with more information about buffer capacity, enabling it to optimize transmission speed while still preventing buffer overflow, thereby resolving the contradiction between reliability and speed.
Data Source
AI summary
An electronic apparatus includes a processing unit, a buffer memory and a buffer manager. The buffer memory includes some packet buffer slots. Each of the packet buffer slots aligns to a packet size. The buffer manager includes a cache for registering available pointers. Each of the available pointers is configured to mark a start address of one of the packet buffer slots. The buffer manager is configured to monitor an available pointer count of the available pointers. When the processing unit transmits an allocation request to the buffer manager and the available count is enough, the buffer manager obtains one available pointer from the cache and integrates the one available pointer and the available pointer count into an allocation response, which is sent to the processing unit.