Configurable Routing Fabric With Embedded Storage for Low-Delay Signal Flow
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Solution Overview
Problem
Configurable integrated circuits (ICs) face limitations in flexible data storage and passing due to the use of user registers, which restrict signal control and increase signal delay, hindering the performance of both storage and logic operations.
Innovation Solution
Incorporating a configurable routing fabric with storage elements that allow selective storage of signals within the fabric, enabling continuous operational performance of source and destination components regardless of signal storage, and utilizing parallel distributed paths and feedback paths for short-term and long-term storage.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If user registers are used for data storage in configurable ICs, then data can be stored, but signal control flexibility is restricted and signal delay increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements dynamic routing fabric that can change its configuration at runtime, allowing the interconnect structure to adapt to different data flow requirements. This dynamic reconfigurability enables flexible signal control without the rigid constraints of traditional user registers, resolving the contradiction between storage capability and signal control flexibility.
Solution Approach 2:
The routing fabric is designed to serve multiple functions: it can store data, route signals, and perform logic operations. This multi-functionality eliminates the need for separate user registers while maintaining data storage capability, thereby improving signal control flexibility without sacrificing reliability.
2Reliability
If user registers are used for data storage, then data can be held, but signal delay increases and performance is hindered
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the storage function from traditional user registers and relocates it to the routing fabric itself. By removing the dedicated register structure and distributing storage capability across the interconnect elements, the signal path is shortened and delay is reduced while maintaining data storage capability.
Solution Approach 2:
The routing fabric acts as an intermediary structure that provides both storage and signal transmission functions. Instead of using separate registers that add delay, the routing fabric mediates between source and destination while holding data, thereby reducing overall signal delay without compromising storage reliability.
3Device complexity
If traditional routing and storage are performed separately, then functions are distinct, but simultaneous routing and storage operations cannot be performed
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the routing function and storage function into a single integrated routing fabric structure. This combination allows the same hardware resources to perform both routing and storage operations simultaneously, eliminating the bottleneck of sequential operations while maintaining functional distinctness through configurable modes.
Solution Approach 2:
The routing fabric dynamically switches between routing mode and storage mode on a per-element basis, allowing different portions of the fabric to perform different functions simultaneously. This dynamic functionality enables concurrent routing and storage operations without requiring separate dedicated hardware for each function.
Data Source
AI summary
Some embodiments provide a configurable IC that includes a configurable routing fabric with storage elements. In some embodiments, the routing fabric provides a communication pathway that routes signals to and from source and destination components. The routing fabric of some embodiments provides the ability to selectively store the signals passing through the routing fabric within the storage elements of the routing fabric. In this manner, a source or destination component continually performs operations (e.g., computational or routing) irrespective of whether a previous signal from or to such a component is stored within the routing fabric. The source and destination components include configurable logic circuits, configurable interconnect circuits, and various other circuits that receive or distribute signals throughout the configurable IC.