DMA Data Reformatting for Faster Peripheral Transmission
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing computer systems require significant memory usage and processing time to format data for transmission to peripherals due to the need for central processing unit duplication, which is inefficient and resource-intensive.
Innovation Solution
Implementing a direct memory access controller to reformat data during transmission to peripherals, eliminating the need for central processing unit duplication and reducing memory usage and processing time.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If the central processing unit duplicates data to modify format for peripheral transmission, then data formatting is achieved, but memory usage and processing time increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the data formatting function from the central processing unit and relocates it to a dedicated formatting circuit. This separation allows the CPU to initialize data transmission while the formatting circuit independently handles format conversion, eliminating the time-consuming duplication process and reducing CPU workload.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a formatting circuit as an intermediary component between the memory and the peripheral device. This intermediary automatically performs format conversion on data during transmission, eliminating the need for CPU intervention in the formatting process and significantly reducing processing time.
2Adaptability or versatility
If the central processing unit duplicates data to modify format, then data format compatibility is achieved, but memory usage increases considerably
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the format conversion function from the CPU and implements it in a dedicated formatting circuit. This allows the system to maintain data format compatibility without requiring the CPU to create duplicate formatted copies in memory, thereby reducing memory consumption while preserving adaptability.
Solution Approach 2:
The formatting circuit performs format conversion autonomously during data transmission, without requiring CPU duplication of data. The circuit reads data directly from memory, converts the format on-the-fly, and sends it to the peripheral device, eliminating the need for additional memory storage of formatted data.
3Adaptability or versatility
If data formatting is performed by software through central processing unit duplication, then format conversion is achieved, but processing complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the software-based format conversion process with a hardware-based formatting circuit. This substitution eliminates the need for complex software routines and CPU duplication operations, reducing processing complexity while maintaining format conversion capability through dedicated hardware logic.
Data Source
AI summary
A computer system includes a central processing unit, a peripheral circuit configured to process data having a first format, a memory configured to store data intended for the peripheral circuit, the data having a second format distinct from the first format. The system includes a direct memory access controller configured, during a transmission of data from the memory towards the peripheral circuit, to recover data intended for the peripheral circuit and stored in the memory, to modify the format of the recovered data to obtain data having the first format, and to transmit the data according to the first format to the peripheral circuit. The central processing unit is configured to initialize a data transmission from the memory towards the peripheral circuit via the direct memory access controller.