Instruction Burstization and Chaining Balance
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing methods for optimizing energy usage in GPUs and other parallel processing cores fail to efficiently reduce power consumption while maintaining performance, particularly in battery-powered devices, due to limitations in instruction caching and register file access.
Innovation Solution
A method and apparatus that group computer instructions based on register dependencies, using burstization and chaining criteria to create smaller, more efficient compiled instructions, which reduce memory usage and power consumption by optimizing instruction execution and register access.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Quantity of substance
If instructions are optimized for burstization to reduce instruction cache usage, then memory requirements are reduced, but register file access increases leading to higher power consumption
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments instructions into different types (burstable instructions vs. chainable instructions) and applies different optimization strategies to each segment. Burstable instructions are grouped into bundles for cache efficiency, while chainable instructions are optimized for register file access patterns, resolving the contradiction between cache usage and power consumption through selective segmentation.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the burst parameter values dynamically based on the instruction type and execution context. By adjusting burst parameters for different instruction bundles and using chainable instruction sequences for operations requiring frequent register access, the system optimizes the balance between instruction cache utilization and register file access frequency, thereby reducing overall power consumption while maintaining cache efficiency.
2Use of energy by moving object
If instructions are optimized for chaining to reduce register file access, then power consumption is reduced, but compiled instruction size increases requiring more memory
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the instruction stream into chainable instruction sequences for operations benefiting from register forwarding and burstable instruction bundles for operations suitable for caching. This segmentation allows the system to minimize register file access for chainable instructions while keeping burstable instruction bundles compact, thereby reducing power consumption without excessive increases in overall instruction size.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies chaining partially to only those instruction sequences where it provides significant power savings, rather than universally applying it to all instructions. By selectively chaining only the beneficial sequences and leaving other instructions in compact burstable form, the system achieves power reduction without excessive instruction size expansion.
3Quantity of substance
If burst parameter is increased to maximize burstization efficiency, then instruction cache usage decreases, but hardware resource limitations are exceeded
Solution Approach 1:
The patent dynamically adjusts burst parameters based on hardware resource availability and instruction characteristics rather than using fixed maximum values. The burst parameter is optimized for each instruction bundle considering the specific hardware constraints, allowing the system to maximize cache efficiency while staying within hardware resource limitations through adaptive parameter tuning.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes burst parameters based on the specific instruction type, bundle characteristics, and hardware resource state. By adapting burst parameters to match the actual hardware capabilities and instruction requirements, the system achieves efficient cache utilization without exceeding hardware resource limits, resolving the contradiction between cache optimization and hardware constraints.
Data Source
AI summary
A method for grouping computer instructions includes receiving a set of computer instructions, grouping the set of computer instructions by register dependencies, identifying a plurality of single-definition-use flow (SDF) bundles based on a burstization criteria and a chaining criteria; and based on the SDF bundles, transforming the set of computer instructions. The transformation may include splitting one of the set of computer instructions and setting a burst parameter for the one of the set of computer instruction. The transformation may include grouping a plurality of the set of computer instructions and replacing a pair of register file accesses with a pair of temporary register accesses.