Lane Division Multiplexing for I/O Link Protocol Isolation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current input/output (I/O) protocols, such as USB and PCIe, face inefficiencies due to time division multiplexing, which bundles different protocols together, leading to power consumption issues, timing concerns, and limited data transfer capabilities, as they operate at the speed of the slowest protocol and lack reconfigurability.
Innovation Solution
The implementation of lane division multiplexing (LDM), where native I/O protocols are allocated to specific uni-directional or bidirectional data lanes independently, preserving their characteristics and allowing high-speed and low-speed protocols to operate without interference, reducing power consumption and die size, and enabling flexible configuration.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If time division multiplexing bundles different I/O protocols together, then the number of supported I/O interfaces is increased, but power consumption increases and timing performance deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the I/O link into multiple independent lanes, with each lane capable of carrying a separate I/O protocol. This segmentation allows protocols to operate independently without being bundled together, eliminating the power consumption overhead of multiplexing while maintaining support for multiple I/O interfaces through parallel lane utilization.
2Adaptability or versatility
If time division multiplexing bundles different I/O protocols together, then the number of supported I/O interfaces is increased, but timing performance and data transfer speed deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
By segmenting the I/O link into dedicated lanes for different protocols, each protocol can operate at its optimal speed without being constrained by the slowest protocol in a bundled configuration. This enables high-speed protocols to achieve their full potential while maintaining support for multiple interface types.
Solution Approach 2:
Each lane is optimized for its specific protocol with appropriate electrical characteristics and timing parameters, allowing each protocol to operate in its optimal performance regime rather than being forced to compromise to accommodate multiple protocols in a single bundled link.
3Adaptability or versatility
If time division multiplexing bundles different I/O protocols together, then protocol integration is achieved, but device complexity and reconfigurability are reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the I/O link into dedicated lanes for different protocols, eliminating the need for complex multiplexing and demultiplexing logic. Each lane operates independently with simple point-to-point connectivity, significantly reducing device complexity while maintaining the ability to support multiple protocols simultaneously through parallel operation.
Solution Approach 2:
The system dynamically allocates lanes to different I/O protocols based on connection requirements, allowing flexible reconfiguration without complex protocol processing. Each lane can be independently configured and assigned to different protocols as needed, providing adaptability with simplified architecture.
Data Source
AI summary
A system can include a host device and a remote terminal. The host device can include a host terminal, the host terminal including a host configuration manager to allocate a data lane to an I/O protocol and a protocol multiplexer to carry out allocation of the data lane based on the allocation of the configuration manager. The remote terminal can include a remote configuration manager. The remote configuration manager is to communicate with the remote configuration manager via a control bus to detect connection of an I/O device to an I/O port and to allocate the data lane to the I/O protocol.