Memory Address Conversion API for Shared and Generic Spaces
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Performing memory address conversion operations consumes significant time, power, or computing resources in existing systems.
Innovation Solution
Implementing an Application Programming Interface (API) that includes functions and instructions to convert offsets to addresses, allowing for efficient memory address generation across different memory spaces, such as shared and generic memory spaces, using techniques like cvta.shared and cvta.generic.shared, which utilize guard predicates and universal registers to optimize address conversion.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If conventional memory address conversion operations are performed, then address conversion functionality is achieved, but significant time, power, and computing resources are consumed
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an intermediary API layer between the programming environment and the memory conversion operations. This API provides specialized functions (convert offset to address, convert to generic address, convert to shared address) that mediate the conversion process, enabling optimized address translation through application-level coordination rather than purely hardware-based conversion, thereby reducing time and resource consumption
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the parameters of address conversion by introducing different address space modes (shared memory address space, generic memory address space) and using guard predicates to control conversion behavior. By parameterizing the conversion process with different address space identifiers and conversion modes, the system can select optimal conversion paths that reduce computational overhead and resource usage
2Productivity
If conventional memory address conversion operations are performed, then address conversion functionality is achieved, but significant power consumption occurs
Solution Approach 1:
The API serves as an intermediary that coordinates power-efficient address conversion by leveraging application-level knowledge of memory access patterns. The specialized conversion functions allow the system to perform address translation only when necessary and using optimized paths, reducing overall power consumption compared to continuous or brute-force hardware conversion
Solution Approach 2:
The system implements self-service address conversion where the API and compiler work together to automatically optimize conversion operations based on the specific programming context. The guard predicates and universal registers enable the system to self-regulate conversion behavior, performing conversions only when needed and using the most efficient methods available, thereby reducing power consumption without requiring external intervention
3Productivity
If conventional memory address conversion operations are performed, then address conversion functionality is achieved, but significant computing resources are consumed
Solution Approach 1:
The API acts as an intermediary layer that simplifies the computing resource requirements for address conversion by providing high-level functions that encapsulate complex conversion logic. Instead of requiring complex hardware conversion mechanisms, the system uses software-based coordination through the API, reducing the computational burden on individual conversion operations while maintaining functionality
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements universal register usage and guard predicate mechanisms that can handle multiple address conversion scenarios through a single unified approach. The same API infrastructure supports conversion between different address spaces (shared, generic, local) without requiring separate specialized hardware for each conversion type, thereby reducing overall device complexity and resource requirements
Data Source
AI summary
Apparatuses, systems, and techniques to cause to cause one or more first storage address sizes to be converted into one or more second storage address sizes. In at least one embodiment, one or more circuits are to perform an application programming interface (API) to cause one or more first storage address sizes to be converted to one or more second storage address sizes based, at least in part, on one or more identifiers of one or more physical storage locations corresponding to either of the one or more first storage address sizes or the one or more second storage address sizes.