Microprocessor Trace Memory Segmentation for Reduced Data Volume
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing microprocessor tracing technologies face challenges in efficiently tracing the operation of both processor modules and application processing circuits, leading to increased data volumes and storage requirements, especially when multiple functions are integrated into a single microprocessor.
Innovation Solution
A microprocessor design that includes a processor module, an application processing circuit, an address calculating circuit, and a trace memory, which generates and stores trace information including instruction kind and length, calculates execution addresses, and selectively stores data from the application processing circuit within designated address ranges, allowing for reduced data storage while tracing operations.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the operations of both the processor module and the application processing circuit are traced, then complete operation tracing is achieved, but the quantity of information to be traced is greatly increased
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the trace information storage into two distinct parts: trace information from the processor module is stored in a first storage area, while trace information from the application processing circuit is stored in a second storage area. This segmentation allows complete tracing of both modules while managing the quantity of information through organized separation and selective storage based on execution address ranges.
2Quantity of substance
If trace information is compressed to reduce quantity, then storage requirements are reduced, but real-time analysis capability is compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by selectively storing trace information from the application processing circuit only when the execution address falls within a designated address range. This selective storage approach reduces the quantity of trace information stored while maintaining the ability to analyze critical operations in real-time, as the filtering is based on address range criteria that can be dynamically configured.
Data Source
AI summary
A microprocessor a microprocessor includes: a processor module executing an instruction to generate trace information including the information of the kind and the length of the instruction; an application processing circuit operating in cooperation with the processor module to process a specific application; an address calculating circuit calculating an execution address for executing the instruction based on the information of the instruction length; a data obtaining circuit obtaining data from the application processing circuit when the calculated execution address is located within a range of a designated address; and a trace memory in which the obtained data is stored together with the trace information.