Processor Branch Duplication for Soft Error Detection
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing processors are vulnerable to soft errors caused by transient faults such as neutron collisions, which can lead to fatal malfunctions without accurate detection.
Innovation Solution
A processor and method that involves copying original branch commands to copied commands, executing these command sets, and using a soft error detection circuit to compare execution results, as well as damaging and restoring global signature values to detect errors in both data and control flows.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If soft error detection is implemented using traditional methods, then detection capability is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent creates a copy of the original branch command and executes it in a separate command set. This copied command serves as a reference to compare against the original execution, enabling soft error detection without requiring complex additional hardware circuits. The copying approach simplifies the detection mechanism while maintaining reliability.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent divides the command execution into multiple separate command sets (original command set and copied command set). By segmenting the execution flow and comparing results across these segments, the system can detect soft errors without needing a single complex detection circuit, thereby reducing overall device complexity.
2Measurement precision
If multiple command sets are executed for error detection, then detection accuracy is improved, but processing time increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent prepares the copied branch command in advance as part of the command generation process. This preliminary preparation allows the copied command to be ready for execution without adding significant overhead during the actual error detection phase, thereby maintaining detection accuracy while minimizing time loss.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses identical or highly similar command structures for both the original and copied command sets. This homogeneity ensures that the comparison between execution results is straightforward and efficient, improving detection accuracy while reducing the computational overhead and time required for comparison operations.
Data Source
AI summary
The method of detecting a soft error includes copying, in a program loaded into a memory, an original branch command to a copied branch command, executing, by a processor, a first command set comprising the copied branch command, executing, by a processor, a second command set comprising the original branch command, and determining, by a soft error detection circuit, whether an error exists in the execution of the original branch command based on the execution result of the first command set and the second command set.