EP0080834A2
Expired / Lapsed
EP
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Branched-spiral wafer-scale integrated circuit
Assignee: Unisys Corp
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Filing: 1982-11-18
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Granted: —
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Expires: 2002-11-18
Abstract
Abstract A wafer-scale integrated circuit 8 wherein a plurality of data processing cells 12 are disposed on a semiconductor wafer 10 together with a port 14 for providing communication with a controller 16, tests and couples working cells, starting at the port 14, into a branched -spiral 166, 66, which has the capacity for incorporating cells trapped in cul-de- sacs, the intercoupling being achieved by each cell 12 being operable to receive a unique cell name from the controller 16, to respond to coupling commands from the controller 16 directed towards the cell having the unique cell name, and having coupled to one neighbour, the thereafter commandable to couple to another. The controller 16 comprises means for maintaining records of successful connections for later use.
Inventors
- 👤 John Terence Chamberlain
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
EP
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-29 20:14
CPC Classifications
G; G11; G11C; G11C29/00; G11C29/006; G01; G01R; G01R31/00; G01R31/28; G01R31/317; G01R31/3181; G01R31/3185; G01R31/318505; G01R31/318511; G11C19/00
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 14
Claim 1
Independent Claim
203 words
A data processing system comprising; an integrated circuit comprising a plurality of data-processing cells and a port, at least one of said plurality of cells being adjacent to said port, and a controller, coupled to said at least one of said cells via said port to pass data, commands and associated command addresses.to said circuit, where; each of said-plurality of cells is operable to receive a connection from said controller, if not already in receipt of said connection, via a first neighbouring cell, to receive a unique cell name from said controller, and to obey the associated command if a command address matches said unique cell name; each of said plurality of cells is operable in response to said commands selectably to provide or cease to provide said connection to any selectable one or more than one other neighbouring cell or cells; said controller is operable to test each cell newly in receipt of said connection by the provision of test data thereto and the examination of return data therefrom; and where said controller is operable to issue commands to said cells to grow a branched-spiral of interconnected cells which have passed said test starting with said at least one of said cells.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
203 words
A data processing system comprising; an integrated circuit comprising a plurality of data-processing cells and a port, at least one of said plurality of cells being adjacent to said port, and a controller, coupled to said at least one of said cells via said port to pass data, commands and associated command addresses.to said circuit, where; each of said-plurality of cells is operable to receive a connection from said controller, if not already in receipt of said connection, via a first neighbouring cell, to receive a unique cell name from said controller, and to obey the associated command if a command address matches said unique cell name; each of said plurality of cells is operable in response to said commands selectably to provide or cease to provide said connection to any selectable one or more than one other neighbouring cell or cells; said controller is operable to test each cell newly in receipt of said connection by the provision of test data thereto and the examination of return data therefrom; and where said controller is operable to issue commands to said cells to grow a branched-spiral of interconnected cells which have passed said test starting with said at least one of said cells.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
121 words
A system according to claim 1 wherein said controller, in the event of having issued commands to the last cell to have received said connection and to have passed said test to provide said connection to each of its neighbours in turn and none of its neighbours has accepted said connection or passed said test, is operable to issue commands in turn to each of the cells which . have accepted said connection and have'passed said test in the reverse order to that of their having accepted said connection and having passed said test to provide said connection to each of their neighbouring cells in turn until a neighbouring cell is found which both accepts said connection and passes said test.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
116 words
A system according to claim 1 or 2 wherein said controller., in the event of a particular cell having passed said test, is operable to command said particular cell to provide said connection to a neighbouring cell next around in a predetermined sense of rotation from the direction from which said particular cell was in receipt of said connection, and in the event of said particular cell failing said test subsequently to receiving said connection, is operable to command said first neighbouring cell to abandon said connection to said particular cell and to provide said connection to another neighbouring cell next around in the opposite sense to said predetermined sense of rotation from said particular cell.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
177 words
A system according to claim 1, 2 or 3 wherein each of said plurality of cells is square and wherein said plurality of cells is arranged in a regular tesselation on a common semiconductor substrate for each cell to share boundaries with a maximum of four adjacent neighbouring cells, each cell comprising; four gates circuits, one being associated with each boundary, and four unidirectional data-processing elements coupled to act as a receiving element to receive data from a first gate circuit and to act as a feeding element to provide data to a second gate circuit said second gate circuit being associated with the next boundary around said cell from the boundary with which said first gate circuit is associated in a predetermined sense of data rotation, where each of said gate circuits is selectably operable in a first manner to provide or receive said connection to or from the corresponding gate circuit in the boundary-sharing adjacent neighbouring cell and in a second manner to couple data from its associated feeding element to its associated receiving element.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
102 words
A system according to claim 1, 2, 3 or 4 wherein said integrated circuit comprises a global connector provided in common to all of said plurality of cells and wherein said cell names, said commands and said command addresses are coupled between pairs of said cells by a common command coupling, said global connector being operable to provide indication as to whether the character on said common command coupling is a command, a command address or a cell name and each of said cells being operable to respond to said indication on said global connector to identify the nature of said character.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
62 words
A system according to claim 5 wherein each of said plurality of cells comprises a cell name register coupled to receive the character on said common command coupling operable to store said character if and only if the cell is in receipt of said connection for the first time and said global connector provides indication that said character is a cell name.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
179 words
A system according to claim 6 wherein each of said plurality of cells comprises; a command register operable to store at least part of the character presented on said common command coupling if said global connector provides indication-that a command is provided, a numerical comparator coupled to receive said at least part of said character stored in said cell name register as a first comparison input, coupled to receive the character currently-provided on said common command coupling as a second comparison input and operable to provide output indication of equality therebetween if and only if said global connector provides indication that said currently-provided character is a command address, and a command decoder coupled to receive said at least part of said character stored in said command register as a first input, coupled to .receive said output of said comparator as a second input, and operable to decode the contents of said command register to interpret the command if and only if said global connector provides indication that said currently-provided character on said common command coupling is a command address.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
60 words
A system according to claim 7 wherein said controller comprises a cell name counter, said controller coupling the count of said cell name counter to said common command coupling whenever a cell is newly in receipt of said connection and incrementing the count of said cell name counter whenever a cell, newly in recipt of said connection, passes said test.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
92 words
A system according to claim 8 wherein said controller comprises a stack memory for receiving each cell name for each cell which passes said test in the order of their having passed said test and for providing retreival of said received cell names in the reverse order of their receipt, said controller, in the event of a cell having no neighbouring cell which will - accept said connection and pass said test, discarding the last entry in said stack memory and providing the previously stored entry therein as the new command address.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
117 words
A system according to claim 9 wherein said controller compares the direction in which a cell, newly in receipt of said connection and having passed said test attempts to provide said connection to a further neighbouring cell with the direction from which said cell newly in receipt of said connection and having passed said test received said connection from said first neighbouring cell, and deems said cell, newly in receipt of said connection and having passed said test, to have no further neighbouring cell capable of accepting said connection and of passing said test, whenever said cell, newly in receipt of said connection and having passed said test,attempts to provide said connection to said first neighbouring cell.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
80 words
A system according to claim 10 wherein said controller comprises a memory for maintaining a list, the contents of said list including; the cell name for each cell which has passed said test, associated indication of the iirection wherefrom each cell which has passed said test was in'receipt of said connection, and associated indication of any cell which has passed said test having been discovered to have no further neighbouring cell which will accept said connection and pass said test.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
38 words
12 . A system according to claim 11 wherein said controller is operable to re-establish the connection pattern in said integrated circuit in response to the contents of said list without recourse to an iterative connection-pattern establishing routine..
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
33 words
A system according to claim 12 wherein said memory is removable from said controller for the use of its consents in further control apparatus for re-establishing said connection pattern in said integrated circuit.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
No citation records indexed.
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