US6286093B1
Expired / Lapsed
US
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Multi-bus programmable interconnect architecture
Assignee: AIMFAST Corp
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Filing: 1996-12-10
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Granted: 2001-09-04
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Expires: 2016-12-10
Abstract
Abstract A programmable interconnect system having a plurality of PICs connected via a plurality of buses where each bus may have two or more branches connecting the PICs is disclosed. Generally speaking, for a system with N PICs, there can be N−1 different type of buses having 2 to N corresponding branches to the N PICs. For example, for a four PIC programmable interconnect system, there can be three types of buses connecting the PICs, a two-branch bus, a three-branch bus, and a four-branch bus. Note that the term “bus” refers to one or more signal paths connecting the PICs. For each type of buses, there can be several layouts.
Inventors
- 👤 Yi-Chieh Peter Chang
- 👤 Jia-Jen Michael Lin
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-29 23:14
CPC Classifications
H; H03; H03K; H03K19/00; H03K19/02; H03K19/173; H03K19/177; H03K19/17736; H03K19/17704; H03K19/1778; H03K19/17796
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 36
Claim 1
Independent Claim
106 words
A programmable interconnect system for selectively interconnecting user components, comprising: a plurality of programmable interconnect units each having a plurality of programmable input and output terminals for routing signals to and from user components and among the programmable interconnect units; and a plurality of interleaving buses each including one or more signal pathways connecting the terminals of two or more of said programmable interconnect units, wherein each of said buses connects adjacent ones of said programmable interconnect units, and some of said plurality of buses connect different combinations of at least three or more of said plurality of adjacent programmable interconnect units in an interleaving manner.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
106 words
A programmable interconnect system for selectively interconnecting user components, comprising: a plurality of programmable interconnect units each having a plurality of programmable input and output terminals for routing signals to and from user components and among the programmable interconnect units; and a plurality of interleaving buses each including one or more signal pathways connecting the terminals of two or more of said programmable interconnect units, wherein each of said buses connects adjacent ones of said programmable interconnect units, and some of said plurality of buses connect different combinations of at least three or more of said plurality of adjacent programmable interconnect units in an interleaving manner.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
24 words
A programmable interconnect system as recited in claim 1 wherein the signal pathways of all of said buses have the same number of branches.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
25 words
A programmable interconnect system as recited in claim 2 wherein the buses connect the programmable interconnect units in an interleaving manner forming a ring structure.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
26 words
A programmable interconnect system as recited in claim 3 wherein the buses connect the programmable interconnect units in an interleaving manner forming a symmetrical ring structure.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
26 words
A programmable interconnect system as recited in claim 3 wherein the buses connect the programmable interconnect units in a manner to form a two-dimensional ring structure.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
26 words
A programmable interconnect system as recited in claim 3 wherein the buses connect the programmable interconnect units in a manner to form a three-dimensional ring structure.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
23 words
A programmable interconnect system as recited in claim 1 wherein the signal pathways of some of said buses have different numbers of branches.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
26 words
A programmable interconnect system as recited in claim 7 wherein the buses connect the programmable interconnect units in an interleaving manner to form a ring structure.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
26 words
A programmable interconnect system as recited in claim 8 wherein the buses connect the programmable interconnect units in an interleaving manner forming a symmetrical ring structure.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
26 words
A programmable interconnect system as recited in claim 8 wherein the buses connects the programmable interconnect units in a manner to form a two-dimensional ring structure.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
26 words
A programmable interconnect system as recited in claim 8 wherein the buses connects the programmable interconnect units in a manner to form a three-dimensional ring structure.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
38 words
A programmable interconnect system as recited in claim 1 wherein certain ones of said buses connect neighboring programmable interconnect units to form clusters of programmable interconnect units, and certain other ones of said buses further connect said clusters.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
26 words
A programmable interconnect system as recited in claim 12 wherein relatively more buses connect said programmable interconnect units forming said clusters than buses connect said clusters.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
26 words
A programmable interconnect system as recited in claim 1 wherein each of said programmable interconnect units is comprised of one or more physical programmable interconnect chips.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
39 words
A programmable interconnect system as recited in claim 1 wherein said programmable interconnect units include a number of physical programmable interconnect chips that are evenly distributed on two opposite sides of a user component for connecting the user component.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
30 words
A programmable interconnect system as recited in claim 1 wherein selected one of said programmable interconnect unit is programmed to connect two or more of selected ones of said buses.
Claim 18
Dependent Claim
24 words
A programmable interconnect system as recited in claim 1 wherein selected ones of said programmable interconnect units connected to the same bus are time-multiplexed.
Claim 19
Dependent Claim
102 words
A programmable interconnect system, comprising: a plurality of programmable interconnect units each having a plurality of programmable input and output terminals for routing signals to and from user components and among the programmable interconnect units; and a plurality of interleaving buses each including one or more signal pathways connecting the terminals of two or more of said programmable interconnect units, wherein each of said buses connects programmable interconnect units that are physically adjacent to each other, and some of said buses connect different combinations of at least three or more of said plurality of adjacent programmable interconnect units in an interleaving manner.
Claim 20
Dependent Claim
102 words
A programmable interconnect system, comprising: a plurality of programmable interconnect units each having a plurality of programmable input and output terminals for routing signals to and from user components and among the programmable interconnect units; and a plurality of interleaving buses each including one or more signal pathways connecting the terminals of two or more of said programmable interconnect units, wherein each of said buses connects programmable interconnect units that are physically adjacent to each other, and some of said buses connect different combinations of at least three or more of said plurality of adjacent programmable interconnect units in an interleaving manner.
Claim 21
Dependent Claim
23 words
A programmable interconnect system as recited in claim 18 wherein the signal pathway of all said buses have the same number of branches.
Claim 22
Dependent Claim
26 words
A programmable interconnect system as recited in claim 19 wherein said buses connect said programmable interconnect units in an interleaving manner to form a ring structure.
Claim 23
Dependent Claim
27 words
A programmable interconnect system as recited in claim 20 wherein the buses connect said programmable interconnect units in an interleaving manner to form a symmetrical ring structure.
Claim 24
Dependent Claim
26 words
A programmable interconnect system as recited in claim 20 wherein the buses connect the programmable interconnect units in a manner to form a two-dimensional ring structure.
Claim 25
Dependent Claim
26 words
A programmable interconnect system as recited in claim 20 wherein the buses connect the programmable interconnect units in a manner to form a three-dimensional ring structure.
Claim 26
Dependent Claim
23 words
A programmable interconnect system as recited in claim 18 wherein the signal pathway of some of said buses have different numbers of branches.
Claim 27
Dependent Claim
26 words
A programmable interconnect system as recited in claim 24 wherein the buses connect the programmable interconnect units in an interleaving manner to form a ring structure.
Claim 28
Dependent Claim
26 words
A programmable interconnect system as recited in claim 25 wherein the buses connect the programmable interconnect units in an interleaving manner forming a symmetrical ring structure.
Claim 29
Dependent Claim
25 words
A programmable interconnect system as recited in claim 25 wherein the buses connect the programmable interconnect units in a manner to form two-dimensional ring structure.
Claim 30
Dependent Claim
25 words
A programmable interconnect system as recited in claim 25 wherein the buses connect the programmable interconnect units in a manner to form three-dimensional ring structure.
Claim 31
Dependent Claim
38 words
A programmable interconnect system as recited in claim 18 wherein certain ones of said buses connect neighboring programmable interconnect units to form clusters of programmable interconnect units, and certain other ones of said buses further connect said clusters.
Claim 32
Dependent Claim
27 words
A programmable interconnect system as recited in claim 29 wherein relatively more buses connect said programmable interconnect units within each said cluster than buses connect said clusters.
Claim 33
Dependent Claim
24 words
A programmable interconnect system as recited in claim 18 wherein each of said programmable interconnect units includes one or more physical programmable interconnect chips.
Claim 34
Dependent Claim
41 words
A programmable interconnect system as recited in claim 18 wherein a programmable interconnect unit is comprised of a number of physical programmable interconnect chips that are evenly distributed on two opposite sides of a user component for connecting the using component.
Claim 35
Dependent Claim
27 words
A programmable interconnect system as recited in claim 18 wherein selected one of said programmable interconnect unit connects two or more of selected ones of said buses.
Claim 36
Dependent Claim
24 words
A programmable interconnect system as recited in claim 18 wherein selected ones of said programmable interconnect units connected to the same bus are time-multiplexed.
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USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 2004-09-03 | 2005-03-05 | 2005-09-04 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 2008-09-03 | 2009-03-05 | 2009-09-04 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 2012-09-03 | 2013-03-05 | 2013-09-04 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |