Patent · US Expired

Apparatus and method for executing instructions that select a storage location for output values in response to an operation count

US5889947A · kind A · utility

24Cited by
5References
20Claims
0Family size

Assignee

Inventor

Key dates

Filing dateDec 16, 1996
Grant dateMar 30, 1999
Priority date
Expiry dateDec 16, 2016

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC G)Physics
  • CPC primaryG06F9/3851
  • WIPO fieldComputer technology
  • WIPO sectorElectrical engineering

Abstract

A multiprocessor computer system comprises a plurality of processors, wherein each processor includes an execution unit, a program counter, a result buffer containing a plurality of entries, each entry being allocated to hold an output value of an instruction executed by the execution unit, and an operation counter containing an operation count that is incremented at least when an instruction storing an output value to the result buffer is executed by the execution unit. A particular entry allocated in the result buffer for a given output value is selected as a function of the operation count at the time the instruction generating that given output value is executed. Each processor further includes a decoder that extracts a processor identifier from an instruction to be executed that identifies one of the plurality of processors, wherein one or more input values of the instruction are retrieved from the result buffer of the identified processor. Each decoder also extracts a displacement value from the instruction to be executed that provides a relative difference between the current operation count of the executing processor and an expected operation count of the identified process…

Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.