Programmable logic device with logic cells having a flexible input structure
US6049224A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Oct 15, 1997 |
| Grant date | Apr 11, 2000 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Oct 15, 2017 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
- CPC primaryH03K19/17728
- WIPO fieldBasic communication processes
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
A programmable logic device, such as an FPGA, is implemented using logic cells that have configurable connection schemes between routing resources and logic element input pins. For example, in one embodiment, each logic cell in the device has a flexible input structure that supports two or more different connection schemes, which may or may not involve input sharing, where each logic cell can be individually programmed for any of the available connection schemes when the device is configured. As such, the device can be efficiently programmed to implement the user's specific circuitry. The invention balances the competing goals of (1) reducing routing requirements by limiting the number of connections between routing resources and logic element input pins and (2) providing minimally constrained programming of logic elements.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.