Content addressable memory (CAM) engine
US6226710A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventor
Key dates
| Filing date | Nov 14, 1997 |
| Grant date | May 1, 2001 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Nov 14, 2017 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC Y)Emerging Cross-Sectional Technologies
- CPC primaryY10S707/99933
- WIPO fieldComputer technology
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
A content addressable memory ("CAM") engine or controller interfaces between a host signal processor (e.g., a microprocessor) and a plurality of known, commercially-available random access memory ("RAM") devices. The CAM engine configures the RAM as content addressable memory, thereby causing the normally location-addressed RAM to function as CAM. The CAM engine thus allows for the benefits of both RAM and CAM devices, such as speed, density, cost and intuitiveness, without their inherent drawbacks. Further, the CAM engine implements various flexible memory storage configurations for the keys and associations stored in RAM. Also, the CAM engine implements certain algorithms that provide for the hashing of data, for table load and unload capabilities, for proximity matching, for dealing with overflow conditions, and for implementing hierarchical search capabilities.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.