Bidirectional bus for use as an interconnect routing resource
US6661812B1 · kind B1 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Apr 5, 2000 |
| Grant date | Dec 9, 2003 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Apr 5, 2020 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
- CPC primaryH03K19/17736
- WIPO fieldBasic communication processes
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
A bidirectional bus structure includes a first multiplexer path propagating signals in a first direction and a second multiplexer path propagating signals in a second direction. For one embodiment, the bus structure further includes a circuit for selectively combining the signals on the first and second paths and selectively propagating the signal on one of the first and second paths. For another embodiment, the bus structure further includes a logic gate for combining the signals on the first and second paths and a circuit for selectively propagating the signal on one of the first path, the second path, and an output signal of the logic gate. For both embodiments, the present invention allows multiple signals to use the bus without contention, thereby providing an extremely flexible interconnect routing resource. This bidirectional bus can selectively drive signals onto the general interconnect as well as onto a system bus in a configurable system on a chip.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.