Patent · US Expired

Integrated circuit and related improvements

US7012448B2 · kind B2 · utility

12Cited by
12References
40Claims
0Family size

Assignee

Inventor

Key dates

Filing dateOct 6, 2003
Grant dateMar 14, 2006
Priority date
Expiry dateOct 6, 2023

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
  • CPC primaryH03K19/17784
  • WIPO fieldBasic communication processes
  • WIPO sectorElectrical engineering

Abstract

An improved integrated circuit and a related system apparatus and method. The integrated circuit includes a plurality of logic area or user logic areas; and an actively switchable network capable of selectively connecting at least one logic area with another logic area. In particular, the plurality of logic areas include an array of logic-gates or logic-blocks or custom logic which form functional blocks. The integrated circuit can provide a chip-architecture where the functional blocks are specific hardware functional blocks, hardware functional blocks that are parameterized, and/or programmable functional blocks including programmable processors. Also, the functional blocks can act as objects requesting and providing services to other objects on the actively switchable network so that, when a functional block is a programmable processor, the functional block optionally implements objects, with the programmable processor making one, some or all objects thereof visible to other objects connected to the actively switchable network.

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