Method and apparatus for compressing relative addresses
US7111148B1 · kind B1 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Jun 27, 2002 |
| Grant date | Sep 19, 2006 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Jul 7, 2022 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG06F9/323
- WIPO fieldComputer technology
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
A method and apparatus for compressing relative addresses and for storage of compressed relative addresses. A relative virtual address is computed in a particular stage of a processor pipeline and then compressed according to one or more compression techniques for storage in a micro-operation storage. A compressed relative address is retrieved from one or more micro-operation entries of the micro-operation storage and an uncompressed virtual address is reconstructed from the compressed relative address and an instruction pointer (IP) address associated with the head of the micro-operation storage line in which the compressed relative address was stored. IP-relative addresses may be computed in a manner similar to relative branch targets, then compressed and stored in one or more micro-operation entries of a micro-operation storage line to be reconstructed later according to an IP address associated with the respective micro-operation storage line in which their compressed counterpart was stored.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.