Configuration logic for embedded software
US7313730B1 · kind B1 · utility
Assignee
Inventor
Key dates
| Filing date | May 20, 2004 |
| Grant date | Dec 25, 2007 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Jan 30, 2026 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG06F11/2236
- WIPO fieldComputer technology
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
An integrated circuit such as an FPGA containing an embedded processor having test circuitry capable of controlling the processor's resources using JTAG commands includes a formatting circuit that formats soft data received from an external storage device into a JTAG-compatible bitstream that can be used by the processor's test circuitry to access and/or control the processor's resources at any time, thereby allowing the embedded processor's resources to be accessed and controlled during FPGA configuration operations before the processor has been initialized to an operational state without using an external configuration tool. For some embodiments, the formatting circuit is a state machine that formats soft data such as firmware code, software programs, processor commands, and the like received from the external storage device into a JTAG-compatible bitstream that can be loaded into and/or used to access the resources of the embedded processor via the processors' test circuitry.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.