System-On-Chip architecture that utilizes FeRAM and re-configurable hardware
First Claim
1. A System-On-Chip (SOC) architecture comprising:
- a system bus;
a processor in communication with the system bus;
an input/output (I/O) interface in communication with the system bus; and
a ferroelectric memory component in communication with the system bus.
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Abstract
The present invention provides a System-On-Chip (SOC) architecture that utilizes an embedded ferroelectric memory component to store information so that in the event that power is removed from the system, when power returns, the processor of the SOC can resume execution at the point at which it was executing in an instruction set when power was removed. The SOC architecture preferably also includes re-configurable hardware to enable the SOC to be easily re-configured and to have good performance characteristics. The configuration and current execution state of the re-configurable hardware may also be stored in the ferroelectric memory component so that if power cycle occurs, the re-configurable hardware can resume execution at the point at which it was executing when power was lost. The re-configurable hardware may also have its own ferroelectric memory component embedded therein to enable the configuration of the hardware and its current execution state to be stored in the ferroelectric memory component of the re-configurable hardware.
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Citations
22 Claims
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1. A System-On-Chip (SOC) architecture comprising:
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a system bus;
a processor in communication with the system bus;
an input/output (I/O) interface in communication with the system bus; and
a ferroelectric memory component in communication with the system bus. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18)
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19. A method for preventing an occurrence of a power cycle in a System-On-Chip (SOC) architecture from requiring that the SOC be rebooted and re-initialized, the method comprising the steps of:
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storing, in a ferroelectric memory component embedded in the SOC, an address pointer to an address location in the ferroelectric memory component that contains a next instruction to be executed by a processor embedded in the SOC, said next instruction being part of an instruction set currently being executed by the processor;
after a power cycle has occurred, when power returns, accessing by the processor said next instruction, the processor using the address pointer to access said next instruction; and
executing, in the processor said next instruction, thereby resuming execution of the instruction set. - View Dependent Claims (20, 21)
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22. A computer program for use in a System-On-Chip (SOC) architecture, the computer program being embodied on a computer readable medium, the program comprising:
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a first code segment for storing, during execution of an instruction set, an address pointer in a ferroelectric memory device, the address pointer pointing to a location in the ferroelectric memory component that contains a next instruction of the instruction set to be executed; and
a second code segment for utilizing the address pointer to access the location in the ferroelectric memory component that contains said next instruction, said second segment being executed after a power cycle has occurred.
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Specification