Communication steering for use in a multi-master shared resource system
First Claim
1. A data processing system, comprising:
- a system bus;
a first bus master coupled to the system bus;
a second bus master coupled to the system bus;
a resource coupled to the system bus, wherein the resource is configurable to be owned by at least one of the first bus master and the second bus master; and
additional signal steering logic which establishes a communication path, based on ownership of the resource, between the resource and at least one of the first bus master and the second bus master, wherein the communication path is used to transfer at least one additional signal between the resource and the at least one of the first bus master and the second bus master.
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Accused Products
Abstract
New approaches for providing communication between multiple masters (12, 14) and one or more shared resources (24, 30, 100) are needed. One example of a resource that may need to be shared is circuitry complying with the Universal Serial Bus (USB) standard (100). The USB specification defines the use of USB endpoints as data and control channels that reside in a USB device. In some cases it is desirable to have a certain number of endpoints controlled by one processor, and other endpoints controlled by a different processor, thus providing a shared control of all the endpoints. Circuitry (402, 417, 480) may be used to provide steering for additional signals such as interrupts. Other shared resources (24, 30) may use more centralized circuitry (36) to perform a steering function for additional signals.
14 Citations
36 Claims
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1. A data processing system, comprising:
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a system bus;
a first bus master coupled to the system bus;
a second bus master coupled to the system bus;
a resource coupled to the system bus, wherein the resource is configurable to be owned by at least one of the first bus master and the second bus master; and
additional signal steering logic which establishes a communication path, based on ownership of the resource, between the resource and at least one of the first bus master and the second bus master, wherein the communication path is used to transfer at least one additional signal between the resource and the at least one of the first bus master and the second bus master. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19)
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20. A method for communicating an additional signal in a data processing system having a system bus, comprising:
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establishing a communication path between a resource coupled to the system bus and at least one of a plurality of bus masters coupled to the system bus based on ownership of the resource; and
transferring the additional signal, separate from the system bus, between the resource and the at least one of the plurality of bus masters via the communication path. - View Dependent Claims (21, 22, 23, 24)
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25. A data processing system, comprising:
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a system bus;
a first bus master coupled to the system bus;
a second bus master coupled to the system bus;
a resource coupled to the system bus and useable by the first bus master and the second bus master, wherein the resource is configurable to be owned by at least one of the first bus master and the second bus master; and
additional signal steering logic which establishes a communication path between the resource and at least one of the first bus master and the second bus master, wherein the communication path is used to transfer at least one additional signal between the resource and the at least one of the first bus master and the second bus master, and wherein the communication path is determined by the resource. - View Dependent Claims (26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33)
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34. A method for communicating an additional signal in a data processing system having a system bus, comprising:
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establishing a communication path between a resource coupled to the system bus and at least one of a plurality of bus masters coupled to the system bus, wherein the communication path is determined by the resource; and
transferring the additional signal, separate from the system bus, between the resource and the at least one of the plurality of bus masters via the communication path. - View Dependent Claims (35, 36)
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Specification