Configurable IC having a routing fabric with storage elements

• US 7,514,957 B2
• Filed: 05/27/2007
• Issued: 04/07/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 03/20/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Altera Corporation (Intel Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Tabula Incorporated
• Inventors: Schmit, Herman, Huang, Randy Renfu
• Primary Examiner(s): Le, Don P
• Application Number:
  US11/754,299
• Publication Number:
  US 20080231318A1
• Time in Patent Office: 681 Days
• Field of Search: 326 37- 41, 326 82- 86
• US Class Current: 326/38
• CPC Class Codes: H03K 19/17704 the logic functions being realised by the interconnection of rows and columns
• CPC Class Codes: H03K 19/17736 Structural details of routing resources

Abstract

Some embodiments provide a configurable IC that includes a configurable routing fabric with storage elements. In some embodiments, the routing fabric provides a communication pathway that routes signals to and from source and destination components. The routing fabric of some embodiments provides the ability to selectively store the signals passing through the routing fabric within the storage elements of the routing fabric. In this manner, a source or destination component continually performs operations (e.g., computational or routing) irrespective of whether a previous signal from or to such a component is stored within the routing fabric. The source and destination components include configurable logic circuits, configurable interconnect circuits, and various other circuits that receive or distribute signals throughout the configurable IC.

Claims

1. An integrated circuit (IC) comprising:

a) an interconnect circuit comprising a plurality of inputs and at least one output; and

b) a storage element directly connected to said output and directly connected to at least one of said inputs.

2. The IC of claim 1, wherein the storage element is a first storage element and the interconnect circuit comprises an output stage with a second storage element.

3. The IC of claim 2, wherein the output stage directly connects to the first storage element and a destination.

4. The IC of claim 2, wherein the first storage element is directly connected to the interconnect circuit but not the second storage element.

5. The IC of claim 2, wherein the first and second storage elements are controlled by a same configuration data.

6. The IC of claim 1, wherein the IC is a configurable IC comprising a plurality of configurable components and sets of configuration data for controlling the plurality of configurable components.

7. The IC of claim 1, wherein the storage element is a first storage element and the interconnect circuit includes (i) a core interconnect circuit and (ii) a second storage element that receives the output of the core interconnect circuit.

8. An electronic device comprising:

an integrated circuit (IC) comprising;

a) an interconnect circuit comprising a plurality of inputs and at least one output; and

b) a storage element directly connected to said output and directly connected to at least one of said inputs.

9. The electronic device of claim 8, wherein the IC is a configurable IC comprising a plurality of configurable components.

10. The electronic device of claim 9 comprising sets of configuration data for controlling the plurality of configurable components.

11. The electronic device of claim 8, wherein an output of the storage element is directly connected to a first and at least one other destination circuit.

12. The electronic device of claim 8 further comprising a routing fabric, wherein the routing fabric comprises at least one wire segment used for establishing the direct connection.

13. The electronic device of claim 12, wherein the routing fabric further comprises at least one via used for establishing the direct connection.

14. The electronic device of claim 12, wherein the routing fabric further comprises at least one buffer circuit used for establishing the direct connection.

15. The electronic device of claim 8, wherein the output of the storage element is directly connected to a first destination circuit and configurably connected to at least one other destination circuit.

16. An integrated circuit (IC) comprising:

a) a plurality of circuits arranged in a particular arrangement, each of a group of the circuits having a plurality of inputs and at least one output; and

b) a set of storage elements located within the particular arrangement, each storage element comprises (i) an input directly connected to an output of one of the circuits and (ii) an output directly connected to an input of one of the circuits.

17. The IC of claim 16, wherein the particular arrangement of the plurality of configurable circuits comprises sets of configurable circuits.

18. The IC of claim 17, wherein a set of configurable circuits in the plurality of configurable circuits are arranged in a tile.

19. The IC of claim 17, wherein a set of configurable circuits in the plurality of configurable circuits are arranged in an array.

20. The IC of claim 16, wherein the IC is a configurable IC and the set of circuits are configurable circuits that receive sets of configuration data for controlling the set of circuits.