Configurable integrated circuit with error correcting circuitry

• US 7,529,992 B1
• Filed: 03/27/2006
• Issued: 05/05/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 03/27/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Altera Corporation (Intel Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Tabula Incorporated
• Inventors: Teig, Steven, Horel, Timothy, Redgrave, Jason
• Primary Examiner(s): KERVEROS, DEMETRIOS C
• Application Number:
  US11/390,973
• Time in Patent Office: 1,135 Days
• Field of Search: 714/725
• US Class Current: 714/725
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/1008 in individual solid state devices G06F11/1004 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G11C 2029/0411 Online error correction
• CPC Class Codes: H03K 19/17752 for hot reconfiguration
• CPC Class Codes: H03K 19/17764 for reliability

Abstract

An integrated circuit (IC) performs error detection and correction on configuration data. The IC includes a configuration memory for storing configuration data and error correction data, and error correction circuitry for receiving the configuration data, correcting a particular error in the received configuration data when the particular error exists in the configuration data, and outputting the configuration data without the particular error. The IC further includes a configurable circuit (e.g., a configurable logic circuit or a configurable interconnect circuit) that receives the error-corrected configuration data from the error correction circuitry, and circuitry to write the corrected configuration data and error data back into the configuration memory.

Claims

1. An integrated circuit (“

IC”

) comprising;

a) a configuration memory for storing configuration data;

b) error correction circuitry for (i) receiving the configuration data, (ii) correcting a particular error in the received configuration data when the particular error exists in the configuration data, and (iii) outputting the configuration data without the particular error; and

c) a configurable circuit for receiving the configuration data output by the error correction circuitry.

2. The IC of claim 1, wherein the configuration memory is further for storing error correction data for the configuration data, and the error correction circuitry correcting the configuration data based on the error correction data.

3. The IC of claim 2, wherein the error correction circuitry corrects the particular error in the configuration data or the error correction data.

4. The IC of claim 3, wherein the error corrected configuration data and error correction data are written back into the configuration memory.

5. The IC of claim 1, wherein the error correction circuitry performs detection and correction of configuration memory independently of any system external to the IC.

6. The IC of claim 1, wherein the configuration memory comprises:

a) a set of storage elements for storing configuration data;

b) a first port for writing to the set of storage elements; and

c) a second port for reading from the set of storage elements.

7. The IC of claim 6, wherein the set of storage elements includes two sets of a two-tiered interconnect structure.

8. The IC of claim 6, wherein the error correction circuitry (i) obtains odd and even addressed configuration data from the second port, (ii) corrects a set of particular errors in the configuration data, if such errors exist, and (iii) outputs potentially corrected configuration data.

9. The IC of claim 6, wherein configuration data from outside of the IC is written into the storage element set through the first port.

10. The IC of claim 6, wherein the error correction circuitry is for writing the potentially corrected configuration data to the storage element set through the first port.

11. An electronic device comprising:

an integrated circuit (“

IC”

) comprising;

a) a configuration memory for storing configuration data;

b) error correction circuitry for (i) receiving the configuration data, (ii) correcting a particular error in the received configuration data when the particular error exists in the configuration data, and (iii) outputting the configuration data without the particular error; and

c) a configurable circuit for receiving the configuration data output by the error correction circuitry.

12. The electronic device of claim 11, wherein the configuration memory is for further storing error correction data for the configuration data, and the error correction circuitry correcting the configuration data based on the error correction data.

13. The electronic device of claim 12, wherein the error correction circuitry corrects the particular error in the configuration data or the error correction data.

14. The electronic device of claim 11, wherein the error corrected configuration data and error corrected error correction data are written back into the configuration memory.

15. The electronic device of claim 11, wherein the configuration memory comprises:

a) a set of storage elements for storing configuration data;

b) a first port for writing to the set of storage elements; and

c) a second port for reading from the set of storage elements.

16. The electronic device of claim 15, wherein the error correction circuitry (i) obtains odd and even addressed configuration data from the second port, (ii) corrects a set of particular errors in the configuration data, if such errors exist, and (iii) outputs potentially corrected configuration data.

17. An integrated circuit (“

IC”

) comprising;

a configuration memory for storing a plurality of configuration data sets;

a reconfigurable circuit for reconfigurably performing different operations when receiving different configuration data sets during the operation of the IC; and

a configuration data retrieval circuit for retrieving and supplying configuration data sets from the configuration memory to the reconfigurable circuit, wherein during the operation of the IC, the configuration data retrieval circuit iteratively;

(i) retrieves a configuration data set from the configuration memory, while (ii) supplying another previously retrieved configuration data set to the reconfigurable circuit,

said configuration data retrieval circuit comprising;

at least one error detection and correction sub-circuit that during a clock cycle detects and corrects a particular error in a particular retrieved configuration data set when the particular error exists in the second configuration data set, so that, during a subsequent clock cycle, the particular retrieved configuration data set is supplied to the reconfigurable circuit without the particular error.

18. The IC of claim 17,

wherein the configuration data retrieval circuit further comprises a first set of selection circuits and a second set of selection circuits;

wherein during a particular clock cycle, the first set of selection circuits supplies a configuration data set to the reconfigurable circuit for a particular clock cycle, while the second set of selection circuits pre-fetches a configuration data set to supply to the reconfigurable circuit during a clock cycle subsequent to the particular clock cycle.

19. An integrated circuit (“

IC”

) comprising;

a configuration memory for storing a plurality of configuration data sets;

a reconfigurable circuit for reconfigurably performing different operations when receiving different configuration data sets during the operation of the IC;

a configuration data retrieval circuit for retrieving and supplying configuration data sets from the configuration memory to the reconfigurable circuit, wherein during the operation of the IC, the configuration data retrieval circuit iteratively;

(i) retrieving a configuration data set from the configuration memory, while (ii) supplying another previously retrieved configuration data set to a circuit of the IC; and

an error correction and detection circuit for iteratively;

(i) receiving the configuration data from the configuration data retrieval circuit, (ii) correcting a particular error in the received configuration data when the particular error exists in the configuration data, and (iii) supplying the configuration data, without the particular error, to the reconfigurable circuit.

20. The IC of claim 19, wherein the error detection and correction circuit further comprises a retiming circuit for receiving the configuration data set from the error detection and correction circuit and retiming the configuration data set to allow for data-dependent time variations associated with data flow through the error detection and correction sub-circuit before providing the configuration data set to the reconfigurable circuit.