Printer CPU with VLIW processor

• US 7,936,395 B2
• Filed: 11/29/2009
• Issued: 05/03/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 07/15/1997
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Silverbrook Research Pty Limited
• Original Assignee: Silverbrook Research Pty Limited
• Inventors: Silverbrook, Kia
• Primary Examiner(s): Giles; Nicholas G
• Application Number:
  US12/626,931
• Publication Number:
  US 20100079600A1
• Time in Patent Office: 520 Days
• Field of Search: 348/207.99, 348/373, 348/374, 348/222.1, 358/1.1, 358/1.9, 712/10, 712/11, 712/12, 712/13, 712/14, 712/15, 712/16, 712/17, 712/18, 712/19, 712/20, 712/21, 712/22, 712/24
• US Class Current: 348/374
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 11/0005 Curl smoothing, i.e. smoothing down corrugated printing material, e.g. by pressing means acting on wrinkled printing material
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 11/005 Guides in the printing zone, e.g. guides for preventing contact of conveyed sheets with printhead
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 11/70 cutting perpendicular to the direction of paper feed
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 15/04 Supporting, feeding, or guiding devices; Mountings for web rolls or spindles
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/14314 Structure of ink jet print heads with electrostatically actuated membrane
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/14427 Structure of ink jet print heads with thermal bend detached actuators
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/16585 for paper-width or non-reciprocating print heads
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/17513 Inner structure
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/17596 Ink pumps, ink valves
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2002/041 Electromagnetic transducer
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2202/21 Line printing
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 3/445 Printers integrated in other types of apparatus, e.g. printers integrated in cameras
• CPC Class Codes: B82Y 30/00 Nanotechnology for materials or surface science, e.g. nanocomposites
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 15/00 Digital computers in general details G06F1/00 – G06F13/00; Data processing equipment in general
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/79 in semiconductor storage media, e.g. directly-addressable memories
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/86 Secure or tamper-resistant housings
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2129 Authenticate client device independently of the user
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 7/57 Arithmetic logic units [ALU], i.e. arrangements or devices for performing two or more of the operations covered by groups G06F7/483 – G06F7/556 or for performing logical operations G06F7/49, G06F7/491 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/226 Microinstruction function, e.g. input/output microinstruction; diagnostic microinstruction; microinstruction format
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/265 by address selection on input of storage
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/30094 : Condition code generation, e.g. Carry, Zero flag
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/30101 : Special purpose registers
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/3885 : using a plurality of independent parallel functional units
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 1/121 : by printing code marks applying code marks to labels B65C9/46; marking or coding completed packages B65B61/26
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 15/00 : Arrangements for producing a permanent visual presentation of the output data , e.g. computer output printersprinting or plotting combined with another operation, e.g. with conveying, G06K17/00
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/06037 : multi-dimensional coding
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/073 : Special arrangements for circuits, e.g. for protecting identification code in memory protection against unauthorised use of computer memory G06F12/14
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10762 : Relative movement
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/14 : using light without selection of wavelength, e.g. sensing reflected white light G06K7/10831 - G06K7/1097 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/1417 : 2D bar codes
• CPC Class Codes: G11C 11/56 : using storage elements with more than two stable states represented by steps, e.g. of voltage, current, phase, frequency
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 23/576 : using active circuits
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/00 : Indexing scheme for arrangements or methods for connecting or disconnecting semiconductor or solid-state bodies as covered by H01L24/00
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/0002 : Not covered by any one of groups H01L24/00, H01L24/00 and H01L2224/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00127 : Connection or combination of a still picture apparatus with another apparatus, e.g. for storage, processing or transmission of still picture signals or of information associated with a still picture
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00278 : with a printing apparatus, e.g. a laser beam printer
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00326 : with a data reading, recognizing or recording apparatus, e.g. with a bar-code apparatus arrangements for the associated working of recording or reproducing apparatus with related apparatus G11B31/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/0044 : for image preview or review, e.g. to help the user position a sheet
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00965 : using a plug-in memory module, e.g. memory card, memory stick
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00968 : by scanning marks on a sheet mark-sheet input means H04N1/00355; sensing record carriers G06K7/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/2112 : using still video cameras
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/2154 : the still video camera incorporating a hardcopy reproducing device, e.g. a printer
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32101 : Display, printing, storage or transmission of additional information, e.g. ID code, date and time or title
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32133 : on the same paper sheet, e.g. a facsimile page header
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32561 : using a programmed control device, e.g. a microprocessor
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32587 : Controller
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32593 : Using a plurality of controllers, e.g. for controlling different interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32603 : Multi-bus systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/46 : Colour picture communication systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2101/00 : Still video cameras
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0008 : Connection or combination of a still picture apparatus with another apparatus
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0084 : Digital still camera
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3222 : of processing required or performed, e.g. forwarding, urgent or confidential handling
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3261 : of multimedia information, e.g. a sound signal
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3264 : of sound signals
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3269 : of machine readable codes or marks, e.g. bar codes or glyphs
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3276 : of a customised additional information profile, e.g. a profile specific to a user ID
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/328 : Processing of the additional information
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/00 : Cameras or camera modules comprising electronic image sensors; Control thereof
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/40 : Circuit details for pick-up tubes
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/70 : Circuitry for compensating brightness variation in the scene
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/80 : Camera processing pipelines; Components thereof
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 25/75 : Circuitry for providing, modifying or processing image signals from the pixel array
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/2628 : Alteration of picture size, shape, position or orientation, e.g. zooming, rotation, rolling, perspective, translation
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/76 : Television signal recording

Abstract

A controller is provided having an interface for receiving data and a very long instruction word (VLIW) processor connected to the interface for processing the received data to generate processed data. The VLIW processor has four processing units each connected by a cross bar switch and each interconnected to their nearest neighbors to form a ring, each processing unit providing two inputs to, and taking two outputs from, the crossbar switch.

Claims

1. A controller comprising:

an interface for receiving data; and

a very long instruction word (VLIW) processor connected to the input interface for processing the received data to generate processed data, the VLIW processor having four processing units each connected by a cross bar switch and each interconnected to their nearest neighbors to form a ring, each processing unit providing two inputs to, and taking two outputs from, the crossbar switch.

2. A controller according to claim 1 wherein the VLIW processor is a VLIW vector processor.

3. A controller according to claim 1 wherein each of the processing units has an arithmetic logic unit (ALU) acting under the control of a microcode store, wherein the microcode store includes a writeable control store.

4. A controller according to claim 3 wherein each of the processing units have internal input and output FIFO (first in, first out) for storing image data used by the ALU.

5. A contoller according to claim 3 wherein each ALU has a series of inputs interconnected via an internal crossbar switch to a series of core processing units within that ALU.

6. A controller according to claim 5 wherein each of the core processing units include at least one of a multiplier, an adder and a barrel shifter.

7. A controller according to claim 6 wherein each ALU has a plurality of internal registers for the storage of temporary data.

8. A controller according to claim 7 wherein the processing units are further connected to a common data bus for the transfer of data to the processing elements.

9. A controller according to claim 8 wherein the data bus is interconnected to a data cache which acts as an intermediate cache between the processing elements and a memory store for storing image data.