System, method, and computer program product for constructing a data flow and identifying a construct

• US 8,930,861 B2
• Filed: 04/23/2013
• Issued: 01/06/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 03/15/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: NVIDIA Corporation
• Original Assignee: NVIDIA Corporation
• Inventors: Alfieri, Robert Anthony
• Primary Examiner(s): Levin, Naum B
• Application Number:
  US13/868,954
• Publication Number:
  US 20140282309A1
• Time in Patent Office: 623 Days
• Field of Search: 716102-104, 716/106
• US Class Current: 716/102
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 30/30 Circuit design

Abstract

A system, method, and computer program product are provided for creating a hardware design. In use, one or more parameters are received, where at least one of the parameters corresponds to an interface protocol. Additionally, a data flow is constructed based on the one or more parameters. Further, an indication of one or more control constructs is received, where a hardware design is capable of being created, utilizing the constructed data flow and the one or more control constructs.

Claims

1. A computer program product embodied on a non-transitory computer readable medium, comprising:

code for receiving one or more parameters, wherein at least one parameter of the one or more parameters corresponds to an interface protocol;

code for constructing a data flow based on the one or more parameters, wherein the data flow represents a flow of data through a hardware design;

code for receiving an indication of one or more constructs represented in a hardware description language, the one or more constructs selected from a group of constructs consisting of control constructs and compute constructs; and

code for creating a hardware design, based on the data flow and the one or more constructs,

wherein control constructs include an entity implemented as part of the hardware description language that receives one or more data flows as input.

2. The computer program product of claim 1, wherein the one or more constructs may include a module implemented as part of the hardware description language and that receives one or more data flows as input.

3. The computer program product of claim 2, wherein at least one construct in the one or more constructs is a control construct that performs one or more operations based on the one or more data flows received as input.

4. The computer program product of claim 1, wherein at least one construct in the one or more constructs is a control construct that creates one or more output data flows, based on the one or more input data flows.

5. The computer program product of claim 1, wherein at least one construct in the one or more constructs is a configured to generate one or more output data flows that are provided as inputs into one or more additional constructs.

6. The computer program product of claim 1, wherein a data flow is input to one or more of the constructs, which creates one or more output data flows based on the data flow received as input.

7. The computer program product of claim 1, wherein the one or more constructs include a separate construct that creates multiple output data flows from a single input data flow.

8. The computer program product of claim 1, wherein the one or more constructs include a merge construct that creates a single output data flow from multiple input data flows.

9. The computer program product of claim 1, wherein the one or more constructs include a multicast construct that takes a single input data flow and sends it to one or more output data flows.

10. The computer program product of claim 1, wherein the one or more constructs include a select construct that accepts multiple input data flows and selects one of them to be an output data flow.

11. The computer program product of claim 1, wherein the one or more constructs include a connect construct that connects an input data flow of the construct to a deferred output.

12. The computer program product of claim 11, wherein the deferred output includes a primary input to the hardware design or an input data flow that does not yet connect to an output data flow of another construct.

13. The computer program product of claim 1, wherein the one or more constructs include an as construct that maps flow data to a different format.

14. The computer program product of claim 1, wherein the one or more constructs include a shuffle construct that rearranges a structuring of input data flows.

15. The computer program product of claim 1, wherein the one or more constructs include a derive clock construct that creates a new clock from an existing clock.

16. The computer program product of claim 1, wherein one or more of the constructs include one or more parameters.

17. The computer program product of claim 16, wherein the one or more parameters include one or more of a name parameter, a comment parameter, a stallable parameter, a parameter used to specify a depth of an output queue, a parameter that causes an output data flow of the construct to be registered out, and a parameter that causes a ready signal of an output data flow of the construct to be registered in.

18. A method, comprising:

receiving one or more parameters, wherein at least one parameter of the one or more parameters corresponds to an interface protocol;

constructing a data flow based on the one or more parameters, wherein the data flow represents a flow of data through a hardware design;

receiving an indication of one or more constructs represented in a hardware description language, the one or more constructs selected from a group of constructs consisting of control constructs and compute constructs; and

creating, via a processor, a hardware design based on the data flow and the one or more constructs,

wherein control constructs include an entity implemented as part of the hardware description language that receives one or more data flows as input.

19. A system, comprising:

a processor for;

receiving one or more parameters, wherein at least one parameter of the one or more parameters corresponds to an interface protocol,

constructing a data flow based on the one or more parameters, wherein the data flow represents a flow of data through a hardware design,

receiving an indication of one or more constructs represented in a hardware description language, the one or more constructs selected from a group of constructs consisting of control constructs and compute constructs,

creating a hardware design based on the data flow and the one or more constructs,

wherein control constructs include an entity implemented as part of the hardware description language that receives one or more data flows as input.