Power-efficient technique for invoking a co-processor
First Claim
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1. A method of processing data in a computer system having a first processor and a second processor, the method comprising:
- sending an instruction to the second processor to perform an operation on a data stream, wherein the instruction includes a command field and an execution mode field, a value of the execution mode field specifying one of a plurality of modes of execution including a regular mode indicating the instruction should be executed by the second processor once before awaking the first processor from a low power sleep mode, and a repeat mode indicating that the instruction should be executed repeatedly without further instructions from the first processor;
placing the first processor in a low power state; and
performing the operation on the data stream with the second processor once or repeated based on the value of the execution mode field while the first processor remains in the low-power sleep mode.
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Abstract
Various embodiments are disclosed relating to power-efficient techniques for invoking a co-processor. In an example embodiment, a computer system may include a first processor (e.g., a host processor) and a second processor (e.g., a co-processor). The first processor may instruct the second processor to perform an operation repeatedly on a data stream. The first processor may be placed in a low power state. The second processor may perform the operation repeatedly on the data stream while the first processor remains in the low-power state.
12 Citations
19 Claims
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1. A method of processing data in a computer system having a first processor and a second processor, the method comprising:
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sending an instruction to the second processor to perform an operation on a data stream, wherein the instruction includes a command field and an execution mode field, a value of the execution mode field specifying one of a plurality of modes of execution including a regular mode indicating the instruction should be executed by the second processor once before awaking the first processor from a low power sleep mode, and a repeat mode indicating that the instruction should be executed repeatedly without further instructions from the first processor; placing the first processor in a low power state; and performing the operation on the data stream with the second processor once or repeated based on the value of the execution mode field while the first processor remains in the low-power sleep mode. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9)
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10. A method comprising:
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receiving an instruction at a second processor from a first processor, the instruction including a command field and an execution mode field, a value of the execution mode field specifying one of a plurality of modes of execution including a regular mode indicating the instruction should be executed by the second processor once before awaking the first processor from a low power sleep mode, and a repeat mode indicating that the instruction should be executed repeatedly without further instructions from the first processor; and executing the instruction by the second processor once or repeated based on the value of the execution mode field.
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11. A computer system comprising:
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a memory; a first processor; and a second processor, wherein the first processor is configured to send an instruction to the second processor to perform an operation on a data stream, wherein the instruction includes a command field and an execution mode field, a value of the execution mode field specifying one of a plurality of modes of execution including a regular mode indicating the instruction should be executed by the second processor once before awaking the first processor from a low power sleep mode, and a repeat mode indicating that the instruction should be executed repeatedly without further instructions from the first processor, and wherein the first processor is configured to enter a low power state after instructing the second processor to perform repeatedly the operation, and wherein the second processor is configured to, based on the value of the execution mode field, perform the operation on the data stream once or repeatedly while the first processor remains in the low-power sleep mode. - View Dependent Claims (12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19)
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Specification