Static and dynamic configurable systems

Field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) are large, fast integrated circuits-that can be modified, or configured, almost at any point by the end user. Within the domain of configurable computing, we distinguish between two modes of configurability: static-where the configurable processor's config...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:IEEE transactions on computers 1999-06, Vol.48 (6), p.556-564
Main Authors: Sanchez, E., Sipper, M., Haenni, J.-O., Beuchat, J.-L., Stauffer, A., Perez-Uribe, A.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Application software
Application specific integrated circuits
Computation
Computer architecture
Computer industry
Computer networks
Configurable
Costs
Dynamical systems
Dynamics
Field programmable gate arrays
Hardware
High performance computing
Microprocessors
Network computers
Tasks
Watches
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Summary:Field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) are large, fast integrated circuits-that can be modified, or configured, almost at any point by the end user. Within the domain of configurable computing, we distinguish between two modes of configurability: static-where the configurable processor's configuration string is loaded once at the outset, after which it does not change during execution of the task at hand, and dynamic-where the processor's configuration may change at any moment. This paper describes four applications in the domain of configurable computing, considering both static and dynamic systems, including: SPYDER (a reconfigurable processor development system), RENCO (a reconfigurable network computer), Firefly (an evolving machine), and the BioWatch (a self-repairing watch). While static configurability mainly aims at attaining the classical computing goal of improving performance, dynamic configurability might bring about an entirely new breed of hardware devices-ones that are able to adapt within dynamic environments.
ISSN:0018-9340
1557-9956
DOI:10.1109/12.773792