Introducing Dynamic to Hardware Development

Wouldn't it be nice to have a computing machine that fits exactly to the algorithm one is executing? By now, multi-purpose processors are used to do any job. If they don't fit exactly to the problem a software or hardware adaption is used to customize it. Another way to get appropriate hardware for a given problem is to design a chip that does what is needed. Unfortunately, both ways are time consuming, expensive and inflexible because the architcture is fixed in all cases.

Todays Field-Programmable-Gate-Arrays (FPGA) are reconfigurable at runtime. Leading to the idea of an reprogrammable processor. But what if we leave out the von Neumann principle of computation or at least the well known CPU? At this point our work comes into play. We shift the focus from CPU centric systems to Configurable Processing Units.

Our scope is on hardware and on design. Currently, hardware design is to be enriched by methodologies from the software development area. Applying these concepts to hardware dynamic is prerequisite. Hence, it is not just hardware we are dealing with. Moreover, software descriptions languages and their concepts are subject to our research in this area.

Aspects

• Higher levels of abstraction.
• New abstraction hierarchy.
• Algorithmic description.
• Adding dynamic to hardware.
• Paving the way to apply software methodologies.
• Reconfiguration management
• Concept for generic components
• System description.
• From algorithm to FSMs
• Algebras supporting state-based systems.

We use Xilinx VirtexII-Pro FPGAs as prototype plattform. Our choice is based on its partial reconfiguration capabilities and its CLB architecture. Furthermore, these hardware features are encouraged by the Xilinx Modular Design-Flow.