Static and dynamic configurable systems

Abstract

ÐField-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) are large, fast integrated circuitsÐthat 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: staticÐwhere 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 dynamicÐwhere 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 devicesÐones that are able to adapt within dynamic environments.

Design of a Simulator for Mesh-Based Reconfigurable Architectures

“…Reconfigurable technology includes static reconfiguration and dynamic reconfiguration [11]. In statically reconfigurable system, if the system needs to initiate a new configuration, it has to stop computation.…”

Toward robust integrated circuits: The embryonics approach

“…For clarity's sake, we will begin with a simple example of a one-dimensional artificial organism: a timer, called StopWatch, designed to count seconds (from 00 to 59) and minutes (from 00 to 59) [44], [45]. This organism is implemented with four cells [ Fig.12(a)] and is characterized by two distinct genes: " ", which counts modulo 10 the units of seconds or minutes, and "Countmod6," which counts modulo 6 tens of seconds or tens of minutes.…”

Real Time Image Rotation Using Dynamic Reconfiguration

“…Paper [13] highlights the diversity and multiplicity of systems and applications to which configurable computing can be used. Various systems such as SPYDER, RENCO, Firefly and BioWatch are given to show well the differences between the static-and dynamic-reconfiguration-based systems.…”