Heterogeneous radiation-hardened computing system

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12079159-B1
Application number	US-202217960291-A
Country	US
Kind code	B1
Filing date	Oct 5, 2022
Priority date	Oct 5, 2022
Publication date	Sep 3, 2024
Grant date	Sep 3, 2024

Abstract

A radiation-hardened (rad-hard) computing system can include a rad-hard processor, a second processor, and a memory operably coupled to the rad-hard processor. The rad-hard processor can cause the second processor to execute compute-intensive tasks that can be performed more quickly or with fewer computing resources by the second processor than the rad-hard processor. The rad-hard processor can selectively cause the second processor to execute a compute-intensive task based upon determining that the second processor is in a normal operating state. The rad-hard processor can further evaluate computing results generate by the second processor to determine whether such computing results meet an applicable acceptability condition. The rad-hard processor can employ a computing result that meets an applicable acceptability condition in further computing operations.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A radiation-hardened (rad-hard) computing system, comprising:
a rad-hard processor;
a second processor operably coupled to the rad-hard processor;
a memory comprising instructions that, when executed by the rad-hard processor, cause the rad-hard processor to perform acts comprising:
receiving an instruction to execute a compute-intensive task;
determining whether the second processor is in a normal operating state; and
based upon determining that the second processor is in the normal operating state, providing the compute-intensive task to the second processor such that the second processor executes the compute-intensive task; and

a second memory, the second memory comprising second instructions, wherein the rad-hard processor providing the compute-intensive task to the second processor comprises causing the second processor to execute the second instructions, wherein the second processor executing the second instructions causes the second processor to execute the compute-intensive task.

2. The rad-hard computing system of claim 1 , wherein the rad-hard processor is a radiation-hardened-by-process (RHBP) device.

3. The rad-hard computing system of claim 1 , wherein a component of the rad-hard processor is formed such that:
the component comprises a rad-hard isolation oxide;
the component comprises a rad-hard gate oxide;
the component comprises a rad-hard buried oxide;
the component comprises a rad-hard field oxide;
the component comprises an ion implant that improves the resistance of the component to one or more forms of radiation; or
the component is formed on an isolation element that isolates the component from a charge-collecting substrate.

4. The rad-hard computing system of claim 1 , wherein the rad-hard processor has a maximum instructions per second (IPS) that is less than a maximum IPS of the second processor.

5. The rad-hard computing system of claim 1 , wherein the compute-intensive task is an image analysis task, wherein the second processor outputs, to the rad-hard processor, an indication of an object in an image based upon executing the image analysis task.

6. The rad-hard computing system of claim 5 , the acts further comprising:
responsive to receiving the indication of the object in the image, controlling operation of a physical system based upon the object being present in the image.

7. The rad-hard computing system of claim 1 , the acts further comprising:
receiving, from the second processor, a computing result generated by the second processor based upon execution of the compute-intensive task;
determining whether the computing result meets an acceptability condition pertaining to the computing result; and
responsive to determining that the computing result does not meet the acceptability condition, causing the second processor to perform at least one of a second execution of the compute-intensive task, a test operation, or a reset operation.

8. The rad-hard computing system of claim 1 , wherein determining whether the second processor is in the normal operating state comprises:
providing a test computing task to the second processor; and
determining whether a computing result generated by the second processor based upon execution of the test computing task meets an acceptability condition for the computing result.

9. The rad-hard computing system of claim 1 , wherein determining whether the second processor is in the normal operating state comprises:
causing the second processor to execute a self-test routine; and
determining, based upon results of the self-test routine, whether the second processor is in the normal operating state.

10. The rad-hard computing system of claim 1 , wherein the acts further comprise:
responsive to determining that the second processor is not in the normal operating state, causing the rad-hard processor to execute a safe-mode program.

11. A radiation-hardened (rad-hard) computing system, comprising:
a rad-hard processor;
a second processor operably coupled to the rad-hard processor; and
a memory comprising instructions that, when executed by the rad-hard processor, cause the rad-hard processor to perform acts comprising:
receiving, from the second processor, a computing result generated by the second processor based upon a first execution of a compute-intensive task by the second processor;
computing an approximate expected value of the computing result based upon execution of an approximation routine corresponding to the compute-intensive task;
determining whether the computing result meets an acceptability condition pertaining to the computing result, the acceptability condition based upon a measure of similarity between the computing result and the approximate expected value of the computing result; and
responsive to determining that the computing result does not meet the acceptability condition, causing the second processor to perform at least one of:
a self-test operation;
a second execution of the compute-intensive task; or
a reset operation.

12. The rad-hard computing system of claim 11 , the acts further comprising:
receiving an instruction to execute the compute-intensive task;
determining whether the second processor is in a normal operating state; and
based upon determining that the second processor is in the normal operating state, providing the computing task to the second processor such that the second processor executes the computing task.

13. A radiation-hardened (rad-hard) computing system, comprising:
a rad-hard processor;
a second processor operably coupled to the rad-hard processor; and
a memory comprising instructions that, when executed by the rad-hard processor, cause the rad-hard processor to perform acts comprising:
receiving, from the second processor, a computing result generated by the second processor based upon a first execution of a compute-intensive task by the second processor;
determining whether a time between the second processor being provided with the compute-intensive task and the second processor providing the computing result to the rad-hard processor exceeds a threshold time or falls within an expected range of times; and
responsive to determining that the time between the second processor being provided with the compute-intensive task and the second processor providing the computing result to the rad-hard processor does not exceed the threshold time or falls outside the expected range of times, causing the second processor to perform at least one of:
a self-test operation;
a second execution of the compute-intensive task; or
a reset operation.

14. The rad-hard computing system of claim 13 , wherein the threshold time is based upon a quantity of data over which the second processor executes the compute-intensive task to generate the computing result.

15. The rad-hard computing system of claim 11 , wherein determining whether the computing result meets the acceptability condition comprises determining whether the computing result falls within a range of expected values.

16. The rad-hard computing system of claim 11 , wherein the acceptability condition is dynamically determined by the rad-hard processor.

17. The rad-hard computing system of claim 11 , the acts further comprising:
responsive to determining that an error rate of computing results generated by the second processor exceeds a threshold error rate, executing a safe-mode program.

Assignees

• Nat Tech & Eng Solutions Sandia Llc

Inventors

• Agarwal Sapan
• Michael Christopher
• Marinella Matthew

Classifications

• G06F11/3024

  where the computing system component is a central processing unit [CPU] · CPC title

• G06F11/3037

  where the computing system component is a memory, e.g. virtual memory, cache (accessing, addressing or allocating within memory systems or architectures G06F12/00; checking stores for correct operation G11C29/00) · CPC title

• G06F11/3055

  Monitoring arrangements for monitoring the status of the computing system or of the computing system component, e.g. monitoring if the computing system is on, off, available, not available (error or fault processing without redundancy G06F11/0703; error detection or correction by redundancy in data representation G06F11/08; error detection or correction of the data by redundancy in operations G06F11/14; error detection or correction by redundancy in hardware G06F11/16) · CPC title

• G06F11/004

  Error avoidance (G06F11/07 and subgroups take precedence) · CPC title

• G06F11/22

  Detection or location of defective computer hardware by testing during standby operation or during idle time, e.g. start-up testing · CPC title