Adaptively switched network-on-chip

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9961019-B2
Application number	US-201414579729-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 22, 2014
Priority date	Dec 22, 2014
Publication date	May 1, 2018
Grant date	May 1, 2018

Abstract

A packet-switched reservation request to be associated with a first data stream is received. A communication mode is selected. The communication mode is to be either a circuit-switched mode or a packet-switched mode. At least a portion of the first data stream is communicated in accordance with the communication mode.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A processor to comprise:
a first router of a network-on-chip, the first router to comprise:
an input port to receive a packet-switched channel reservation to reserve communication resources for a first data stream;
logic to determine a mode of a channel, the mode to be either a circuit-switched mode or a packet-switched mode;
a storage element that is to:
pass data at an input of the storage element to an output of the storage element without storing the data when the channel is in the circuit-switched mode; and
store data at the input of the storage element when a clock signal is received when the channel is in the packet-switched mode; and

wherein the storage element is to receive data of the first data stream at the input of the storage element.

2. The processor of claim 1 , wherein the storage element is associated with the input port.

3. The processor of claim 1 , wherein the first router is to further comprise an output port and wherein the storage element is associated with the output port.

4. The processor of claim 1 , wherein the storage element is to comprise at least one data latch.

5. The processor of claim 1 , the first router to further comprise a linked list, an entry of the linked list to correspond to the first data stream.

6. The processor of claim 5 , the linked list to further comprise a second entry to correspond to a second data stream.

7. The processor of claim 6 , the first router to further comprise an output port to utilize the linked list to alternate between providing data from the first data stream to the input of the storage element and providing data from the second data stream to the input of the storage element.

8. The processor of claim 5 , wherein the entry of the linked list is to comprise direction information associated with the first data stream.

9. The processor of claim 1 , further comprising a second router of the network-on-chip, the second router to receive an indication of the mode of the channel from the first router and to configure a storage element of the second router based on the indication of the mode of the channel.

10. The processor of claim 9 , the second router to further receive the data of the first data stream at an input of the storage element of the second router.

11. The processor of claim 1 , wherein the clock signal is a stream signal that is to indicate a start of a transfer of a segment of the first data stream.

12. The processor of claim 1 , wherein the logic is to determine that the mode is to be the circuit-switched mode unless a number of active data streams at a port associated with the storage element exceeds a threshold.

13. The processor of claim 12 , wherein the threshold is one active data stream.

14. An apparatus to comprise:
a router to:
receive a packet-switched reservation request to be associated with a first data stream;
select a communication mode, the communication mode to be either a circuit-switched mode or a packet-switched mode; and
communicate at least a portion of the first data stream in accordance with the communication mode;

wherein the router is to select the circuit-switched mode when a port of the router has less than a threshold number of active data streams and is to select the packet-switched mode when the port of the router has a number of active data streams that is equal to or greater than the threshold number.

15. The apparatus of claim 14 , wherein the router is to select the circuit-switched mode when a port of the router has less than a threshold number of active data streams and is to select the packet-switched mode when the port of the router has a number of active data streams that is equal to or greater than the threshold number.

16. The apparatus of claim 14 , wherein the router is further to disable data storage by a storage element of the router when the communication mode is circuit-switched and to enable the storage element to store data when the communication mode is packet-switched mode.

17. The apparatus of claim 14 , wherein the communication mode is associated with a first port of the router and the router is further to:
select a second communication mode to be associated with a second port of the router, the communication mode to be either a circuit-switched mode or a packet-switched mode; and
communicate second data in accordance with the second communication mode.

18. A non-transitory machine readable medium including information to represent structures, when manufactured, to be configured to:
receive a packet-switched reservation request to be associated with a first data stream;
select a communication mode, the communication mode to be either a circuit-switched mode or a packet-switched mode; and
communicate at least a portion of the first data stream in accordance with the communication mode;
wherein the structures, when manufactured, are further configured to select the circuit-switched mode when a port of a router has less than a threshold number of active data streams and to select the packet-switched mode when the port of the router has a number of active data streams that is equal to or greater than the threshold number.

19. The medium of claim 18 , the structures, when manufactured, to be further configured to select the circuit-switched mode when a port of a router has less than a threshold number of active data streams and is to select the packet-switched mode when the port of the router has a number of active data streams that is equal to or greater than the threshold number.

20. The medium of claim 18 , the structures, when manufactured, to be further configured to disable data storage by a storage element of a router when the communication mode is circuit-switched and to enable the storage element to store data when the communication mode is packet-switched mode.

21. The medium of claim 20 , wherein the communication mode is associated with a first port of a router and the structures, when manufactured, are to be further configured to:
select a second communication mode to be associated with a second port of the router, the communication mode to be either a circuit-switched mode or a packet-switched mode; and
communicate second data in accordance with the second communication mode.

22. A system to comprise:
a plurality of cores each associated with a router of a network on a chip, a router to comprise:
a plurality of port sets; a port set to comprise:
an input port to receive a packet-switched channel reservation to reserve communication resources for a data stream;
logic to determine a mode of a channel, the mode to be either a circuit-switched mode or a packet-switched mode;
a storage element that is to:
pass data at an input of the storage element to an output of the storage element without storing the data when the channel is in the circuit-switched mode; and
store data at the input of the storage element when a clock signal is received when the channel is in the packet-switched mode; and

an output port to provide data of the data stream to the input of the storage element and to send the output of the storage element to another router of the network on a chip.

Assignees

• Intel Corp

Inventors

• Chen Gregory K
• Anders Mark A
• Kaul Himanshu
• Krishnamurthy Ram K
• Kim Yejoong

Classifications

• H04L49/109 Primary

  Integrated on microchip, e.g. switch-on-chip · CPC title

• H04L49/60

  Software-defined switches · CPC title

• H04L45/60

  Router architectures · CPC title