ACM-SIGDA
Embedded System Design
Software-Driven Architecture
Based on Session 14 of the 36th DAC
Introduction
Author: Patrick Scaglia - Cadence Labs, San Jose, CA
Customized Instruction-Sets For Emvedded Processors
Author: Joseph A. Fisher - Hewlette-Packard Lab., Cambridge, MA
Abstract: It is generally believed that there will be little more variety in CPU architectures, and thus the design of Instruction-set Architectures (ISAs) will have no role in the future of embedded CPU design. Nonetheless, it is argued in this paper that architectural variety will soon again become an important topic, with the major motivation being increased performance due to the customization of CPUs to their intended use. Five major barriers that could hinder customization are described, including the problems of existing binaries, toolchain development and maintenance costs, lost savings/higher chip cost due to the lower volumes of customized processors, added hardware development costs, and some factors related to the product development cycle for embedded products. Each is discussed, along with potential, sometimes surprising, solutions.
System-Level Hardware/Software Trade-offs
Author: Samuel P. Harbison - Texas Instruments, Pittsburgh, PA
Abstract: Operating systems and development tools can impose overly general requirements that prevent an embedded system from achieving its hardware performance entitlement. It is time for embedded processor designers to become more involved with system software and tools.