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US 2003/0149861 A1Published application
Stalling instructions in a pipelined microprocessor
OwnerMatthew Beckerinventor
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Methods and systems are disclosed for indicating microprocessor resources are limited. One method subtracts a current value of a pointer from a maximum value of the pointer and compares to a desired value. A stall is asserted when the desired value is achieved. Another method advances instructions along a pipeline, with the pipeline having a minimum amount of open space. The minimum amount of open space is subtracted from a current amount of open space within the pipeline, and this result is compared to a desired value. A stall is asserted when the desired value is achieved.
Claims18
A method, comprising:
- subtracting a current value of a pointer from a maximum value of the pointer;
- comparing to a desired value;
- and
- asserting a stall when the desired value is achieved.
1 more element
A method, comprising:
- advancing instructions along a pipeline, the pipeline having a minimum amount of open space;
- subtracting the minimum amount of open space from a current amount of open space within the pipeline;
- comparing to a desired value;
- and
- asserting a stall when the desired value is achieved.
2 more elements
A method, comprising:
- advancing instructions along a staged pipeline;
- establishing a single pointer to indicate the amount of open space within the pipeline;
- and
- asserting a stall condition when the single pointer indicates resources are limited.
1 more element
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.