Modular I/O bank architecture

Abstract

A programmable device I/O architecture allows for a variable number of I/O banks. Each I/O bank is of an I/O bank type. Each I/O bank type has a fixed number of I/O pins. I/O banks of the same I/O type are compatible within the same programmable device and between different types of programmable devices. The number of I/O pins for each I/O bank type is selected so that each of a set of interfaces can be implemented efficiently using I/O banks of at least one I/O bank type. The largest size I/O bank type and intermediate size I/O bank types are adapted to be a compatible supersets of every smaller I/O bank type. The ratio between data pins and support pins in each I/O bank type is the same. Support pins are regularly distributed between data pins in each I/O bank type.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.