Comparator associated with dictionary entry
AssigneeHewlett Packard Enterprise Development LP
InventorsBrent Buchanan, Le Zheng, John Paul Strachan
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Comparators may be associated with dictionary entries. In one aspect, a dictionary entry may store a dictionary word. A register may store an input word. A comparator associated with the dictionary entry may compare the dictionary word and the input word. The comparison may be a bit by bit comparison. The comparator may output a signal indicating if the dictionary word is less than the input word, equal to the input word, or greater than the input word. The output may indicate indeterminate when the comparison is not yet complete.
Claims18
A circuit comprising:
- a dictionary entry storing a dictionary word;
- a register storing an input word;
- and
- a comparator associated with the dictionary entry to compare the dictionary word and the input word, based on a bit by bit comparison, the comparator to output a signal, the signal indicating if the dictionary word is less than the input word, equal to the input word, greater than the input word, or indeterminate, wherein indeterminate means the comparison is not yet complete.
A sorting circuit comprising:
- a plurality of dictionary entries storing a plurality of dictionary words;
- a plurality of comparators, each comparator associated with one dictionary entry of the plurality of dictionary entries, each comparator to indicate if the associated dictionary entry is less than, equal to, or greater than an input word;
- and
- a sorting logic to determine a sorted position of the input word.
A method comprising:
- iteratively executing a bit by bit comparison of an input word to a dictionary word stored in a dictionary entry, the comparison beginning at the most significant bit and proceeding to the least significant bit in increments of one bit, the comparison executed by a comparator associated with the dictionary entry;
- setting an output signal based upon the comparison, wherein the output signal indicates if the input word is less than, equal to, or greater than the dictionary word.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.