Conditional branch unit for microprogrammed data processor

Abstract

A data processor having a microprogrammed control store and including a conditional branch control unit for receiving selection bits output by the control store, selection bits from an instruction register, and conditional signals for generating a two-bit result which, when added to a base address, can specify one of two, three, or four branch destinations in the control store. The selection bits output by the control store determine whether the combination of conditional signals upon which the branch is dependent is selected by the control store or is selected directly by a bit field in the macroinstruction. Also, one of the selection bits output by the control store is used to select one of two possible output codes for the two-bit result associated with a particular branch destination. The latter feature allows for two conditional branch points in the control store to test for the same condition and to select the same destination when the tested condition is of one logic state while selecting different destinations when the tested condition is of the opposite logic state.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.