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US 6,184,905 B2Granted
Method and apparatus for processing video graphics information at different operating rates
AssigneeATI Technologies, Inc.
InventorAdrian Henry Hartog
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A method and apparatus for processing video data at various optimum operating rates is accomplished by a video graphics circuit that includes a video graphics module, a buffer and a memory interface, where the video graphics module, which may be a graphical user interface (GUI), is operated at a first clock rate and the memory interface is operated at a second clock rate. In this circuit, the buffer temporarily stores data, such that communications with the memory interface are done at the second clock rate while communications with the video graphics module are done at the fist clock rate.
Claims16
A video graphics circuit comprising:
- a graphical user interface module that operates at a first clock rate, wherein the graphical user interface generates interface information based on user inputs;
- a buffer coupled to the graphic user interface module, wherein the buffer temporarily stores the interface information at the first clock rate;
- and
- a memory interface coupled to the buffer, wherein the memory interface retrieves the interface information from the buffer and provides the interface information to a memory at a memory clock rate, wherein the memory clock rate is substantially greater than the first clock rate, wherein the memory interface subsequently retrieves the interface information from the memory at the memory clock rate and provides the retrieved interface information to the buffer, and wherein the graphical user interface retrieves the retrieved interface information from the buffer at the first clock rate;
- a video module that operates at a second clock rate, wherein the video module generates video graphics information which is provided to the buffer for temporary storage, and wherein the buffer provides the video graphics information to the memory, via the memory interface, at the memory clock rate, wherein the memory interface subsequently retrieves the video graphics information from the memory at the memory clock rate and provides the retrieved video graphics information to the buffer, and wherein the video module retrieves the retrieved video graphics information from the buffer at the second clock rate.
2 more elements
A video graphics system comprising:
- central processing unit;
- system memory coupled to the central processing unit;
- video memory that operates at a memory clock rate;
- and
- a video graphics circuit coupled to the video memory and to the central processing unit, wherein the video graphics circuit includes:
- a graphical user interface module that operates at a first clock rate, wherein the graphical user interface generates interface information based on inputs from the central processing unit;
- a buffer coupled to the graphic user interface module, wherein the buffer temporarily stores the interface information at the first clock rate;
- and
- a memory interface coupled to the buffer, wherein the memory interface retrieves the interface information from the buffer and provides the interface information to the video memory at the memory clock rate, wherein the memory clock rate is substantially greater than the first clock rate, wherein the memory interface subsequently retrieves the interface information from the memory at the memory clock rate and provides the retrieved interface information to the buffer, and wherein the graphical user interface retrieves the retrieved interface information from the buffer at the first clock rate.
6 more elements
A video graphics circuit comprising:
- a plurality of video modules, wherein each of the plurality of video graphic modules generates corresponding video data, and wherein each of the plurality of video graphic modules operates at corresponding clock rate;
- a buffer coupled to more than one of the plurality of video graphics modules, wherein the buffer temporarily stores the corresponding video data of the more than one of the plurality of video graphic modules at the corresponding clock rate;
- and
- a memory interface coupled to the buffer, wherein the memory interface retrieves the corresponding video data of the plurality of video graphic modules from the buffer and provides the corresponding video data of the plurality of video graphics modules to a memory at a memory clock rate, wherein the memory clock rate is substantially greater than the corresponding clock rate, wherein the memory interface subsequently retrieves the corresponding video data from the memory at the memory clock rate and provides the retrieved corresponding video data to the buffer, and wherein at least one of the plurality of video graphic modules retrieves corresponding video data from the buffer at the corresponding clock rate.
1 more element
A method for processing video graphics data via different clock rate operations, the method comprising the steps of:
- a) generating graphical user interface data at a first clock rate in the range of 50 MHz to 83 MHz, wherein the first clock rate is set to provide optimum generation of the graphical user interface data;
- b) buffering the graphical user interface data at the first clock rate to produce first buffered graphical user interface data;
- c) retrieving the first buffered graphical user interface data at a second clock rate in the range of 50 MHz to 200 MHz to produce first retrieved buffered graphical data, wherein the second clock rate is set for optimum retrieval of memory;
- d) storing, at the second clock rate, the first retrieved buffered graphics data in memory to produce first stored graphics data;
- e) subsequently retrieving the first stored graphics data at the second clock rate to produce second retrieved graphics data;
- f) buffering the second retrieved graphics data at the second clock rate to produce second buffered graphics data;
- and
- g) providing the second buffered graphics data to a graphical user interface at the first clock rate.
5 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.