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With this new solution, customers can:
-- Directly connect up to 256 processors or subsystem blocks;
-- Partition, integrate, and verify large Virtex-II Pro device designs;
-- Map systems into arrays of low-cost Spartan-II devices for cost
sensitive applications;
-- Mix and match small and large processors to better tune performance;
-- Re-partition systems late in the design cycle; and
-- Remove dependencies between system components.
"We are excited to offer the industry's most comprehensive and easiest to
use inter-processor communications fabric," said CrossBow's CEO Peter Galicki.
"The 2D-fabric eliminates system communication bottlenecks and routing
congestion through a 2-dimensional mesh topology that distributes data routing
logic over the entire design area. It also presents a simple memory-like
interface to handle simultaneously occurring transfers in a strictly
deterministic fashion to drastically streamline system integration and
verification inside Xilinx FPGAs."
The 2D-fabric IP provides a uniform and scalable I/O structure for
efficient integration of multiple data processing subsystems inside a single
FPGA or distributed across multiple FPGAs. Designers can easily develop
high-performance processor systems combining the CrossBow fabric with a
combination of multiple PowerPC processors or MicroBlaze(TM) soft processors
embedded into Xilinx FPGAs.
"Beyond traditional applications, parallel processing can be used inside
high-end FPGAs to manage system complexity and data transfer latency," said
Per Holmberg, worldwide marketing director for Programmable Systems at Xilinx.
"The CrossBow 2D-fabric de-couples system parts so that each component can be
developed and verified independently of other components, adding value in
building programmable systems by reducing development time for customers."
In addition, CrossBow is shipping a hardware parallel processing
demonstration system. The board features a 3x3 array of MicroBlaze subsystems
connected with a mesh of horizontal and vertical data transport links. The
board has nine Spartan-II FPGAs, each containing one MicroBlaze subsystem that
includes the processor core, memory, 2D-fabric, and GPIO components tied
together using the CoreConnect(TM) bus.
Availability
The 2D-fabric 402c core is available directly from CrossBow Technologies
in Xilinx netlist format, with a license fee starting at $20,000. The
evaluation board is also available now for additional cost. For more
information, visit the Xilinx IP Center at www.xilinx.com/ipcenter or
www.crossbowip.com. The core is available under the terms of the SignOnce IP
License, the industry's first multi-vendor common license for FPGA-based IP.
Visit www.xilinx.com/ipcenter/signonce for more information.
About CrossBow Technologies
CrossBow Technologies develops and supports inter-processor communication
fabrics. Our cores enable efficient transfers of processing tasks, data and
control events between multiple processors. CrossBow makes it easy to increase
system performance by enabling multiple CPUs to process data in parallel. Our
innovative 2-dimensional I/O topology removes signal routing congestion and
data communication bottlenecks between components to enable true plug-and-play
system integration.
About Xilinx
Xilinx is the worldwide leader of programmable logic solutions. Additional
information about Xilinx can be found at http://www.xilinx.com .
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Source:
Xilinx, Inc.
