Reason #5 to Customize a Processor - Security

Written by Paula Jones April 07, 2010 Hits: 423 Favorites

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When you base your design, or parts of it, on a standard processor core, it's much easier for someone else to copy. After all, they can use that same processor core in their design. But when you customize a processor, even just a little bit, how's someone going to copy your customizations? That core is yours and yours alone. No other company can replicate your version of that configured, task-specific processor. This helps keep the design priates away.

With Tensilica's Xtensa processors, when you customize them, you get a matching software tool chain that is optimized for your changes. While compiler for other processors might be able to run your software, they won't achieve the levels of performance you can get by using your optimized compiler on your code.

Optimization adds special registers (sized to the natural data types of the tasks to be performed) and execution units that efficiently perform task-specific algorithms, often in one of two clock cycles. This design approach keeps clock rates and energy consumption low.

You say you're not a processor designer and don't know how to add registers and execution units to a processor? You probably know Verilog. With Tensilica's automated process, you just need to write a few lines of Verilog-like code. Our processor generator autmatically figures out how to modify the processor to get the results you want.

The result is a new processor - not a processor with bolted-on coprocessors. Find out more by reading our white paper: The What, Why and How of Configurable Processors.

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Written by :

Paula Jones