Title :
The 3DP: a processor architecture for three-dimensional applications
Author :
Wang, Yulun ; Mangaser, Amante ; Srinivasan, Partha ; Jordan, Steve ; Butner, Steven
Author_Institution :
Comput. Motion Inc., Goleta, CA, USA
Abstract :
The 3DP (3-Dimensional Processor), a parallel-computing architecture that targets problems that have a 3-D numerical structure and require numerous calculations on 3-D vectors, is described. The 3DP architecture differs from traditional scalar architectures in that it operates directly on vectors. It differs from general parallel architectures in that it can solve problems that predict the behavior of highly coupled systems, and it differs from vector architectures in that it runs efficiently on length-3 vectors. Object-oriented programming on the 3DP and programming the 3DP in C++ are discussed. 3DP performance is reviewed, and the current implementation of the 3DP architecture, as an attached processor that plugs directly into Sun host VMEbus, is described.<>
Keywords :
parallel architectures; 3-D numerical structure; 3-Dimensional Processor; C++; Sun host VMEbus; highly coupled systems; object oriented programming; parallel-computing architecture; processor architecture; scalar architectures; three-dimensional applications; Aerospace simulation; Application software; Computational modeling; Computer architecture; Digital signal processing; Hardware; Memory management; Object oriented modeling; Parallel processing; Pipelines;
