An application-specific buffer allocation algorithm for network-on-chip

In this paper, an application-specific buffer planning algorithm that can be used to customize the router design in networks-on-chip (NoC) is presented. More precisely, given the mapping of the target application and the traffic characteristics, the algorithm automatically assigns the buffer depth for each input channel in different routers across the chip. The experimental results show that the system buffering resources can be utilized more effectively. In contrast with the uniform buffer allocation, about 50% saving in buffering resources can be achieved by automatic buffer allocation using our algorithm without any reduction in performance.