Programming environment for a line processor-SYMPATI-2

The authors present the programming environment developed for the line processor SYMPATI-2. The main objective is to take advantage of the facilities provided by the parallel structure and make them easy to be used. The authors give the general characteristics of the SYMPATI-2 architecture and then present the programming environment and the 4 LP language. Some examples for illustrating the easy way one can use this structure are given. The authors show that 4 LP is relevant for pixel level processing. It makes it easy to program any algorithm operating at this level. The programs are flexible, taking advantage of parameterization possibilities. The results obtained provide a favorable quality factor. Common execution time for a 256×256 image within a 32 PE configuration is between some milliseconds and about 20 milliseconds for more complex operations