Design of a Complex Binary Associative Dataflow Processor
Tariq Jam · 2012
C omplex numbers in engineering applications such as digital signal processing and image processing deserve formulation of an efficient method for their representation and processing in a computer system. Complex Binary Number System (CBNS) allows both real and imaginary parts of a complex number to be represented as a single unit (instead of two separate units as in today's microprocessors), thus allowing for reduced number of arithmetic operations dealing with complex numbers and, hence, increase in overall system performance. Incorporating CBNS within a parallel processing environment, such as associative dataflow processor (ADP), provides an ideal amalgamation of novelty in computer arithmetic with the use of associative memory in computer architecture. In this paper, an introduction to CBNS has been presented followed by the presentation of the associative dataflow concept and the design of a complex binary associative dataflow processor (CBADP). This design has been granted an innovation patent no. 2010100706 by the Australian Patent Office in July 2010.