VIII. DSP Processors. Digital Signal Processing 8 December 24, 2009

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1 Digital Signal Processing 8 December 24, 2009 VIII. DSP Processors 2007 Syllabus: Introduction to programmable DSPs: Multiplier and Multiplier-Accumulator (MAC), Modified bus structures and memory access schemes in DSPs, Multiple access memory, Multiport memory, VLSI architecture, Pipelining, Special addressing modes, On-chip peripherals. Architecture of TMS 320C5X Introduction, Bus structure, Central Arithmetic Logic Unit, Auxiliary register, Index register, Auxiliary register, Compare register, Block move address register, Parallel Logic Unit, Memory mapped registers, Program controller, Some flags in the status registers, On-chip registers, On-chip peripherals. Contents: 8.1 DSP Processors Market 8.2 DSP Processors Features 8.3 Multiply-and-Accumulate 8.4 Interrupts handling incoming signal values 8.5 Fixed- and Floating-point 8.6 Real-time FIR filter example We shall use DSP to mean Digital Signal Processor(s) and sometimes even refer to them as DSP processors, also as programmable digital signal processors (PDSPs). This includes 1. General purpose DSPs (such as the TMS320 s of TI and DSP563 s of Motorola and others) 2. Special purpose DSPs tailored to specific applications like FFT However, the so-called programmability of DSPs mentioned above pales in comparison to that of general purpose CPUs. In what follows, for the most part, we contrast general purpose CPUs (whose strength is in general purpose programmability) with DSPs (whose strength is in high throughput, hardwired, number crunching). For a convergence of both kinds of processor refer to the article on Intel s Larrabee in IEEE Spectrum, January DSP-8 (DSP Processors) 1 of 8 Dr. Ravi Billa

2 8.1 DSP Processors Market Market 1 Small, low-power, relatively weak DSPs Mass-produced consumer products - Toys, Automobiles Inexpensive 2 More capable fixed point processors Cell phones, Digital answering machines, Modems 3 Strongest, often floating point, DSPs Image and video processing, Server applications 8.2 DSP Processors Features Features 1 DSP-specific instructions (e.g., MAC) 2 Special address registers 3 Zero-overhead loops 4 Multiple memory buses and banks 5 Instruction pipelines 6 Fast interrupt servicing (fast context switch) 7 Specialized IO ports 8 Special addressing modes (e.g., bit reversal) 8.3 Multiply-and-Accumulate DSP algorithms are characterized by intensive number crunching that may exceed the capabilities of a general purpose CPU. Due to arithmetic instructions specifically tailored to DSP needs a DSP processor can be much faster for specific tasks. The most common special purpose task in digital signal processing is the multiply-and -accumulate (MAC) operation illustrated by the FIR filter M y(n) = bj x( n j) = b j x j = b 0 x(n) + b 1 x(n 1) + + b M x(n M) j 0 M j 0 Such a repeated MAC operation occurs in other situations as well. Further, the operands b and x need not have the same index j. Letting b and x have independent indices j and k, the following loop accomplishes the MAC operation Loop: update j, update k a a + b x j k DSP-8 (DSP Processors) 2 of 8 Dr. Ravi Billa

3 [Aside The operation a + (b * c), using floating point numbers, may be done with two roundings (once when b and c are multiplied and a second time when the product is added to a), or with just one rounding (where the entire expression a + (b * c) is evaluated in one step). The latter is called a fused multiply-add (FMA) or fused multiply-accumulate (FMAC) included in the IEEE Std. 754.] Loop overhead A general purpose CPU would implement the above sum of products operation in a fixed length loop such as For i = 0 to M {statements} that involves considerable overhead apart from the statements. This overhead consists of: Loop Overhead (General purpose CPU) 1 Provide a CPU register to store the loop index 2 Initialize index register 3 After each pass increment and check loop index for termination 4 (If a CPU register is not available: provide a memory location for indexing, retrieve it, increment it, check it and store it back in memory) 5 Except for the last pass, a jump back to the top of the loop DSP processors provide a zero-overhead hardware mechanism (a REPEAT or DO) that can repeat an instruction or set of instructions a prescribed number of times. Due to hardware support for this repetition structure no clock cycles are wasted on branching or incrementing and checking the loop index. The number of loop iterations is necessarily limited. If loop nesting is allowed not all loops may be zero-overhead. Enhancing the CPU architecture Inside the loop How would a general purpose CPU carry out the computations inside the loop? Assume that {b} and {x} are stored as arrays in memory. Assume that the CPU has pointer registers j and k that can be directly updated and used to retrieve data from memory, two arithmetic registers b and x that can be used as operands of arithmetic operations, a double length register p to receive the product and an accumulator a for summing the products. The instruction sequence for one pass through the loop on a general purpose CPU looks like this: Inside the Loop 1 update j 2 update k 3 b b j 4 x x k 5 fetch (multiply) instruction DSP-8 (DSP Processors) 3 of 8 Dr. Ravi Billa

4 6 decode (multiply) instruction 7 execute (multiply) instruction (p b j x k ) 8 fetch (add) instruction 9 decode (add) instruction 10 execute (add) instruction (a a + p) Assuming that each of the lines above takes one unit of time call it an instruction time or clock cycle (multiplication easily takes several units of time but we assume it is the same as the rest), the sequence takes 10 units of time to complete. We could add a multiply and add (call it MAC) instruction to the instruction set of the CPU (that is, we augment CPU with the appropriate hardware): this would merge the last 6 lines (lines 5 through 10) in the above segment into just 3 lines, and there would then be 7 lines taking 7 units of time as shown below: Inside the Loop 1 update j 2 update k 3 b b j 4 x x k 5 fetch MAC instruction 6 decode MAC instruction 7 execute MAC instruction (a a + b j x k ) A DSP can perform a MAC operation in a single unit of time. Many use this feature as the definition of a DSP. We want to describe below how this is accomplished. Update pointers simultaneously since they are independent. We add two address updating units to the processor hardware. Since these two updates can be done in parallel we show them as one line in the sequence, the sequence now taking 6 units of time: Inside the Loop 1 update j AND update k 2 b b j 3 x x k 4 fetch MAC instruction 5 decode MAC instruction 6 execute MAC (a a + b j x k ) Memory Architecture Load registers b and x simultaneously Since b j and x k are completely independent we can make provision to read them simultaneously from memory into the appropriate registers. In the standard CPU situation there is just one bus connection to the memory; and even connecting two buses to the same (one) memory does not help; and the so-called dual port memories are expensive and slow. In a radical departure from the memory architecture of the standard CPU, the DSP can define multiple memory banks each served by its own bus. Now b j and x k can be DSP-8 (DSP Processors) 4 of 8 Dr. Ravi Billa

5 loaded simultaneously from memory into the registers j and k, shown in the sequence below by listing the two operations on the same line, the sequence now taking 5 units of time: Inside the Loop 1 update j AND update k 2 b b j AND x x k 3 fetch MAC instruction 4 decode MAC instruction 5 execute MAC (a a + b j x k ) We next turn to the last three lines (fetch, decode and execute) in the sequence. Caches Standard CPUs use instruction caches to speed up the execution. Caching implies different amounts of run-time (that is, unpredictability) depending on the state of the caches when operation starts. However, DSPs are designed for real-time use where the prediction of exact timing may be critical. Therefore caches are usually avoided in DSPs because caching complicates the calculation of program execution time. Harvard architecture Now we consider the fetching of one instruction while previous ones are still being decoded or executed. There can now be a clash while fetching an instruction from memory at the same time that data related to a prior instruction is being transferred to or from memory. The solution is to use separate memory banks and separate buses. Previously we used different memory banks for different categories of data but now we are talking about a memory bank for instructions versus a memory bank for data. The memory banks have independent address spaces and are called program memory and data memory resulting in the Harvard architecture. The CPU can fetch the next instruction and simultaneously do a load/store of a memory word. Standard computers use the same memory space for program and data, this being called the von Neumann architecture (Pennsylvania architecture or Princeton architecture?). Most DSPs abide by the Harvard architecture in order to be able to overlap instruction fetches with data transfers. The idea of overlapping brings us to pipelining. [The availability of the modern cache system has substantially alleviated the problem of the von Neumann bottle neck. Most modern computers labeled Harvard architecture allow accessing the contents of the instruction memory as though it were data and are called modified Harvard architecture, used in niche applications like DSP (TI s TMS320, Analog Devices Blackfin) and microcontrollers (Atmel AVR, ZiLOG s Z8Encore!).] To sum up, so far our efforts to enhance the DSP processor s speed have introduced the following concepts: 1. Special instruction (MAC) added to the instruction set CPU augmentation 2. Address registers updated in parallel CPU augmentation 3. Data registers loaded from memory in parallel Memory banks 4. Instruction fetched in parallel with execution of previous instructions Harvard architecture (separate program and data memories) and Pipelining Pipelining allows the parallel execution of any operations that logically can be performed in parallel. These operations need not be the 5 lines listed above, so let us generalize the 5 lines and call them A, B, C, D and E. Each one takes one clock cycle and together they make up one pass through the loop described above. In a given clock cycle the pipeline contains 5 different passes each one being in just one of the 5 states A through E. Thus any one pass would consist of these DSP-8 (DSP Processors) 5 of 8 Dr. Ravi Billa

6 5 operations and take 5 clock cycles to complete. The number of overlapable operations of which one pass is comprised is called the depth of the pipeline. Here we have a depth-5 pipeline. Typical depths are 4 or 5. Some DSP processors have pipeline depths as high as 11. The operation of a depth-5 pipeline is shown below. Time (clock cycles) runs from left to right. The height corresponds to distinct hardware units (stages). There are a total of 6 product terms being added to the accumulator, each term taking 5 clock cycles. In {A1 through E1} the first product term is added to the accumulator and is completed in clock cycle #5. The addition of the second product term, {A2 through E2}, is completed in clock cycle #6, etc. The complete sum is available in 10 cycles. Without the pipeline the summation would take 6 * 5 = 30 cycles. Clock cycles Depth A1 A2 A3 A4 A5 A6 2 B1 B2 B3 B4 B5 B6 3 C1 C2 C3 C4 C5 C6 4 D1 D2 D3 D4 D5 D6 5 E1 E2 E3 E4 E5 E6 There is pipeline overhead: at the left there are 4 clock cycles during which the pipeline is filling while at the right there are a further 4 cycles while the pipeline is emptying. (In this specific example the pipeline is full for 2 cycles). For large enough loops the overhead is negligible; thus the pipeline allows the DSP processor to perform one multiply-and-add per clock cycle on the average. In general, asymptotically, the processor takes only a single clock cycle per instruction. Note that in this treatment we are dividing one pass through the loop into five overlapable parts labeled A through E. In other contexts an instruction cycle is divided into perhaps five overlapable parts. Note also that in the above diagram time runs from left to right, while depth corresponds to distinct hardware units (in this case five). One pass through the loop goes diagonally down from left to right, shown in color. 8.4 Interrupts handling incoming signal values A context switch is when a processor stops what it has been doing and starts doing something else resulting in a need to save/change the contents of registers, pointers, counters, flags etc. A hardware mechanism called an interrupt forces a context switch to a predefined routine called the interrupt handler for the event in question. One major difference between a DSP processor and other types of CPU is the speed of the context switch. A general purpose CPU may have a latency (the time from when an interrupt is requested to the point where the interrupt handler begins to execute) of several tens of clock cycles to perform a context switch, while DSPs have the ability to do a low latency (perhaps even zero-overhead) interrupt. The most important reason for a fast context switch is the need to capture incoming signal values (which are interrupt-based). These signal values are either processed immediately or stored in a buffer for later processing. The DSP fast interrupt is usually accomplished by saving only small portion of the context and having hardware assistance for this procedure. Signal values are input to and output from the DSP through ports. Serial ports are typically used for low rate signals bits are moved in or out one bit per clock cycle through an internal shift register. Parallel ports (typically 8 or 16 bits) are faster but require more pins on the DSP-8 (DSP Processors) 6 of 8 Dr. Ravi Billa

7 DSP chip itself. Further speed up of data transfer is made possible through DMA (Direct Memory Access) channels. 8.5 Fixed- and Floating-point DSP tasks involve intensive number crunching. By integer data we shall mean that the decimal point is at the extreme right end and may therefore be ignored. By real numbers we mean that the decimal point may be somewhere other than at extreme right but is always fixed; this allows the data to contain a fractional part. We shall use fixed-point to cover both integers and real numbers. Such data have a limited range. By floating-point data we shall mean that the position of the decimal point is not fixed (floating) and is adjusted to suit other data it must interact with and operations it goes through and the results. Early DSP processors offered integer-only mode of data and arithmetic. Even today such fixed-point DSPs flourish (or, are forced on DSP developers) due to the realities of cost, speed, size, and power consumption. The DSP community has developed intricate numeric methods to use fixed-point devices. Today there are floating-point DSPs but these still tend to be much more expensive, more power hungry and physically larger than their fixed-point counterparts. Fixed-point Lower cost Smaller size Lower power consumption Embedding DSP into small package, or Where power is limited, or Where price is critical Good match for A/D and D/A (typically unsigned or 2 s-comp. integer devices) Floating-point More expensive Larger size Higher power consumption Fixed-point DSPs What is the consequence of having to prefer fixed-point DSPs over floating point DSPs (in some applications) for reasons mentioned above? The price is extended development time. After the required algorithms have been simulated on computers with floating point capabilities, floating point operations must then be carefully converted to integer ones. This involves 1. Rounding 2. Rescaling (due to limited dynamic range) at various points 3. Underflow and overflow handling 4. Placement of rescalings at optimal points (to ensure maximum signal to quantization ratio) 5. Matching of the precise details of the processor s arithmetic with other systems for interoperability or with a standard for conformity These tasks may require extensive simulation. The most common fixed-point representation is 16-bit two s complement (24- or 32-bit registers also exist). In fixed point DSPs this must accommodate both integers and real numbers. A real number is represented by multiplying it by a large number and rounding; consider the DSP-8 (DSP Processors) 7 of 8 Dr. Ravi Billa

8 coefficient a of the IIR filter y(n) a y(n 1) = x(n), 0 a 1. On an 8-bit fixed-point processor 1 becomes 256, and the range for a is 0 a 256. With 16-bit operands, bit growth (or, increase of precision) means that their sum can require 17 bits and their product 32 bits. Addition and Multiplication Regular CPUs Fixed-point DSPs Floating-point DSPs User must check User must explicitly handle the Hardware (overflow flag is set increase in precision: automatically or exception is (1) Use accumulator longer than discards least triggered), decide the largest product, or significant bits what to do with (2) Scaling as part of the MAC product instruction built into the pipeline, or (3) Saturation arithmetic With a DSP using fixed-point arithmetic, if the product is 32 bits the accumulator could be 40 bits long; this allows eight MACs to be performed without any fear of overflow. At the end of the loop a single check and possible discard can be done. A second possibility is to provide an optional scaling operation as part of the MAC instruction itself (basically a right-shift of the product before the addition, built into the pipeline). Thirdly, saturation arithmetic is the last resort: whenever an overflow (or underflow) occurs the result is replaced by the largest (or smallest) possible of the appropriate sign. The error introduced is smaller than that caused by straight overflow (i. e., roll-over of the register). With fixed-point processors, the filter coefficients should not simply be rounded; rather the best integer coefficients should be determined using an optimization procedure. Floating-point DSPs avoid many of the above problems. There is an IEEE floating point standard. Floating-point DSPs do not usually have instructions for division, powers, square root, trig functions etc. DSP-8 (DSP Processors) 8 of 8 Dr. Ravi Billa

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