Reconfigurable logic and space chips?
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Reconfigurable logic and space chips?

 
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Paul A. Clayton
Guest
Posted: Wed Jan 12, 2005 5:56 pm    Post subject: Reconfigurable logic and space chips? Reply with quote
Does reconfigurable logic (e.g., something like Rahul Razdan's
PRISC) make more sense in chips to be used in space (and other
deeply embedded systems with a software upgrade link) than in
less deeply embedded systems? (I am using depth to refer to
difficulty in performing hardware upgrades. This question came
from a comment by someone at JPL [I think] that the software can
be improved while a spacecraft is in flight. Reconfigurable logic
might also allow workarounds for persistent hardware errors
[caused by, e.g., radiation].)

Paul A. Clayton
(a 'Dysthymicdolt' reachable at aol.com)
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David Wang
Guest
Posted: Wed Jan 12, 2005 5:56 pm    Post subject: Re: Reconfigurable logic and space chips? Reply with quote
Paul A. Clayton <carchreader@aol.comnomail> wrote:
Quote:
Does reconfigurable logic (e.g., something like Rahul Razdan's
PRISC) make more sense in chips to be used in space (and other
deeply embedded systems with a software upgrade link) than in
less deeply embedded systems? (I am using depth to refer to
difficulty in performing hardware upgrades. This question came
from a comment by someone at JPL [I think] that the software can
be improved while a spacecraft is in flight. Reconfigurable logic
might also allow workarounds for persistent hardware errors
[caused by, e.g., radiation].)

I think of reconfigurable logic as either a bunch of fixed logic
computation elements with programmable routig paths, or fixed
routing paths with programmable logic elements. (Or some combination
thereof) The configuration state has to be held by some
sort of re-programmable storage element, and that storage element is
going to be susceptable to radiation. I think reconfigurable logic
can be re-jigged to remove errors quite easily, but how does one
detect errors in the first place? Complete redundancy? Program
an odd number of reconfigurable statemachines and let them vote?
I don't see an advantage for reconfigurable logic here.

--
davewang202(at)yahoo(dot)com
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Del Cecchi
Guest
Posted: Wed Jan 12, 2005 10:13 pm    Post subject: Re: Reconfigurable logic and space chips? Reply with quote
Paul A. Clayton wrote:
Quote:
Does reconfigurable logic (e.g., something like Rahul Razdan's
PRISC) make more sense in chips to be used in space (and other
deeply embedded systems with a software upgrade link) than in
less deeply embedded systems? (I am using depth to refer to
difficulty in performing hardware upgrades. This question came
from a comment by someone at JPL [I think] that the software can
be improved while a spacecraft is in flight. Reconfigurable logic
might also allow workarounds for persistent hardware errors
[caused by, e.g., radiation].)

Paul A. Clayton
(a 'Dysthymicdolt' reachable at aol.com)


Here is a nasa website for your reading pleasure

http://klabs.org/index.htm
"Nasa office of logic Design--A scientific study of the problems of
digital engineering for space flight systems........"

All kinds of interesting data, including stuff on FPGA

del cecchi
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Martin Thompson
Guest
Posted: Thu Jan 13, 2005 5:54 pm    Post subject: Re: Reconfigurable logic and space chips? Reply with quote
carchreader@aol.comnomail (Paul A. Clayton) writes:

Quote:
Does reconfigurable logic (e.g., something like Rahul Razdan's
PRISC) make more sense in chips to be used in space (and other
deeply embedded systems with a software upgrade link) than in
less deeply embedded systems? (I am using depth to refer to
difficulty in performing hardware upgrades. This question came
from a comment by someone at JPL [I think] that the software can
be improved while a spacecraft is in flight. Reconfigurable logic
might also allow workarounds for persistent hardware errors
[caused by, e.g., radiation].)


Xilinx have FPGAs in the Mars rover
(http://www.xilinx.com/publications/xcellonline/xcell_50/xc_mars50.htm),
and here's a paper (http://www.andraka.com/files/seu_mapld_2003.pdf)
describing how to overcome radiation effect.

Cheers,
Martin

--
martin.j.thompson@trw.com
TRW Conekt, Solihull, UK
http://www.trw.com/conekt
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Paul A. Clayton
Guest
Posted: Fri Jan 14, 2005 8:05 pm    Post subject: Re: Reconfigurable logic and space chips? Reply with quote
In article <34l456F4aq5vmU1@individual.net>,
Del Cecchi <cecchinospam@us.ibm.com> wrote:

Quote:
Here is a nasa website for your reading pleasure

http://klabs.org/index.htm

Sigh. Another lifetime of reading.

Thanks (I think :-).
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del cecchi
Guest
Posted: Sat Jan 15, 2005 6:33 am    Post subject: Re: Reconfigurable logic and space chips? Reply with quote
"Paul A. Clayton" <carchreader@aol.comnomail> wrote in message
news:20050114100519.19590.00000027@mb-m06.aol.com...
Quote:
In article <34l456F4aq5vmU1@individual.net>,
Del Cecchi <cecchinospam@us.ibm.com> wrote:

Here is a nasa website for your reading pleasure

http://klabs.org/index.htm

Sigh. Another lifetime of reading.

Thanks (I think :-).

If you can't do the time, don't do the crime. :-)
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