ReAl Computer Projects

It is always a good idea to have a well-stocked toolbox and box of tricks and not just a single hammer ...

Artikel in Circuit Cellar, October  2022:

Extending Machine Instructions
How to turn a processor temporarily into a microprogrammed control unit

Article in Circuit Cellar, February 2022:

Microprogramming choices explained (Part 2) - Microprogrammable Machines

Article in Circuit Cellar, January 2022:

Microprogramming choices explained (Part 1) - The Microprogram Control Unit

Article in Circuit Cellar, October 2021:

Voltage-level translation in MCU projects
Read it on the Internet

Article in Circuit Cellar,
December 2020:

True Random Number Generation Using Comparators
Read it on the Internet

Article in Circuit Cellar,
May 2020:

Creative Mechanical Ideas for Embedded Systems
Read it on the Internet

Article in Circuit Cellar, September 2019:

Using Small PCs in New Ways
Read it on the Internet

Article in Circuit Cellar, July 2019:

Macros for AVR Assembler Programming
Read it on the Internet

Article in Circuit Cellar, July 2018:

Wire Wrapping Revisited

Article in Circuit Cellar, October  2017:

Emulating Legacy Interfaces

Article in Circuit Cellar, December 2016:

Resource Algebra and the Future of FPGA Technology

Article in Circuit Cellar, July 2016:

Microcontroller modules for the ambitious

Microcontroller Modules (in German)

This domain is centered around the basic idea to regard a computer simply as an ensemble of resources.
Additionally, some more down-to-the-earth projects will be presented here, too.
Contributions on this website will be in English and in German.

What constitutes a computer architecture?

• a set of data structures D,
• a set of operations O,
• a mapping of O onto D.

CA = {D, O, (O => D)}

Essentially, this is an algebraic structure. The basic  building blocks are called resources. Hence the name ReAl = Resource Algebra.

What is a resource?
Principally a building block or functional unit, for example, an arithmetic/logic unit (ALU), an address counter, or an addressable memory array.  Basic resources comprise input registers, combinational circuitry, and output registers. They will be characterized by their register transfer level (RTL) structure. In the most general sense, a resource is a fictitious or real functional unit, defined by its functions (operations), inputs, and outputs.

Resource = (OP, IN, OUT).

Architectures or machines based on the resources paradigm come in two flavors:

• The resource-vector machine
• The ReAl computer architecture

July 17, 2023

Extending Machine Instructions

Microprogramming choices (2)

Microprogramming choices (1)

Voltage-level translation in MCU projects
Read it on the Internet

Microprogramming (in German)

Microprogramming /
Mikroprogrammierung

Microprogramming (introduction)

Microprogramming by extending instructions of conventional processors

Vortrag auf dem FPGA-Kongreß 2019

True Random Number Generation Using Comparators
Read it on the Internet

Creative Mechanical Ideas for Embedded Systems
Read it on the Internet

Using Small PCs in New Ways
Read it on the Internet

Macros for AVR Assembler Programming
Read it on the Internet

Zellen, Kerne und Ressourcen.
Ein Überblick (2018):

• PDF
• Powerpoint

Vortrag auf dem FPGA-Kongreß 2018

Article in Circuit Cellar, December 2016:

Resource Algebra and the Future of FPGA Technology

Minimal Machines (in German)

For viewlng and downloading (PDFs):

Introduction (25 Pages)

IDAACS 2007 Presentation (PDF)

Two Research Reports

Resources instead of Cores? – Article in ACM Sigarch Computer Architecture News,  Volume 38, Number 2, May 2010, pages 49 – 63.

Excerpt:  Section 4 – A metrics of efficiency (PDF)

A detailed preliminary description (PDFs):

1. Introduction

2. The  ReAl Computational Model

3. Platform Architecture

4. ReAl Machines

5. ReAl Systems on Silicon

6. Resource Management

7. Byte Codes

8. Machine Codes

In German:

An overview (Ueberblick)

A preliminary description (Vorlaeufige Kurzbeschreibung) (120 Pages)

Ältere Texte:

Hardware Resources: A Generalizing View on Computer Architectures (1990).

How many operation units are adequate? (1991)

A Next Generation Superscalar Architecture (1990).

Patent Applications:

• DE 10 2005 021 749.4 "Verfahren und Vorrichtung zur programmgesteuerten Informationsverarbeitung",
• US 11/430,824 "Method for Information Processing".