MICROPROGRAMMED PROCESSORS

THE USE OF HOROZONTALLY MICROPROGRAMMED PROCESSORS FOR PERFORMANCE ADVANTAGES IS WELL KNOWN. THE ADVENT OF TOOLS FOR THE AUTOMATIC GENERATION AND OPTIMIZATION OF MICROCODE FOR THESE MICRO-ARCHITECTURES HAS RAISED THE QUESTION OF DESIGN ISSUES WHICH DIRECTLY CONTRIBUTE TO PERFORMANCE. IN PATICULAR, WITH THE DECREASING COST OF HARDWARE AND THE ABILITY TO MORE EASILY GENERATE MICROCODE, PERFORMANCE- ORIENTED PROCESSOR DEVELOPMENT IS BECOMING A SIGNIFICANT DESIGN PROBLEM. THE ISSUES OF CONCURRENCY, PARALLELISM, AND PROCESSING TASK DISTRIBUTION ARE OF SIGNIFICANT IMPORTANCE TO THE EVENTUAL PERFORMANCE CAPABILITY OF THESE MACHINES. THIS RESEARCH ADDRESSES APPROACHES FOR DETERMINING THE DESIGN GUIDELINES AND DESIGN PARAMETERS OF INTEREST IN EXPLOITING THESE PERFORMANCE CONCEPTS.