The Warp Computer: Architecture, Implementation, and Performance
The Warp Computer: Architecture, Implementation, and Performance
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曲速计算机：架构、实现和性能
DOI：
10.1109/tc.1987.5009502
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发表时间：
1987
影响因子：
3.7
通讯作者：
J. Webb
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
M. Annaratone;E. Arnould;T. Gross;H. T. Kung;M. Lam;O. Menzilcioglu;J. Webb
Warp机器是一台由线性连接的单元组成的收缩阵列计算机，每个单元都是一个可编程处理器，每秒可以执行1000万次浮点运算（10 MFLOPS）。典型的Warp阵列包括10个单元，因此具有100 MFLOPS的峰值计算速率。Warp阵列可以扩展到包括更多的单元，以适应能够使用增加的计算带宽的应用程序。Warp作为一个附加处理器集成到Unix主机系统中。Warp程序是由优化编译器支持的高级语言编写的。1986年2月，第一个10单元原型机完成；1987年4月开始交付生产机器。在原型机和生产机器上进行的大量实验表明，Warp架构在机器人导航以及信号处理、科学计算和计算机视觉研究等其他领域的应用领域是有效的。对于这些应用程序，Warp通常比VAX 11/780级计算机快数百倍。本文介绍了Warp机的结构、实现和性能。根据系统、软件和应用程序的考虑，讨论和评估每个主要的体系结构决策。文中还介绍了该机床的编程模型和开发工具。最后给出了大量应用的性能数据。
The Warp machine is a systolic array computer of linearly connected cells, each of which is a programmable processor capable of performing 10 million floating-point operations per second (10 MFLOPS). A typical Warp array includes ten cells, thus having a peak computation rate of 100 MFLOPS. The Warp array can be extended to include more cells to accommodate applications capable of using the increased computational bandwidth. Warp is integrated as an attached processor into a Unix host system. Programs for Warp are written in a high-level language supported by an optimizing compiler. The first ten-cell prototype was completed in February 1986; delivery of production machines started in April 1987. Extensive experimentation with both the prototype and production machines has demonstrated that the Warp architecture is effective in the application domain of robot navigation as well as in other fields such as signal processing, scientific computation, and computer vision research. For these applications, Warp is typically several hundred times faster than a VAX 11/780 class computer. This paper describes the architecture, implementation, and performance of the Warp machine. Each major architectural decision is discussed and evaluated with system, software, and application considerations. The programming model and tools developed for the machine are also described. The paper concludes with performance data for a large number of applications.