ARC adds configurable SIMD to processor line

ARC International plc has created a set of 104 128-bit wide instructions that can be applied to a multimedia hardware subsystem as an optional extra to ARC700 configurable processors.

The instructions are based on a technique known as SIMD (single instruction multiple data) to reduce power consumption by increasing performance without raising the processor clock speed, for appropriate applications; typically graphics, networking and DSP related.

The SIMD instructions are compatible with the ARCompact 16- and 32-bit instruction set architecture, the company said.

ARC's multimedia subsystems are set to carry forward the configurable element that has characterized the company's processor cores. The result is set to be a family of subsystems that are independent of the host processor, require less power consumption compared to non-configurable hardware platforms and scale across a wide range of applications, the company said.

- Peter Clarke

EE Times