Rapid Application Development on Multi-processor Reconfigurable Systems

Abstract

Considering the ability to perform multi-processor architecture systems on FPGA, partial reconfiguration is an opportunity to improve weak soft-core performances by specializing coprocessors according to context-dependent application needs. But at the application level, there is a need for straightforward programming models that allow applications to be easily mapped on an ad hoc architecture without tedious rewriting, while at the same time ensuring efficient production code. In this paper we describe two programming libraries XTask and XFunc, which are written in C and rely on a reconfigurable MPSoC architecture model (XPSoC) and on HW/SW libraries of standard functions that can be easily used by means of HW independent API. Finally, we demonstrate the XPSoC methodology, with the design of a self-adaptive image encoding system including runtime configuration decisions.