Patents by Inventor George Nation

George Nation has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 8239700
    Abstract: Various embodiments of the present invention provide systems and methods for governing power dissipation in a semiconductor device. For example, various embodiments of the present invention provide semiconductor devices that include a first function circuit, a second function circuit, and a power state change control circuit. The power state change control circuit is operable to determine a combination of power states of the first function circuit and the second function circuit that provides an overall power dissipation within a power dissipation level.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 17, 2009
    Date of Patent: August 7, 2012
    Assignee: LSI Corporation
    Inventors: George Nation, Jon W. Byrn, Gary Delp
  • Publication number: 20100269074
    Abstract: Various embodiments of the present invention provide systems and methods for improved semiconductor design. For example, various embodiments of the present invention provide methods for semiconductor design that include receiving a semiconductor design with at least a first function circuit and a second function circuit; simulating the semiconductor design using a first instruction and a second instruction; determining a power state transition between the first instruction and the second instruction; and augmenting the semiconductor design to implement the determined power state transition. Simulating the semiconductor design using a first instruction and a second instruction identifies an indication of a first subset of the first function circuit and the second function circuit used in executing the first instruction and a second subset of the first function circuit and the second function circuit used in executing the second instruction.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 17, 2009
    Publication date: October 21, 2010
    Inventors: George Nation, Jon W. Byrn, Gary Delp
  • Publication number: 20100268917
    Abstract: Various embodiments of the present invention provide systems and methods for ramping current usage in a semiconductor device. For example, various embodiments of the present invention provide semiconductor devices that include at least a first function circuit and a second function circuit, and a power state change control circuit. The power state change control circuit is operable to transition the power state of the first function circuit from a reduced power state to an operative power state, and to transition the second function circuit from a reduced power state to an operative power state. Transition of the power state of at least one of the first function circuit and the second function circuit is done in at least a first stage at a first time and a second stage at a second time, with the second time being after the first time.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 17, 2009
    Publication date: October 21, 2010
    Inventors: George Nation, Jon W. Byrn, Gary Delp
  • Publication number: 20100264983
    Abstract: Various embodiments of the present invention provide systems and methods for governing power dissipation in a semiconductor device. For example, various embodiments of the present invention provide semiconductor devices that include a first function circuit, a second function circuit, and a power state change control circuit. The power state change control circuit is operable to determine a combination of power states of the first function circuit and the second function circuit that provides an overall power dissipation within a power dissipation level.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 17, 2009
    Publication date: October 21, 2010
    Inventors: George Nation, Jon W. Byrn, Gary Delp
  • Publication number: 20100161908
    Abstract: Various embodiments of the present invention provide systems and methods for reducing memory usage across multiple virtual machines. For example, various embodiments of the present invention provide methods for reducing resource duplication across multiple virtual machines. Such methods include allocating a shared memory resource between a first virtual machine and a second virtual machine. A data set common to both the first virtual machine and the second virtual machine is identified. A first set of configuration information directing access to the data set by the first virtual machine to a first physical memory space is provided, and a second set of configuration information directing access to the data set by the second virtual machine to a second physical memory space is provided. The first physical memory space at least partially overlaps the second physical memory space.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 18, 2008
    Publication date: June 24, 2010
    Inventors: George Nation, Robert E. Ober
  • Publication number: 20100161909
    Abstract: Various embodiments of the present invention provide systems and methods for using providing memory access across multiple virtual machines. For example, various embodiments of the present invention provide thinly provisioned computing systems. Such thinly provisioned computing systems include a network switch, at least two or more processors each communicably coupled to the network switch, and a memory appliance communicably coupled to the at least two or more processors via the network switch. The memory appliance includes a bank of memory of a memory size, and the memory size is less than the aggregate memory quota. In some instances of the aforementioned embodiments, the memory appliance further includes a memory controller that is operable to receive requests to allocate and de-allocate portions of the bank of memory.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 18, 2008
    Publication date: June 24, 2010
    Inventors: George Nation, Robert E. Ober
  • Publication number: 20100161929
    Abstract: Various embodiments of the present invention provide systems and methods for using providing memory access across multiple virtual machines. For example, various embodiments of the present invention provide methods for configuring a shared main memory region. The methods include providing a memory appliance that includes a randomly accessible bank of memory and a memory controller that is operable to maintain information in relation to a first virtual machine and a second virtual machine. The methods further include receiving a request to allocate a first portion of the bank of memory to the first virtual machine, and receiving a request to allocate a second portion of the bank of memory to the second virtual machine. The first portion of the bank of memory is identified as accessible to the first virtual machine, and the second portion of the bank of memory is identified as accessible to the second virtual machine.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 18, 2008
    Publication date: June 24, 2010
    Inventors: George Nation, Robert E. Ober
  • Publication number: 20100161879
    Abstract: Various embodiments of the present invention provide systems and methods for using providing memory access across multiple virtual machines. For example, various embodiments of the present invention provide computing systems that include at least two processors each communicably coupled to a network switch via network interfaces. The computing systems further include a memory appliance communicably coupled to the network switch, and configured to operate as a main memory for the two or more processors.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 18, 2008
    Publication date: June 24, 2010
    Inventors: George Nation, Robert E. Ober
  • Publication number: 20080037428
    Abstract: Methods and structure for standardized, high-speed serial communication to reduce memory capacity requirements within receiving elements of a high-speed serial communication channel. In an exemplary SPI compliant embodiment of the invention, the semantic meaning of the STARVING, HUNGRY and SATISFIED flow control states is modified to allow the transmitting and receiving elements to manage buffer storage in a more efficient manner to thereby reduce memory capacity requirements while maintaining the integrity of flow control contracts and commitments. The methods and structure further provide for generation of storage metric information to dynamically update the flow control status information asynchronously with respect to data packet transmissions.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 17, 2007
    Publication date: February 14, 2008
    Inventors: George Nation, Gurumani Senthil, Gary Delp
  • Publication number: 20070124716
    Abstract: A method for generalizing design attributes in a design capture environment comprising the steps of (A) defining a procedure for adding one or more auxiliary configurators to a tool or suite of tools, (B) linking the auxiliary configurators to predetermined object points in an abstracted design and (C) defining a procedure for the tool or suite of tools to reference the one or more auxiliary configurators, wherein the auxiliary configurators are neither referenced by a core nor built into the tool or suite of tools.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 30, 2005
    Publication date: May 31, 2007
    Inventors: George Nation, Gary Lippert, Gary Delp
  • Publication number: 20060236270
    Abstract: An SIP for performing a plurality of hard and soft functions comprises standard IC die and custom platforms mounted to a substrate. Die are identified for each standard hard function, such as memory, processing, I/O and other standard functions and one or more user-configurable base platforms are selected that, when configured, execute the custom soft functions. Optionally, the substrate is laminated to the die and the platforms are attached to the substrate. Testing is performed by defining the configured base platforms coupled to logic representing the die and their connections and performing placement and timing closure on the combination.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 14, 2005
    Publication date: October 19, 2006
    Applicant: LSI Logic Corporation
    Inventors: Gary Delp, George Nation
  • Publication number: 20060236292
    Abstract: A process is disclosed for configuring a base platform having ASIC and FPGA modules to perform a plurality of functions. A verified RTL hardware description of a circuit is mapped and annotated to identify memory programmable functions. The memory programmable functions are grouped for assignment to FPGA modules. The non-memory programmable functions are synthesized to ASIC modules, and the memory programmable functions are synthesized to FPGA modules. Placement, signal routing and boundary timing closure are completed and the platform is configured by adding metallization layer(s) to configure the ASIC modules and creating a firmware memory to configure the FPGA modules. An over-provisioning feature in the FPGA modules permits post-fabrication alteration of logic functions.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 14, 2005
    Publication date: October 19, 2006
    Applicant: LSI Logic Corporation
    Inventors: Gary Delp, George Nation
  • Publication number: 20060200788
    Abstract: A method for realization of an integrated circuit design including the steps of (i) receiving one or more design platform descriptions and (ii) merging the one or more design platform descriptions into one or more layers of a design flow. The one or more design platform descriptions provide design information about one or more platforms capable of instantiating the integrated circuit design.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 3, 2005
    Publication date: September 7, 2006
    Inventors: George Nation, Jeremy White
  • Publication number: 20060112376
    Abstract: A computer-aided circuit design application has a virtual node feature and a design tool. The virtual node feature is adapted to access design specification information in a first data format and to represent the accessed design specification information as a virtual data node object within a list of node objects in a second data format. The design tool is operable on the list of node objects and the virtual data node object.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 23, 2004
    Publication date: May 25, 2006
    Applicant: LSI Logic Corporation
    Inventors: Robert Broberg, George Nation
  • Publication number: 20050240892
    Abstract: A set of tools is provided herein that produces useful, proven, and correct integrated semiconductor chips. Having as input either a customer's requirements for a chip, or a design specification for a partially manufactured semiconductor chip, the tools generate the RTL for control plane interconnect; memory composition, test, and manufacture; embedded logic analysis, trace interconnection, and utilization of spare resources on the chip; I/O qualification, JTAG, boundary scan, and SSO analysis; testable clock generation, control, and distribution; interconnection of all of the shared logic in a testable manner from a transistor fabric and/or configurable blocks in the slice. The input customer requirements are first conditioned by RTL analysis tools to quickly implement its logic. The slice definition and the RTL shell provides the correct logic for a set of logic interfaces for the design specification to connect. The tools share a common database so that logical interactions do not require multiple entries.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 18, 2005
    Publication date: October 27, 2005
    Applicant: LSI LOGIC CORPORATION
    Inventors: Robert Broberg, Jonathan Byrn, Gary Delp, Michael Eneboe, Gary McClannahan, George Nation, Paul Reuland, Thomas Sandoval, Matthew Wingren