Abstract: A method for ramping a high-speed clock to control power surge in an integrated circuit when transitioning from a low power holdstate to an operational state where the integrated circuit includes selected logic circuits adapted to be maintained in the holdstate. A core clock signal including a plurality of core clock pulses is gated with a ramping signal. The ramping signal includes a series of staged signals having gating pulses. Each staged signal is separated by a ramp interval, where the series of staged signals successively enables increasing numbers of clocking pulses from the core clock signal to be transmitted to a holdstate output until a predetermined operational core clock frequency is transmitted to the holdstate output bringing the integrated circuit to the operational state.

Abstract: A technique for de-skewing a group of serial data signals respectively outputted from a group of data lanes includes simultaneously feeding a test signal to inputs of the group of data lanes and monitoring respective outputs thereof. A predetermined data element of the test signal outputted from each of the group of data lanes is respectively detected and respective elapsed times from the detection of the predetermined data element outputted from each of the group of data lanes to the detection that the predetermined data element has been outputted from all of the group of data lanes are measured. The group of serial data signals are then de-skewed by respectively delaying them in accordance with their respective measured elapsed times. The test signal may include the predetermined data element, a lane identifier, and a predetermined number of additional data symbols, the predetermined data element being a predetermined data character.

Abstract: Briefly, in accordance with one embodiment of the invention, an apparatus includes an integrated circuit that has the capability to schedule transferring processes that have an individual identification number. At least a portion of each individual identification number is used to indicate the presence of each of the transfer processes. Briefly, in accordance with another embodiment of the invention, an integrated circuit having a scheduler of transfer processes, each of the transfer processes having an identification number. The scheduler is coupled to a memory array of bits, and a portion of each identification number is used as a portion of an address to the memory array of bits. Briefly, in accordance with yet another embodiment of the invention, a method of scheduling requests for the transfer of data where each request having an identification number. The identification number is used in addressing a bit in an array of bits and set to indicate the request for the transfer of data.

Abstract: A method and apparatus are presented for implementing the next-address determination within a binary search algorithm. A binary search algorithm searches for a compared within a one dimensional sorted array of elements. Typically, a binary search algorithm comprises a comparator and a next address generator. The next address generator determines the address of the next array element (the “next address”) a comparator will search using both a “compared is greater” signal from the comparator and a signal which indicates the address of the last array the comparator searched (the “previous address”). The time needed to search an array for a compared inserts a delay in applications where a binary search algorithm is employed. One method of expediting the searching process is to minimize the number of gates between the input and output of the next address generator (the “critical path”).