IGNITE 2FX Excels at EEMBC Consumer Benchmark

EEMBC logo Consumermark logo

Tested against the EEMBC Consumer benchmark suite in a 600-MHz simulation, the IGNITETM 2FX achieved an out-of-the-box ConsumermarkTM score of .01808 per MHz, making it the highest scoring certified out-of-the-box score on a per-gate basis for any general-purpose processor to date. ``The IGNITE 2FX Consumermark scores are remarkable in that this level of processing performance can be delivered by such a small number of physical gates without relying on cache or external resources,`` said Markus Levy, EEMBC president.

What is EEMBC?

EEMBC (pronounced ``embassy``), the Embedded Microprocessor Benchmark Consortium, develops and certifies real-world benchmarks and benchmark scores to help designers select the right embedded processors for their systems. Every processor submitted for EEMBC® benchmarking is tested for parameters representing different workloads and capabilities in communications, networking, consumer, office automation, automotive/industrial, embedded Java, and microcontroller-related applications. With members including leading semiconductor, intellectual property, and compiler companies, EEMBC establishes benchmark standards and provides certified benchmarking results through the EEMBC Certification Labs (ECL) in Texas and California.

What is a Consumermark score?

A processor`s ConsumermarkTM score is a measure of its overall performance on a set of five digital-imaging programs, which comprise version 1.1 of the EEMBC Consumer benchmark:

* high-pass grey-scale filtering

- used in front-end processing of digital still cameras

- emphasizes 2-dimensional array access and multiply/accumulate capability

* JPEG compression

- used for encoding still images

- emphasizes integer math with diverse operand types and memory accesses

* JPEG decompression

- used for decoding still images

- emphasizes integer math with diverse operand types and memory accesses

* RGB-to-CMYK conversion

- used in color printers and other digital-imaging products

- emphasizes basic arithmetic and minimum-value detection capability

* RGB-to-YIQ conversion

- used in NTSC encoders

- emphasizes multiply/accumulate capability

The Consumermark score is the geometric mean of the individual scores for these five benchmarks, divided by a normalization factor. Click here for a detailed score report on the IGNITE 2FX from the EEMBC web site.

Unrivaled Performance Density

The hybrid architecture of the IGNITE 2FX combines the inherent advantages of RISC and stack architectures to yield a processor that consistently delivers the highest performance density in a variety of applications.

Performance density is a measure of a processor`s performance per unit of phsyical space (i.e., the amount of silicon it occupies). Performance is typically expressed in terms of a benchmark score or other standard processing metric (e.g., MFLOPS); physical space is expressed in terms of chip area or physical gates. This metric is critical when selecting a processor for applications that have strict space, cost, or power-consumption requirements.

Table 1 shows the performance density for each general-purpose processor with a certified out-of-the-box Consumermark score in a simulated environment. The performance density for each has been computed from the published scores and processor configurations at the EEMBC web site. The results have been computed with and without on-chip memory, if any, to illustrate the impact of its use on performance density.

EEMBC Consumermark: Performance Density

Table 1. The IGNITE 2FX has unrivaled performance density on EEMBC`s Consumer benchmark [details]

The philosophy behind the design of the IGNITE 2FX is one of simplicity. Its streamlined architecture has no pipelines, and requires no cache or on-chip memory to perform efficiently. This makes it ideal for applications that place a premium on cost and power-consumption considerations.

INFLAME Architecture

But the simplicity and small size of the IGNITE 2FX also provide it with scalability. This means that its performance can be scaled upward to satisfy applications with greater computational demands.

The INFLAME is a SIMD architecture, employing multiple instances of the IGNITE 2FX in a single chip. Because of the unmatched performance density of the IGNITE 2FX, the INFLAME can outperform its competition in a smaller area.

INFLAME Architecture: 3x3 IGNITE Array

Figure 1. The INFLAME Architecture employs multiple instances of the IGNITE 2FX

When an application`s algorithms are scalable in a SIMD environment, such as those used in digital-imaging products, the INFLAME architecture can deliver outstanding performance. As shown in Figure 1, the 9-instance version of the INFLAME has demonstrated performance in excess of 7 times a single IGNITE 2FX for a variety of digital-imaging algorithms.

Table 1 Notes:

1. Area figures are for a 0.13um fabrication process.

2. When only the 0.18um area was provided, conversion to 0.13um area was based on the ratio of average cell density for Artisan`s 0.13um Library and Artisan`s 0.18um Library.

3. When only the gate count was provided, conversion to 0.13um area was based on the average cell density for Artisan`s 0.13um Library.

4. When not provided, area figures for L1 caches and on-chip memory were computed assuming technology most favorable to competitor.