- SpursEngine
SpursEngine is a
microprocessor fromToshiba built as a media orientedcoprocessor , designed for 3D- and video processing inconsumer electronics such asset-top box es andcomputer s. The SpursEngine processor is also known as the Quad Core HD processor.The SpursEngine is a stream processor powered by four Synergistic Processing Elements (SPE), also used in the Cell processor featured in Sony PlayStation 3. These processing elements are fed by on chip H.264 and
MPEG-2 codec s and controlled by an off die hostCPU , connected by an on chip PCIe controller (in contrast to the Cell processor which has a on chip CPU (the PPE) doing similar work). To enable smoother interaction between the host and the SpursEngine Toshiba also integrated a simple proprietary 32-bit control core. The SpursEngine employs dedicatedXDR DRAM as its working memory.The SpursEngine is designed to work at much lower frequencies than the Cell and Toshiba has also optimized the circuit layout of the SPEs to reduce the size by 30%. The resulting chip consumes 10-20 W of power.
The SpursEngine is accessible to the developer from a
device driver currently in development for Windows andLinux systems.Implementation
In April 2008 Toshiba shipped samples of the SpursEngine SE1000 device. The SpursEngine has four SPUs and operates at 1.5
GHz , peaking at 48Gflops , 12 Gflops per SPU. The accelerator card connects to a 1x PCI Express bus and has 128 MB XDR DRAM with 12.8 GB/s.
*Leadtek is producing the WinFast PxVC1100, a PCIe accelerator based on the SE1000 platform. [http://www.custompc.co.uk/news/604962/leadtek-demos-cell-chip-on-a-pci-e-card.html]Toshiba included the SpursEngine processors in their Qosmio laptops, models F50, G50 and G55, in the third quarter of 2008.
See also
*
Cell (microprocessor) External links
* [http://www.toshiba.co.jp/about/press/2008_04/pr0801.htm Toshiba starts sample shipping of SpursEngine™ SE1000 high-performance stream processor – Toshiba.co.jp]
* [http://techon.nikkeibp.co.jp/english/NEWS_EN/20071017/140756/ How Far has Cell DNA been Passed On? Interview with Toshiba SpursEngine Developer, Nikkei Business Publications]
* [http://www.i4u.com/article11624.html New Toshiba SpursEngine based on CELL, I4U News]
* [http://gizmodo.com/gadgets/ceatec2007/toshibas-demos-spursengine+equipped-qosmio-uses-cell-broadband-engine-technology-305956.php Toshiba's Demos SpursEngine-Equipped Qosmio, Uses Cell Broadband Engine Technology, Gizmodo.com]
* [http://www.cellusersgroup.com/modules/spursengine/ Cell Users Group - SpursEngine]
* [http://www.reghardware.co.uk/2008/06/17/toshiba_rebrands_spursengibe/ Cell-based GPU zaps laptop batteries, admits Toshiba – The Register]
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