Automating production of run-time reconfigurable designs

This paper describes a method that automates a key step in producing run-time reconfigurable designs: the identification and mapping of reconfigurable regions. In this method, two successive circuit configurations are matched to locate the components common to them, so that reconfiguration time can be minimized. The circuit configurations are represented as a weighted bipartite graph, to which an efficient matching algorithm is applied. Our method, which supports hierarchical and library-based design, is device-independent and has been tested using Xilinx 6200 FPGAs. A number of examples in arithmetic, pattern matching and image processing are selected to illustrate our approach.