A Data Flow Computer Architecture with Program and Token Memories

This paper presents a new data flow computer architecture using two types of memory: program memory and token memory. The program memory (PM) stores a data flow program or graph indicating data dependencies among instructions. The PM need not be changed during execution of one program and is duplicated for each processing or functional unit. The token memory (TM) stores mainly currently needed data values and plays a role similar to accumulators or registers in conventional computers. The size of the TM is expected to be relatively small because the data values occupy space in the TM for a very short time. The small scale TM in our architecture makes it possible to reduce the complexity of the switch mechanism between functional units and memories, and the size of the control circuit.