Using I/sub 2/O and I/O processors in embedded PCI systems. New software standard and processor type speed embedded PCI implementations

As the processing power and I/O speeds increase in embedded systems, the implementation of software protocols for communicating within these systems and making efficient use of available bandwidth has become critical. The I/sub 2/O specification, software components and associated hardware, both I/sub 2/O-ready PCI-local bus bridges and I/O processors, solve this problem in an efficient manner, and its wide acceptance in the industry ensures that it is a good architectural choice for embedded designs.