EP1879104A2

General purpose, programmable media processor

Abstract

A communication network capable of for processing streams of media data which comprise a combination of at least two of audio, video, radio, graphics, encryption, authentication, and networking information. The communications network processes streams of media data and has at least one programmable media processor (12) for receiving, processing and transmitting the stream of media data over the bi-directional communications network. The processor executes group instructions to read a plurality of data elements of the media data stream from a register file (100), to perform, on the data elements, group operations including both group integer and group floating point operations capable of dynamically partitioning the data by each specifing one of a plurality of data element sizes, and to write concatenated results in the register file. Each media processor (12) is reprogrammable by receiving downloaded software over the network.

EP1879104A2, drawing sheet 1
Sheet 1 of 485

Term

Term ended

Projected expiry passed 16 August 2016, 10.1 years ago.

  1. Priority
  2. Filed
  3. Published
  4. Projected expiry
  5. Today

18 claims: 3 independent, 15 dependent

  1. 1
    A system for processing streams of media data comprising:a communications network capable of transmitting and receiving media data streams which comprises a combination of at least two of audio, video, radio, graphics, encryption, authentication, and networking information;and a plurality of programmable media processors within the communications network, the programmable media processors receiving and processing in use at least one media data stream over the communications network, each processor being programmed to execute group instructions to read a plurality of data elements of the media data stream from a register file, to perform, on the unified media data steams, group operations including both group integer and group floating point operations capable of dynamically partitioning the data by each specifying one of a plurality of data element sizes, and to write concatenated results in the or another register file;and each media processor being reprogrammable by receiving downloaded software over the network.
  2. 11
    A method for processing streams of media data in a communications network, the method comprising transmitting and receiving media data streams to and from a plurality of user devices, the at least one stream of media comprising a combination of at least two of audio, video, radio, graphics, encryption, authentication, and networking information; and wherein each user device has at least one programmable media processor for receiving and processing in use at least one media data stream over the communications network; the processor executing group instructions to read a plurality of data elements of the media data stream from a register file, to perform, on the media data steams, group operations including both integer and floating point operations capable of dynamically partitioning the data by each specifying one of a plurality of data element sizes, and to write concatenated results in the or another register file; and the method further comprising:reprogramming a media processor by receiving downloaded software to the programmable media processor over the network.
  3. 17
    19. The use of a microprocessor for processing streams of media data in a wireless bi-directional communications network, which microprocessor comprises an execution unit executing group instructions to read a plurality of data elements of the media data stream from a register file, and performing, on the data elements, group operations including both integer and floating point group operations dynamically partitioning the data by each specifying one of a plurality of data element sizes, and writing concatenated results in the register file, as a component in the infrastructure for a broadcasting network.