High-Performance Embedded Computing

5.3 Multiprocessor Design Techniques 275

■ Highly responsive input and output operations may be best performed by an

accelerator with an attached I/O unit. If data must be read, processed, and

written to meet a very tight deadline—for example, in engine control—a

dedicated hardware unit may be more efficient than a CPU.

cost versus

power

Heterogeneity reduces power consumption because it removes unnecessary

hardware. The additional hardware required to generalize functions adds to both

dynamic and static power dissipation. Excessive specialization can add so much

communication cost that the energy gain from specialization is lost, but special-

izing the ...