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In high-bandwidth medical and industrial digital signal processing (DSP) applications, completing the calculations between successive input data samples can limit the instruction bandwidth for digital signal processors. This bandwidth limitation can be minimized by using the multiple processing units in some digital signal processors. However, creating the specialized pipelined code to take advantage of these multiple processing units requires hand coding of assembly language routines. Maintenance, re-usability, and implementation of this type of code can be troublesome and expensive. Additionally, the degree of simultaneous executions is relatively low.
A better alternative for high-bandwidth computations found in medical and industrial applications is to use an FPGA as a co-processor. This integrates the repetitive, speed-critical portions of an algorithm into the FPGA. With an FPGA and Altera’s automated design software for DSP applications, engineers can optimize system performance in ways not possible with a traditional digital signal processor.
Read the Increase Bandwidth in Medical & Industrial Applications With FPGA Co-Processors White Paper.
