The University of Southampton
University of Southampton Institutional Repository

SpiNNaker - programming model

SpiNNaker - programming model
SpiNNaker - programming model
SpiNNaker is a multi-core computing engine, with a bespoke and specialised communication infrastructure that supports almost perfect scalability up to a hard limit of 216x18=1179648 cores. This remarkable property is achieved at the cost of ignoring memory coherency, global synchronisation and even deterministic message passing, yet it is still possible to perform meaningful computations. Whilst we have yet to assemble the full machine, the scalability properties make it possible to demonstrate the capabilities of the machine whilst it is being assembled; the more cores we connect, the larger the problems become that we are able to attack. Even with isolated printed circuit boards of 864 cores, interesting capabilities are emerging. This paper is the third of a series charting the development trajectory of the system. In the first two, we outlined the hardware build. Here, we lay out the (rather unusual) low-level foundation software developed so far to support the operation of the machine.
interconnection architectures, parallel processors, neurocomputers, real-time distributed
1769-1782
Brown, A.D.
5c19e523-65ec-499b-9e7c-91522017d7e0
Furber, Steve B.
2545c4ef-b6b0-48f0-85e5-bb85b47d9527
Reeve, J.S.
dd909010-7d44-44ea-83fe-a09e4d492618
Garside, J.D.
d0e3e42e-4285-4b8b-bad3-1068d150060a
Dugan, K.J.
1673d1bb-5b55-484d-9c95-4eae04d0cdfb
Plana, L.A.
e0db7215-9f83-4dab-bf8e-863d61e47d16
Temple, S.
bd41170c-d02e-49bd-a80a-d75c3933ca1f
Brown, A.D.
5c19e523-65ec-499b-9e7c-91522017d7e0
Furber, Steve B.
2545c4ef-b6b0-48f0-85e5-bb85b47d9527
Reeve, J.S.
dd909010-7d44-44ea-83fe-a09e4d492618
Garside, J.D.
d0e3e42e-4285-4b8b-bad3-1068d150060a
Dugan, K.J.
1673d1bb-5b55-484d-9c95-4eae04d0cdfb
Plana, L.A.
e0db7215-9f83-4dab-bf8e-863d61e47d16
Temple, S.
bd41170c-d02e-49bd-a80a-d75c3933ca1f

Brown, A.D., Furber, Steve B., Reeve, J.S., Garside, J.D., Dugan, K.J., Plana, L.A. and Temple, S. (2015) SpiNNaker - programming model. IEEE Transactions on Computers, 64 (6), 1769-1782. (doi:10.1109/TC.2014.2329686).

Record type: Article

Abstract

SpiNNaker is a multi-core computing engine, with a bespoke and specialised communication infrastructure that supports almost perfect scalability up to a hard limit of 216x18=1179648 cores. This remarkable property is achieved at the cost of ignoring memory coherency, global synchronisation and even deterministic message passing, yet it is still possible to perform meaningful computations. Whilst we have yet to assemble the full machine, the scalability properties make it possible to demonstrate the capabilities of the machine whilst it is being assembled; the more cores we connect, the larger the problems become that we are able to attack. Even with isolated printed circuit boards of 864 cores, interesting capabilities are emerging. This paper is the third of a series charting the development trajectory of the system. In the first two, we outlined the hardware build. Here, we lay out the (rather unusual) low-level foundation software developed so far to support the operation of the machine.

Text
__userfiles.soton.ac.uk_Users_slb1_mydocuments_TC2329686.pdf - Other
Download (1MB)
Text
__userfiles.soton.ac.uk_Users_slb1_mydocuments_1-4662215116.pdf - Other
Restricted to Repository staff only
Request a copy

More information

e-pub ahead of print date: 13 June 2014
Published date: 1 June 2015
Keywords: interconnection architectures, parallel processors, neurocomputers, real-time distributed
Organisations: Electronics & Computer Science

Identifiers

Local EPrints ID: 369378
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/369378
PURE UUID: d1976fab-4177-4975-a73e-bd3cb3fb250a

Catalogue record

Date deposited: 25 Sep 2014 09:09
Last modified: 14 Mar 2024 18:02

Export record

Altmetrics

Contributors

Author: A.D. Brown
Author: Steve B. Furber
Author: J.S. Reeve
Author: J.D. Garside
Author: K.J. Dugan
Author: L.A. Plana
Author: S. Temple

Download statistics

Downloads from ePrints over the past year. Other digital versions may also be available to download e.g. from the publisher's website.

View more statistics

Atom RSS 1.0 RSS 2.0

Contact ePrints Soton: eprints@soton.ac.uk

ePrints Soton supports OAI 2.0 with a base URL of http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/cgi/oai2

This repository has been built using EPrints software, developed at the University of Southampton, but available to everyone to use.

We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you continue without changing your settings, we will assume that you are happy to receive cookies on the University of Southampton website.

×