Patent ID: 6708242
Filing Date: 2004-03-16
Classification: G06F

Abstract:
In a computer system, a method for addressing extended number of peripheral devices over a bus, said method comprising:providing a bus having an N-bit datapath; defining an extended address space for a set of extended peripheral devices by assigning a bus ID to each extended peripheral device, each bus ID including a group ID and a group member ID, wherein each group IDs and group member IDs also indicates a priority of said associated device and wherein each of the group IDs and group member IDs is associated with half of the N-bit datapath; arbitrating, by one or more peripheral devices, for the bus wherein the peripheral device having the highest priority group ID and the highest priority group member ID among the arbitrating peripheral devices wins the arbitration; and selecting, by the winning device, a device by placing on the bus the bus IDs including the group IDs and the group member IDs of said selecting and selected devices, said winning device selecting said selected device for transferring data, wherein said bus is monitored during said arbitration by said one or more peripheral devices to determine the bus ID of said winning device and wherein said operation of selecting said target device comprises: encoding, by each of said one or more peripheral devices, its bus ID and said bus IDs of said winning device into a first ID; encoding, by said winning device, its bus ID and the bus ID of said selected device into a second ID; asserting, by said winning device, said second ID on said bus; examining, by each of said one more peripheral devices, said second ID; and responding to said winning device by one of said one or more peripheral devices when said first ID of said target device matches said second ID.