Patent ID: 7716390

Claim:
A direct memory access controller, comprising: an internal storage section storing control setting information; a current group register for storing a group number; a control section loading the control setting information from an external storage section to said internal storage section when a transfer request signal does not belong to a first group, and maintaining the control setting information within said internal storage section without loading the control setting information from the external storage section to said internal storage section when the transfer request signal belongs to the first group; and a group setting section setting groups so that a same control setting information belongs to a same group in accordance with the transfer request signal, wherein said group setting section comprises a group setting register, and the group setting register transmits a group number of a current group stored in the group setting register to the control section, in accordance with a transfer request signal which is received; and a data transfer by a direct memory access is performed in accordance with the control setting information within said internal storage section, and wherein said control section compares said group number stored in said current group register and the group number of the current group, said control section loads the control setting information from the external storage section to said internal storage section, overwrites the group number of the current group to said current group register and performs a data transfer by a direct memory access in accordance with the control setting information loaded when said group number stored in said current group register is different from the group number of the current group; and said control section maintains the control setting information within said internal storage section and performs a data transfer by a direct memory access in accordance with the control setting information maintained when the group number stored in said current group register is the same as the group number of the current group.