Patent ID: 7284225

Claim:
A method for interfacing an application-independent hardware object with a software system, comprising: instantiating a first object containing at least one configuration parameter that specifies a location of a configuration bitstream for implementing functions of the hardware object in a programmable logic circuit; wherein the first object is instantiated in memory of a computing arrangement by application software executing on the computing arrangement; instantiating a second object, the second object being configured to open, in response to a program call to a first function provided by the second object, an interface to the programmable logic circuit; wherein the second object is instantiated in the memory by the application software executing on the computing arrangement; configuring the programmable logic circuit with the configuration bitstream in response to instantiation of the second object; opening, in response to a program call to the first function, an interface to the programmable logic circuit; wherein the call to the first function is initiated by the application software; and applying a number of cycles of a clock signal to the programmable logic circuit in response to a program call by the application software that specifies the number of cycles to a second function provided by the second object.