Patent ID: 7705629

Claim:
An integrated circuit, comprising: a L-level permutable switching network (L-PSN); wherein the L-PSN comprises: for L≧1, L levels of conductors comprising: an i-th level of conductors of I[i] number of conductors comprising D[i] sets of conductors, wherein (I[i]/D[i])>1 and D[i]>1 for i=[1:L], wherein at least one j where D[j]>2 for j selected from j=[1:L]; an 0-th level of conductors of I[0] number of conductors, wherein (I[0]/Π i=[1:L] D[i])>1; an (L+1)-th level of conductors of I[L+1] number of conductors comprising D[L+1] sets of conductors, wherein D[L+1]>2, wherein (I[L+1]/D[L+1])=Π i=[1:L] D[i]; and Σ i=[1:L+1] (I[i−1]×D[i]) number of switches; wherein the I[i−1] number of conductors of the (i−1)-th level of conductors selectively couple to (I[i]/D[i]) number of conductors of each of the D[i] sets of conductors of the i-th level of conductors of I[i] number of conductors through I[i−1] number of switches of a respective (I[i−1]×D[i]) number of switches of the Σ i=[1:L+1] (I[i−1]×D[i]) number of switches for i=[1:L+1]; wherein each conductor of the I[i−1] number of conductors of the (i−1)-th level of conductors selectively couples to one conductor in each of the D[i] sets of conductors of the i-th level of conductors of I[i] number of conductors through a respective switch of the respective I[i−1] number of switches for i=[1:L+1]; and for a j selected from j=[1:L+1], T>1 and D S [j]=D[j]×(I[j−1]/I[j]), at least (T×D S [j]) number of conductors of an (j−1)-th level of conductors of I[j−1] number of conductors selectively couple to T number of conductors in each of the D[j] sets of conductors of the j-th level of conductors of I[j] number of conductors through (T×D S [j]×D[j]) number of switches of the (I[j−1]×D[j]) number of switches, wherein any D S [j] number of conductors selected from the (T×D S [j]) number of conductors of the (j−1)-th level of conductors selectively couple to at least two conductors of at least one of the D[j] sets of conductors respectively having T number of conductors in each of the D[j] sets of the j-th level of conductors through a respective D S [j] number of switches of the (T×D S [j]×D[j]) number of switches.