Programmability and performance were
key design goals from the beginning. To ensure the
ability to deliver applications making full use of the
architecture potential application analysis and
prototyping were emphasized from the beginning.
The compiler focus provides a key
solution to ensuring programming productivity. A
first compiler became available during the
architecture process and allowed to evaluate and
refine the design as it progressed. It also enabled
the development of a first program-development
environment which was used to develop applications
targeting the Cell Broadband Engine.
The first programs were kernels
demonstrating the performance of the SPU. These
kernels later formed the foundations of SPU
high-performance libraries. A next phase
focused on application studies involving graphics, AI
algorithms, physics simulation and their mapping on
the Cell Broadband Engine Architecture.
Full applications were developed by
to demonstrate translating raw chip performance into
application performance. A key application
demonstrating the efficient use of the CBEA is the Terrain Rendering
Engine (TRE), a ray-casting application developed in the
STI Design Center. The TRE allows to generate HD720p
high-definition video streams of computer-mapped
terrain in real time.
The Cell team also engaged partners
to experience the power of Cell. Some results of
these collaborations included an online game
with realtime physics simulation of unprecedented
simulation quality, and the Alias Cloth
Technology Demonstration for the Cell Processor
developed by Alias Systems.
These and other application
development efforts by the STI Cell team and its
partner companies have resulted in the development of
several high-productivity high-performance programming
models for the Cell Broadband Engine Architecture
ranging from a function offload model for computer
kernels, the composition of functional processing
pipelines, lightweight process organization to
compiler-directed auto-parallelization from a single
source program. Leveraging this extensive application
development experience already available at the launch
of the Cell architecture will allow developers to make
the best use of development resources and achieve both
high productivity and high performance.
- Terrain Rendering Engine
(TRE)
- Barry Minor, Gordon Fossum, Van To
May 2005
- Online Game Prototype
- Bruce D'Amora
May 2005
- Alias Cloth
Technology Demonstration for the Cell Processor
- Alias Systems
May 2005
