Data and Control
Data and Control
m Control is a necessary by-product of the synthesis process of mapping a behavior into the "real world" (i.e. to hardware and to "slow time")
Þ While it is a useful abstraction for certain classes of design, It should not be treated in a special way in the fundamental notation used for describing behavior/structure.Þ Consider the "Microscope Test": Control and data signals appear the same. The notion of control is a design-style oriented concept (and is therefore important) but control is not fundamentally different from other artifacts of the description (e.g. "datapath").
m Disclaimer: This is the view of this presenter but this view is not held today by the majority of synthesis researchers (e.g. VT, DDL, VHDL).
Sashimi ‘87, Osaka