IBM takes the Cell processor to industrial applications

 

Gallery

By Steve Malone

Posted on 1 Apr 2005 at 16:26

IBM is looking to extend the range of applications for its new 'Cell' processor into the area of high performance industrial applications. With an eye to the lucrative defence, aerospace and medical industries where imaging applications are critical, IBM has offered to help out with a number of new design services.

Designed in conjunction with Sony and Toshiba, IBM's 'Cell' processor is described as a revolutionary advance in chip architecture. while companies such as AMD and Intel are looking to get their first dual core designs out of the lab, IBM's design includes nine processors on a single chip. One of which is a tweaked PowerPC design with eight other processing cores expected to handle graphics processing.
The chip itself is slated to be at the centre of Sony's Playstation 3 when it is released. But it is clear that the chip has far more potential than merely playing games.

A prototype shown in February measured 221mm square, built on a 90-nanometre processor and integrates 234 million transistors. Sony and IBM say that current versions of the device run up to 4GHz.
among the services that IBM plans to offer are system architecture and design, chip, module and board development, firmware and Linux driver development and interoperability and compatibility testing all of which are needed to get the new Cell architecture off the ground.

IBM is offering access to some 1,300 engineers and a number of Power Architecture design centres around the world. These services will also be offered through IBM's consultants and industry-specific teams.

'IBM's new design services could have significant impact on expanding the number of applications that leverage Cell's unique capabilities,' commented Pat Toole, IBM's General Manager Engineering & Technology Services (E&TS).