초록 ▼

A symbolic language data processing system comprises a sequencer unit, a data path unit, a memory control unit, a front-end processor, an I/O and a main memory connected on a common Lbus to which other peripherals and data units can be connected for intercommunication. The system architecture includ

A symbolic language data processing system comprises a sequencer unit, a data path unit, a memory control unit, a front-end processor, an I/O and a main memory connected on a common Lbus to which other peripherals and data units can be connected for intercommunication. The system architecture includes a novel bus network, a synergistic combination of the Lbus, microtasking, centralized error correction circuitry and a synchronous pipelined memory including processor mediated direct memory access, stack cache windows with two segment addressing, a page hash table and page hash table cache, garbage collection and pointer control a close connection of the macrocode and microcode which enables one to take interrupts in and out of the macrocode instruction sequences, parallel data type checking with tagged architecture, procedure call and microcode support, a generic bus and a unique insruction set to support symbolic language processing.

대표청구항 ▼

In a method of data processing in a processor programmable in a symbolic programming language of the type including LISP and having automatic memory reclamation, wherein the processor repeatedly applies address words to gain memory to write data structures into main memory and read data structures f

In a method of data processing in a processor programmable in a symbolic programming language of the type including LISP and having automatic memory reclamation, wherein the processor repeatedly applies address words to gain memory to write data structures into main memory and read data structures from main memory to perform operations thereon, and the processor allocates previously used portions of main memory for writing data structures by reclaiming same, the improvement wherein the step of reclaiming comprises: a. defining address regions in main memory including a main space and a relatively smaller subsidiary space; b. writing new data structures into subsidiary space until it is full; and c. reclaiming subsidiary space when it is full by i. detecting the writing of a data structure into main space having a pointe into subsidiary space; ii. adding memory locations of pointer detected in step (i) to a given data structure; iii. halting operation of the processor; iv. locating all pointers to subsidiary space by referencing the given data structure; v. locating useful data structures in subsidiary space from the pointers located in step (iv) and; vi. copying the located useful data structures into main space until there are no further pointers into subsidiary space.