APPLICATION OF A RESTRUCTURABLE COMPUTER SYSTEM TO NUMERICAL WEATHER PREDICTION COMPUTATIONS,
Abstract
The restructurable computer system consists of a fixed computer (F) plus a variable structure (V) which work cooperatively toward the solution of a problem. The variable structure utilizes a variety of highspeed computing modules which may be interconnected to form a highly parallel, problem-oriented special-purpose computer. The first step in the investigation was a detailed analysis of the numerical weather prediction program to determine the basic algorithms and the characteristics of the problem which might require special attention. The iterative nature of the program and the fact that calculations at each grid point are independent of each other and require access to data describing only a small neighborhood of grid points led to the development of a special memory buffer. This type of memory allows parallel access to 25 data words and provides a means of rapidly advancing calculations from one grid point to the next. A timing analysis of the proposed system was conducted utilizing a computer program called the 'Automatic Assignment Routine' which assumed the availability of from one to four IBM 7090 arithmetic units for use as computing modules in V. This analysis showed that the F + V system could be expected to produce a speed advantage of about three to one over a standard IBM 7094 system. (Author)
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Feb 01, 1966
- Accession Number
- AD0630439
Entities
People
- Gary R. Wood
Organizations
- University of California, Los Angeles