DSPs (digital signal processors) are not new, even to desktop computers. If you use a traditional modem or sound board, then you are likely using dedicated DSPs. What is new, however, is the availability of low-cost, high-performance, multipurpose DSPs capable of running several different tasks concurrently. General-purpose DSPs with sophisticated operating systems, algorithm libraries, and friendly programming interfaces are poised to enter the desktop mainstream.
There are several reasons for this. First, DSP vendors are working with PC and workstation developers to provide tight integration with host environments. Products encompass not only the DSP ICs but also sophisticated, preemptive multitasking DSP operating systems, clean interfaces to the host hardware and software, and multimedia libraries addressing a wide range of needs. One ex
ample is AT&T's VCOS operating system, which has an architecture based on a DSP kernel, an applications server running on the host, and separate APIs for both. IBM's MWAVE structure is similar (see the figure "DSP Operating Systems").
Standards are a second reason to pay attention to DSPs on the desktop. DSPs have had limited applicability because, until now, DSP architectures were proprietary. This meant that developers had to write high-level applications for each specific DSP hardware implementation. Now, under the auspices of the IMA (Interactive Multimedia Association) Digital Signal Processing Technical Working Group, a set of Windows-based standards is evolving--standards that promise to make it feasible for software vendors to develop applications that are independent of the underlying DSP hardware. A standardized API is the beginning of a new era of multimedia capabilities for Windows. At the center of the evolving standards architecture is the DSP resource manager, which connects any complian
t DSP hardware/software engine to standard multimedia device drivers used by high-level applications.
Finally, DSPs are entering mainstream computing because the price/performance of general-purpose DSPs has reached the point where multifunction single-board peripherals cost less than the collection of individual fax, modem, sound, MIDI, or CD-ROM boards they replace. The appeal of a single multimedia peripheral, sharing the cost of hardware across multiple applications, is so strong that a number of vendors (e.g., Apple, NCR, and Acer America) have designed the DSP right into the motherboard. This approach makes the motherboard more expensive, but it lowers the overall system cost--and it also reduces demand on limited-chassis I/O connect space. Expect more vendors--and the market in general--to move in this direction.
Figure: DSP Operating Systems
With new DSP operating systems, software development efforts can be effectively applied to multiple DSP platforms.
DSPs and the PC Mainstream
