The Amano Laboratory is working to develop computers that deliver high performance while consuming less power. This research applies a technology called dynamically reconfigurable systems. With this technology, the hardware configuration changes in accordance with the computation problem, enabling faster computing by changing the configuration, moment by moment, to an optimal one for the problem. The Amano Lab has succeeded in using this technology to develop a processor called the MUCCRA-3, which delivers high processing performance with low power consumption.

Q.A feature of our research is that we dont just suggest methods, but actually design chips or systems, and run those systems to verify our results. This dynamically reconfigurable processor MUCCRA-3 is a chip weve developed using the latest technologies. It has 30 times the energy efficiency of current DSPs, or control signal processors. This chip can run quite powerful image processing programs on just 10 mW. Right now, were measuring the current in MUCCRA-3; it does its processing at about 5 mA. To do the same processing with a DSP would need about 500 mA, so you can see that MuCCRA-3 is running with extremely low power consumption.

The Amano Lab is also researching parallel processing technology. This uses lots of the small, inexpensive processors utilized in home game consoles. Running them all at the same time creates a cluster environment that enables faster processing.

Q.In this room, there are 72 PlayStation 3 consoles. A feature of PlayStation 3 is that it has a processor called a CELL processor. The CELL processor has a single processor core for control and eight computing cores. An even more important feature is that this processor can run an OS called Linux. Installing Linux enables programmers to do multi-computer programming freely. The PlayStation 3s in this system are very cheap, so our main goal is to achieve high cost performance; that is, high computing performance at low cost.

This research is expected to be applied to high-speed computing on fluid dynamics in collaboration with JAXA, and to biological simulation technology.

Q.Were aiming to develop the most environmentally friendly computer with the lowest power consumption, by continually changing the optimal configuration we have at the time. Currently, were creating one of the worlds most energy-efficient, environmentally friendly computers. Its about 30 times more energy-efficient than the systems used at present.

Reconfigurable technology, which flexibly changes configuration as necessary, and parallel processing technology, which runs lots of processors at the same time By pursuing these two types of research, the Amano Lab is helping to develop computers that deliver high performance while consuming little power. (less info)