Efficient utilization of scratch-pad memory banks

A memory allocation algorithm was developed to maximize parallel data access and make full use of CPU processing ability to improve real-time performance of embedded multimedia applications.A scratch-pad memory is assigned to meet the data processing demand with data dynamically transferred to on-chip memory by Direct Memory Access(DMA) to reduce the delays in slow off-chip memory access.Parallel access to multiple memory banks by several data buses and dual access through dual Access Random Access Memory(DARAM) reduces the memory bandwidth limit. Test results show that program run time is reduced by up to 48% using proper memory allocation.The memory assignment method is also easy to implement.