Adata path is a collection offunctional units such asarithmetic logic units (ALUs) ormultipliers that perform data processing operations,registers, andbuses.[1] Along with thecontrol unit it composes thecentral processing unit (CPU).[1] A larger data path can be made by joining more than one data paths usingmultiplexers.
Adata path is the ALU, the set of registers, and the CPU's internal bus(es) that allow data to flow between them.[2]
The simplest design for a CPU uses one common internal bus.Efficient addition requires a slightly more complicated three-internal-bus structure.[3]Many relatively simple CPUs have a 2-read, 1-writeregister fileconnected to the 2 inputs and 1 output of the ALU.
During the late 1990s, there was growing research in the area ofreconfigurable data paths—data paths that may be re-purposed at run-time usingprogrammable fabric—as such designs may allow for more efficient processing as well as substantial power savings.[4]
Afinite-state machine with data path (FSMD) is a mathematical abstraction which combines afinite-state machine, which controls theprogram flow, with a data path. It can be used to designdigital logic orcomputer programs.[5][6]
FSMDs are essentially sequential programs in which statements have been scheduled into states, thus resulting in more complex state diagrams. Here, a program is converted into a complex state diagram in which states and arcs may includearithmetic expressions, and those expressions may use external inputs and outputs as well as variables. The FSMD level of abstraction is often referred to as theregister-transfer level.
FSMs do not use variables or arithmetic operations/conditions, thus FSMDs are more powerful than FSMs. An FSMD is equivalent to aTuring machine in expressiveness.
All computers have a CPU that can be divided into two pieces. The first is the datapath, which is a network of storage units (registers) and arithmetic and logic units... connected by buses... where the timing is controlled by clocks.