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Program structure and architecture for a finite element machine
Author(s) -
Norrie D. H.,
Norrie C. I. W.
Publication year - 1986
Publication title -
international journal for numerical methods in engineering
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.421
H-Index - 168
eISSN - 1097-0207
pISSN - 0029-5981
DOI - 10.1002/nme.1620220118
Subject(s) - finite element method , architecture , computer science , element (criminal law) , class (philosophy) , general purpose , computational science , parallel computing , computer engineering , computer architecture , engineering , artificial intelligence , structural engineering , art , political science , law , visual arts
Superproblems in finite elements require either general‐purpose or special‐purpose computing machines whose capabilities are very much greater than those currently existing. The advantage of the latter type of machine is that it can be highly optimized for the particular class of problem for which it is designed and can, in principle, for a given generation of hardware, be designed to operate at a higher speed than a corresponding general‐purpose computer. The Parallel Finite Element Machine (PARFEM) investigated at the University of Calgary has an architecture based on the finite element computational algorithms and employs a combination of parallel and vector processing. The overall architecture and program structure is described and the major design considerations outlined.