Hardware Implementation of Discrete Stochastic Arithmetic

In this paper we present a hardware implementation of the Discrete Stochastic Arithmetic (DSA) which is based on CESTAC (Controle et Estimation STochastique des Arrondis de Calculs), a method of controlling round-off errors in floating-point scientific computations. Real-time software implementation of this method suffers from computation bottlenecks. This paper gives a hardware alternative that would significantly accelerate the computation. The proposed architecture is based on a Stochastic Floating-Point Unit (SFPU) which performs discrete stochastic operations. This SFPU has been integrated in a coprocessor, used in a complete System on Chip (SoC).