APPARATUSES AND METHODS TO ACCELERATE MATRIX MULTIPLICATION

Methods and apparatuses relating to performing vector multiplication are described. Hardware accelerators to perform vector multiplication are also described. In one embodiment, a combined fixed-point and floating-point vector multiplication circuit includes at least one switch to change the circuit between a first mode and a second mode, where in the first mode, each multiplier of a set of multipliers is to multiply mantissas from a same element position of a first floating-point vector and a second floating-point vector to produce a corresponding product, shift the corresponding products with a set of shift registers based on a maximum exponent of exponents for the corresponding products determined by a maximum exponent determiner to produce shifted products, perform an numeric conversion operation on the shifted products with a set of numeric conversion circuits based on sign bits from the same element position of the first floating-point vector and the second floating-point vector to produce signed representations of the shifted products, add the signed representations of the shifted products with a set of adders to produce a single product, and normalize the single product with a normalization circuit based on the maximum exponent into a single floating-point resultant, and in the second mode, each multiplier of the set of multipliers is to multiply values from a same element position of a first integer vector and a second integer vector to produce a corresponding product, and add each corresponding product with the set of adders to produce a single integer resultant. La présente invention concerne des procédés et des appareils ayant trait à la réalisation d'une multiplication vectorielle. L'invention concerne également des accélérateurs matériels pour effectuer une multiplication vectorielle. Dans un mode de réalisation, un circuit de multiplication vectorielle combinée en virgule fixe et en virgule flottante (FP) comprend au moins un commutateur pour changer le circuit entre un premier mode et un second mode ; dans le premier mode, chaque multiplicateur d'un ensemble de multiplicateurs est destiné à multiplier des mantisses à partir d'une même position d'élément d'un premier vecteur en virgule flottante et d'un second vecteur en virgule flottante pour produire un produit correspondant, les produits correspondants sont décalés avec un ensemble de registres à décalage sur la base d'un exposant maximal parmi des exposants pour les produits correspondan