Communication steering for use in a multi-master shared resource system

Abstract

New approaches for providing communication between multiple masters () and one or more shared resources () are needed. One example of a resource that may need to be shared is circuitry complying with the Universal Serial Bus (USB) standard (). The USB specification defines the use of USB endpoints as data and control channels that reside in a USB device. In some cases it is desirable to have a certain number of endpoints controlled by one processor, and other endpoints controlled by a different processor, thus providing a shared control of all the endpoints. Circuitry () may be used to provide steering for additional signals such as interrupts. Other shared resources () may use more centralized circuitry () to perform a steering function for additional signals.