Approximate Communication: Balancing Performance, Power, Reliability, and Safety

Interconnect is essential for the performance, power consumption, and safety of modern digital circuits. In the context of approximate computing, various methods have been proposed to improve the system performance by decreasing the amount of transmitted data or reducing power consumption through reduced switching activity on the interconnects. However, their impact on the reliability and safety of interconnect has not yet been evaluated. In this work, the effects of approximate communication on the reliability and safety of interconnects in digital circuits are assessed. The results show that while these methods increase performance, they can also harm the reliability and mission time of interconnects. We propose some modifications to address the safety and reliability issues when using approximate communication. Our results show that these modifications can increase the mission time, and establish a proper balance between performance, power consumption, and safety.