CSCE 230, Fall 2009

Practice Problem on Logic Design

This is a problem on structured logic design, where the solution to a problem is decomposed into a structure involving simpler components. The n-bit binary adder exemplifies this approach by constructing the solution as a linear chain of identical components (full-adders) that can be designed easily from its truth table description.

For this problem, assume you are given two n-bit unsigned numbers X and Y and you are asked to design the logic for the comparison operation X<Y. To find a structured solution, think about how you can formulate the comparison of the whole number in terms of comparison of bits (hint: examine the bits from the most-significant to the least-significant; first write the solution in terms of pseudo-code and then translate it to an iterated structure of identical components).