arrow
Return

Energy Efficient Approximate Computing Framework for DNN Acceleration Using a Probabilistic-Oriented Method

delete2025-01-01
delete0
PRE
AI
P
Pengfei Huang
K
Ke Chen
C
Chenghua Wang
W
Weiqiang Liu
DOI:10.1109/TETC.2024.3522307delete
deleteOriginal
deleteOriginal request for help
deleteShare
deleteSave
Abstract

Abstract

En 中文
Approximate computing (AxC) has recently emerged as a successful approach for optimizing energy consumption in error-tolerant applications, such as deep neural networks (DNNs). The enormous model size and high computation cost of DNNs present significant challenges for deployment in energy-efficient and resource-constrained computing systems. Emerging DNN hardware accelerators based on AxC designs selectively approximate the non-critical segments of computation to address these challenges. However, a systematic and principled approach that incorporates domain knowledge and approximate hardware for optimal approximation is still lacking. In this paper, we propose a probabilistic-oriented AxC (PAxC) framework that provides high energy savings with acceptable quality by considering the overall probability effect of approximation. To achieve aggressive approximate designs, we utilize the minimum likelihood error to determine the AxC synergy profile at both application and circuit levels. This enables effective coordination of the trade-off between energy and accuracy. Compared with a baseline design, the power-delay product (PDP) is significantly reduced by up to 83.66% with an acceptable accuracy reduction. Simulation and a case study of the image process validate the effectiveness of the proposed framework.
Keywords:
Approximate computing
probabilistic AxC
DNN accelerator
optimized approximate circuits
hardware acceleration

Journal

IEEE Transactions on Emerging Topics in Computing cover
IEEE Transactions on Emerging Topics in Computing
IF:
5.4
Papers:
1.1K
Citations:
3.4K

Organization

N
Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics
Scholars:
7.4K
Papers: 3.1K
Citations: 2.4W