Digital-analog hybrid circuit design method and device, equipment and storage medium

Abstract

The invention provides a digital-analog hybrid circuit design method, device and equipment and a storage medium, and the method comprises the steps: constructing a simulation auxiliary unit library for a simulation module needing to be used in a digital-analog hybrid circuit; in the RTL (Register Transfer Level) design stage, the digital standard cell library and the analog auxiliary cell library are called to carry out digital-analog hybrid circuit design, and a digital-analog hybrid circuit is obtained; automatically generating a layout of the digital-analog hybrid circuit through a digital back-end tool; and after physical verification and parasitic parameter extraction are carried out on the layout of the digital-analog hybrid circuit, post-simulation verification is carried out. Therefore, layout generation of the digital-analog hybrid circuit can be automatically completed, a schematic diagram and a layout of a top layer do not need to be completed manually, the design process is greatly simplified, and the design period is shortened. For a process migration scene, only a small number of simulation auxiliary units need to be redesigned, codes of other digital parts can be reused and rapidly modified, and the designed process migration efficiency is improved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the field of electronic technology, and in particular to a method, device, equipment and storage medium for designing a digital-analog hybrid circuit. Background Art

[0002] With the rapid development of electronic technology, the comprehensive performance requirements of electronic equipment are becoming increasingly stringent. Especially in signal processing, both the speed and accuracy of digital signal processing and the delicacy and continuity of analog signal processing are required. For this reason, the design method of digital-analog hybrid circuits came into being. It cleverly combines the advantages of digital and analog circuits, allowing electronic equipment to process multiple signal types more efficiently and flexibly.

[0003] At present, the design process of mixed analog and digital circuits is mainly adopted. That is, in the front-end design, the analog part is designed at the schematic level, and the digital part is designed using Verilog code, thereby reducing the time of building the digital logic schematic. In the layout design, the analog part layout is completed manually, while the digital part adopts the digital back-end process, using automatic synthesis tools to complete logic synthesis, and using automatic layout and routing tools to complete the digital part layout.

[0004] However, in the existing design process of mixed-analog circuits, digital modules and analog modules need to be designed separately and different design tools are used. Especially when integrating the top-level layout, manual connection is required. This also makes the design cycle of mixed-analog circuits lengthy and the entire design process very complicated. Summary of the invention

[0005] In view of the defects in the prior art, the purpose of the present invention is to provide a method, device, equipment and storage medium for designing a digital-analog hybrid circuit.

[0006] In a first aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a method for designing a digital-analog mixed circuit, comprising:

[0007] Build an analog auxiliary unit library for analog modules needed in mixed analog and digital circuits;

[0008] In the RTL design stage, the digital standard cell library and the analog auxiliary cell library are called to design a digital-analog mixed circuit to obtain a digital-analog mixed circuit, wherein the RTL is a register transfer level circuit;

[0009] Automatically generate a layout of the mixed-analog circuit by using a digital backend tool;

[0010] After physically verifying the layout of the mixed-analog circuit and extracting parasitic parameters, post-simulation verification is performed.

[0011] Optionally, the step of constructing an analog auxiliary unit library for analog modules required in the digital-analog hybrid circuit includes:

[0012] Calling a design package containing a digital standard cell library file format;

[0013] The design package is used to construct analog modules required in digital-analog mixed circuits, thereby obtaining an analog auxiliary unit library that can be automatically recognized and called by digital back-end tools.

[0014] Optionally, the internal files in the analog auxiliary unit library do not contain logic function and timing information.

[0015] Optionally, in the RTL design stage, when the analog auxiliary unit library is called to perform digital-analog mixed circuit design, each analog auxiliary unit in the analog auxiliary unit library is called as a black box.

[0016] Optionally, the automatically generating the layout of the mixed analog and digital circuit by a digital backend tool includes:

[0017] Calling a digital backend tool to perform functional verification on the digital-analog hybrid circuit;

[0018] Calling a digital backend tool to perform logic synthesis on the digital-analog mixed circuit;

[0019] A digital back-end tool is called to automatically layout and route the digital-analog hybrid circuit to obtain a layout of the digital-analog hybrid circuit.

[0020] Optionally, in the stage of performing logic synthesis on the mixed digital-analog circuit, the analog auxiliary unit used in the mixed digital-analog circuit is called as a black box.

[0021] Optionally, the layouts of the digital standard cell library and the analog auxiliary cell library refer to the same standard cell format, and the digital standard cells in the digital standard cell library and the analog auxiliary cells in the analog auxiliary cell library are allowed to be superimposed and used.

[0022] In a second aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a mixed-signal circuit design device, comprising:

[0023] An analog auxiliary unit library building module is used to build an analog auxiliary unit library for analog modules required in digital-analog mixed circuits;

[0024] A digital-analog mixed circuit construction module is used to call a digital standard cell library and the analog auxiliary cell library to perform digital-analog mixed circuit design in the RTL design stage to obtain a digital-analog mixed circuit, wherein the RTL is a register transfer level circuit;

[0025] A layout generation module, used for automatically generating the layout of the digital-analog hybrid circuit through a digital backend tool;

[0026] The verification module is used to perform post-simulation verification after physically verifying the layout of the mixed digital-analog circuit and extracting parasitic parameters.

[0027] In a third aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a digital-analog mixed circuit design device, comprising: a processor and a memory, wherein the memory stores executable program instructions, and when the processor calls the program instructions in the memory, the processor is used to:

[0028] Execute the steps of the mixed digital-analog circuit design method as described in any one of the first aspects.

[0029] In a fourth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a computer-readable storage medium for storing a program, which, when executed, implements the steps of the digital-analog mixed circuit design method as described in any one of the first aspects.

[0030] Compared with the prior art, the present invention has the following beneficial effects:

[0031] In the embodiments of the present application, an analog auxiliary unit library is constructed for the analog modules needed in the mixed digital-analog circuit; in the RTL design stage, the digital standard unit library and the analog auxiliary unit library are called to design the mixed digital-analog circuit to obtain the mixed digital-analog circuit, wherein the RTL is a register transfer level circuit; the layout of the mixed digital-analog circuit is automatically generated by a digital back-end tool; after the layout of the mixed digital-analog circuit is physically verified and parasitic parameters are extracted, post-simulation verification is performed. Thus, the layout generation of the mixed digital-analog circuit can be automatically completed by the digital back-end tool, and there is no need to manually complete the top-level schematics and layouts, which greatly simplifies the design process and speeds up the design cycle. In addition, for the scenario of process migration, only a small number of analog auxiliary units need to be redesigned, and the code of the remaining digital parts can be reused and quickly modified, thereby greatly improving the process migration efficiency of the design. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0032] In order to more clearly illustrate the embodiments of the present invention or the technical solutions in the prior art, the following will briefly introduce the drawings required for use in the embodiments or the prior art descriptions. Obviously, the drawings in the following descriptions are only embodiments of the present invention. For ordinary technicians in this field, other drawings can be obtained based on the provided drawings without creative work. By reading the detailed description of the non-limiting embodiments with reference to the following drawings, other features, purposes and advantages of the present invention will become more obvious:

[0033] Figure 1A schematic diagram of a flow chart of a mixed-analog circuit design method provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0034] Figure 2 A schematic diagram of a flow chart of another method for designing a digital-analog mixed circuit provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0035] Figure 3 A structural block diagram of a digital-analog hybrid circuit design device provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0036] Figure 4 A layout of a PMOS switch that complies with the standard cell layout specification in an embodiment of the present application;

[0037] Figure 5 FIG. 1 is a layout of a clock control comparator that complies with the standard cell layout specification in an embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0038] In order to make the purpose, technical solution and advantages of the embodiments of the present application clearer, the technical solution in the embodiments of the present application will be clearly and completely described below in conjunction with the drawings in the embodiments of the present application. Obviously, the described embodiments are part of the embodiments of the present application, not all of the embodiments. Based on the embodiments in the present application, all other embodiments obtained by ordinary technicians in this field without creative work are within the scope of protection of this application.

[0039] It should be noted that when a component is said to be "fixed to" another component, it can be directly on the other component or there can be a central component. When a component is said to be "connected to" another component, it can be directly connected to the other component or there can be a central component at the same time.

[0040] Unless otherwise defined, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as those commonly understood by those skilled in the art to which this application belongs. The terms used herein in the specification of this application are only for the purpose of describing specific embodiments and are not intended to limit this application. The term "and / or" used herein includes any and all combinations of one or more of the related listed items.

[0041] The terms "first", "second", "third", "fourth", etc. (if any) in the specification and claims of the present invention and the above-mentioned drawings are used to distinguish similar objects, and are not necessarily used to describe a specific order or sequence. It should be understood that the data used in this way can be interchanged where appropriate, so that the embodiments of the present invention described herein, for example, can be implemented in an order other than those illustrated or described herein. In addition, the terms "including" and "having" and any variations thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusions, for example, a process, method, system, product or device that includes a series of steps or units is not necessarily limited to those steps or units that are clearly listed, but may include other steps or units that are not clearly listed or inherent to these processes, methods, products or devices.

[0042] The following specific embodiments are used to describe in detail the technical solution of the present invention and how the technical solution of the present application solves the above technical problems. The following specific embodiments can be combined with each other, and the same or similar concepts or processes may not be repeated in some embodiments.

[0043] In conjunction with the accompanying drawings, some embodiments of the present application are described in detail below. In the absence of conflict, the following embodiments and features in the embodiments can be combined with each other.

[0044] The embodiment of the present application provides a mixed digital-analog circuit design method, which aims to solve the problems of long design cycle of mixed digital-analog circuits, separation of analog modules and design modules in the design process, and complex design process.

[0045] For example, Figure 1 A flow chart of a mixed-analog circuit design method provided in an embodiment of the present application is shown in FIG. Figure 1 As shown, the method in this embodiment may include the following steps:

[0046] Step S101, constructing an analog auxiliary unit library for analog modules required in the digital-analog hybrid circuit.

[0047] The analog auxiliary cell library in this embodiment is a special auxiliary cell library made for the more sensitive analog modules in the digital-analog hybrid circuit. The layout of the analog auxiliary cell library refers to the format of the standard cell. The file format in the design package used is the same as that of the digital standard cell library. The analog auxiliary cell library can be used in conjunction with the digital standard cell library. When the analog auxiliary cell library is used, the digital process can be realized to complete the fully automated design of the digital-analog hybrid circuit.

[0048] Exemplarily, a design package containing a digital standard cell library file format may be called; the analog modules required in the mixed analog and digital circuits are constructed using the design package to obtain an analog auxiliary cell library that can be automatically recognized and called by digital back-end tools.

[0049] In this embodiment, the internal file in the analog auxiliary unit library may not include logic function and timing information.

[0050] For example, the design kit provided for digital design in the analog auxiliary cell library needs to contain the same file format as the digital standard cell library, such as files in gds, cdl, verilog, lef, db and lib formats. The format requirements of these files must be the same as those of the digital standard cell library, but the files of the analog auxiliary cell library may not have specific logic functions and timing information, and are only called as black boxes in the RTL design stage and logic synthesis stage.

[0051] Step S102, in the RTL design stage, calling the digital standard cell library and the analog auxiliary cell library to perform digital-analog mixed circuit design to obtain a digital-analog mixed circuit.

[0052] Wherein, the RTL is a register transfer level circuit.

[0053] Exemplarily, in the RTL design stage, when the analog auxiliary unit library is called to perform digital-analog mixed circuit design, each analog auxiliary unit in the analog auxiliary unit library is called as a black box.

[0054] Step S103, automatically generating a layout of a mixed-signal circuit by using a digital backend tool.

[0055] Exemplarily, a digital back-end tool may be called to perform functional verification on the mixed digital-analog circuit; a digital back-end tool may be called to perform logic synthesis on the mixed digital-analog circuit; a digital back-end tool may be called to perform automatic layout and routing on the mixed digital-analog circuit to obtain a layout of the mixed digital-analog circuit.

[0056] It should be noted that, in the stage of performing logic synthesis on the mixed digital-analog circuit, the analog auxiliary unit used in the mixed digital-analog circuit is called as a black box.

[0057] Exemplarily, since the layouts of the digital standard cell library and the analog auxiliary cell library refer to the same standard cell format, the digital standard cells in the digital standard cell library and the analog auxiliary cells in the analog auxiliary cell library can be used in a superimposed manner.

[0058] Step S104, after physically verifying the layout of the mixed-signal circuit and extracting parasitic parameters, perform post-simulation verification.

[0059] In this embodiment, an analog auxiliary unit library is first designed and produced, and the RTL layer design and functional simulation are completed using a hardware description language according to the logic function. Then, a digital back-end tool is used to complete logic synthesis, and an automatic layout and routing tool is used to complete the layout and routing of the layout. Physical verification and parasitic parameter extraction are performed, and finally, post-simulation verification is performed.

[0060] For example, Figure 2 A flow chart of another method for designing a digital-analog mixed circuit provided in an embodiment of the present application is shown in FIG. Figure 2 As shown, before performing RTL design, Spec definition (used to determine the various standards or indicators of the digital-analog hybrid circuit) can also be performed first. Then, the digital standard cell library and the analog auxiliary cell library are called to perform RTL design to obtain a digital-analog hybrid circuit including analog modules and digital modules. Further, after calling the digital back-end tool to perform functional verification, logic synthesis, and automatic layout and routing on the digital-analog hybrid circuit obtained by RTL design, the layout of the digital-analog hybrid circuit is obtained. Further, the layout of the digital-analog hybrid circuit is physically verified (DRC / LVS), parasitic parameters are extracted, and post-simulation verification is performed to obtain a verified digital-analog hybrid circuit.

[0061] In this embodiment, an analog auxiliary unit library is constructed for the analog modules needed in the digital-analog mixed circuit; in the RTL design stage, the digital standard unit library and the analog auxiliary unit library are called to design the digital-analog mixed circuit to obtain the digital-analog mixed circuit, wherein the RTL is a register transfer level circuit; the layout of the digital-analog mixed circuit is automatically generated by a digital back-end tool; after the layout of the digital-analog mixed circuit is physically verified and parasitic parameters are extracted, a post-simulation verification is performed. Therefore, after manually designing the analog auxiliary unit library and making the design package, the layout generation of the digital-analog mixed circuit can be automatically completed directly using the digital back-end tool, and there is no need to manually complete the top-level schematics and layouts, which greatly simplifies the design process and speeds up the design cycle. In addition, for the scenario of process migration, only a small number of analog auxiliary units need to be redesigned, and the code of the remaining digital parts can be reused and quickly modified, thereby greatly improving the process migration efficiency of the design.

[0062] For example, Figure 3 A structural block diagram of a digital-analog hybrid circuit design device provided in an embodiment of the present application, such as Figure 3 As shown, the device in this embodiment may include: an analog auxiliary unit library construction module 301, a digital-analog mixed circuit construction module 302, a layout generation module 303 and a verification module 304, wherein:

[0063] The analog auxiliary unit library construction module 301 is used to construct an analog auxiliary unit library for analog modules required in the digital-analog hybrid circuit;

[0064] A digital-analog mixed circuit construction module 302 is used to call a digital standard cell library and the analog auxiliary cell library to perform digital-analog mixed circuit design in the RTL design stage to obtain a digital-analog mixed circuit, wherein the RTL is a register transfer level circuit;

[0065] A layout generation module 303, used to automatically generate the layout of the digital-analog hybrid circuit through a digital backend tool;

[0066] The verification module 304 is used to perform post-simulation verification after physically verifying the layout of the mixed-signal circuit and extracting parasitic parameters.

[0067] Exemplarily, the analog auxiliary cell library construction module 301 is specifically used to: call a design package containing a digital standard cell library file format; use the design package to construct analog modules required in digital-analog mixed circuits, and obtain an analog auxiliary cell library that can be automatically recognized and called by digital back-end tools.

[0068] Exemplarily, the internal files in the analog auxiliary cell library do not contain logic function and timing information.

[0069] Exemplarily, in the RTL design stage, when the analog auxiliary unit library is called to perform digital-analog mixed circuit design, each analog auxiliary unit in the analog auxiliary unit library is called as a black box.

[0070] Exemplarily, the layout generation module 303 is specifically used to: call a digital back-end tool to perform functional verification on the mixed digital-analog circuit; call a digital back-end tool to perform logic synthesis on the mixed digital-analog circuit; call a digital back-end tool to perform automatic layout and routing on the mixed digital-analog circuit to obtain a layout of the mixed digital-analog circuit.

[0071] Exemplarily, in the stage of performing logic synthesis on the mixed digital-analog circuit, the analog auxiliary unit used in the mixed digital-analog circuit is called as a black box.

[0072] Exemplarily, the layouts of the digital standard cell library and the analog auxiliary cell library refer to the same standard cell format, and the digital standard cells in the digital standard cell library and the analog auxiliary cells in the analog auxiliary cell library are allowed to be superimposed and used.

[0073] Each module in the above-mentioned digital-analog mixed circuit design device can be implemented in whole or in part by software, hardware, or a combination thereof. Each of the above-mentioned modules can be embedded in or independent of a processor in a computer device in the form of hardware, or can be stored in a memory in a computer device in the form of software, so that the processor can call and execute operations corresponding to each of the above modules.

[0074] For example, the layout of the analog auxiliary cell library is different from the traditional analog module layout and needs to be designed in the format of the digital standard cell layout so that it can be recognized by the back-end layout and routing tools and complete automatic layout and routing. Figure 4 The layout of the PMOS switch is shown in Figure 5 The layout of the clock control comparator shown in the figure is implemented in accordance with the requirements of the digital standard unit. Among them, all MOS devices use the minimum length, have the same power ground line width and layout height as the standard digital unit, and the position of the input and output pins must also comply with the requirements of the standard unit to ensure that the analog auxiliary unit can be recognized and called by the automatic layout and routing tool, and complete the generation of the digital layout according to the normal layout and routing process.

[0075] In addition, an embodiment of the present application also provides a mixed digital-analog circuit design device, including: a processor and a memory, wherein the memory stores executable program instructions, and when the processor calls the program instructions in the memory, the processor is used to: execute the steps of the mixed digital-analog circuit design method described in the above embodiment.

[0076] It should be noted that those skilled in the art will appreciate that various aspects of the present invention may be implemented as a system (device), method or program product. Therefore, various aspects of the present invention may be specifically implemented in the following forms, namely: a complete hardware implementation, a complete software implementation (including firmware, microcode, etc.), or a combination of hardware and software, which may be collectively referred to as "circuit", "module" or "platform" herein.

[0077] It should be noted that the digital-analog hybrid circuit design method provided in the embodiment of the present application can be applied to the design of all ASIC products. Exemplary ASIC products may include: video decoders, audio decoders, Universal Serial Bus (USB), etc. Applying the method in the embodiment of the present application can effectively simplify the design process of ASIC products and shorten the design cycle.

[0078] Exemplarily, the mixed-analog circuits involved in ASIC products can be composed of logic units selected from the analog auxiliary cell library and the digital standard cell library, and designers can arrange the various logic units according to the algorithm requirements. Then, the layout of the mixed-analog circuit is automatically generated by the digital back-end tool; after the layout of the mixed-analog circuit is physically verified and parasitic parameters are extracted, post-simulation verification is performed. In this way, the layout generation of the mixed-analog circuit can be automatically completed using the digital back-end tool, and there is no need to manually complete the top-level schematic and layout.

[0079] The above describes the specific embodiments of the present invention. It should be understood that the present invention is not limited to the above specific embodiments, and those skilled in the art may make various modifications or variations within the scope of the claims, which do not affect the essence of the present invention.

Claims

1. A method for designing a mixed digital-analog circuit, characterized in that: include: Build an analog auxiliary unit library for analog modules needed in mixed analog and digital circuits; In the RTL design stage, the digital standard cell library and the analog auxiliary cell library are called to design a digital-analog mixed circuit to obtain a digital-analog mixed circuit, wherein the RTL is a register transfer level circuit; Automatically generate a layout of the mixed-analog circuit by using a digital backend tool; After physically verifying the layout of the mixed-analog circuit and extracting parasitic parameters, post-simulation verification is performed.

2. The method for designing a mixed digital-analog circuit according to claim 1, characterized in that: The analog auxiliary unit library is constructed for the analog modules needed in the digital-analog mixed circuit, including: Calling a design package containing a digital standard cell library file format; The design package is used to construct analog modules required in digital-analog mixed circuits, thereby obtaining an analog auxiliary unit library that can be automatically recognized and called by digital back-end tools.

3. The method for designing a mixed digital-analog circuit according to claim 1, characterized in that: The internal files in the analog auxiliary cell library do not contain logic function and timing information.

4. The method for designing a mixed digital-analog circuit according to claim 3, characterized in that: In the RTL design stage, when the analog auxiliary unit library is called to perform digital-analog mixed circuit design, each analog auxiliary unit in the analog auxiliary unit library is called as a black box.

5. The method for designing a mixed digital-analog circuit according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that: The automatically generating the layout of the mixed-analog circuit by a digital backend tool includes: Calling a digital backend tool to perform functional verification on the digital-analog hybrid circuit; Calling a digital backend tool to perform logic synthesis on the digital-analog mixed circuit; A digital back-end tool is called to automatically layout and route the digital-analog hybrid circuit to obtain a layout of the digital-analog hybrid circuit.

6. The method for designing a mixed digital-analog circuit according to claim 5, characterized in that: In the stage of performing logic synthesis on the mixed digital-analog circuit, the analog auxiliary unit used in the mixed digital-analog circuit is called as a black box.

7. The method for designing a mixed-analog circuit according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that: The layouts of the digital standard cell library and the analog auxiliary cell library refer to the same standard cell format, and the digital standard cells in the digital standard cell library and the analog auxiliary cells in the analog auxiliary cell library are allowed to be superimposed and used.

8. A mixed digital-analog circuit design device, characterized in that: include: An analog auxiliary unit library building module is used to build an analog auxiliary unit library for analog modules required in digital-analog mixed circuits; A digital-analog mixed circuit construction module is used to call a digital standard cell library and the analog auxiliary cell library to perform digital-analog mixed circuit design in the RTL design stage to obtain a digital-analog mixed circuit, wherein the RTL is a register transfer level circuit; A layout generation module, used for automatically generating the layout of the digital-analog hybrid circuit through a digital backend tool; The verification module is used to perform post-simulation verification after physically verifying the layout of the mixed digital-analog circuit and extracting parasitic parameters.

9. A mixed digital-analog circuit design device, characterized in that: include: A processor and a memory, wherein the memory stores executable program instructions, and when the processor calls the program instructions in the memory, the processor is used to: Execute the steps of the mixed digital-analog circuit design method as described in any one of claims 1 to 7.

10. A computer-readable storage medium for storing a program, characterized in that: When the program is executed, the steps of the digital-analog mixed circuit design method according to any one of claims 1 to 7 are implemented.

Images