3D Hierarchical Schematic Visualization for EDA Navigation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing Electronic Design Automation (EDA) systems struggle with fragmented representations of hierarchical designs, making it difficult for users to comprehend and navigate complex designs, especially when dealing with designs they are not originally created, leading to confusion and errors.
Innovation Solution
A three-dimensional (3D) graphical user interface (GUI) is used to display designs, with levels represented along different axes, allowing simultaneous viewing of multiple levels and components, and enabling interaction and editing through a processor-based system.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of information
If multiple windows are opened to display different levels of hierarchy, then details of components at different levels can be viewed, but the interface becomes fragmented and difficult to navigate
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple hierarchical levels into a single integrated display window, eliminating the need for multiple separate windows. Different levels of the design hierarchy are presented together in one cohesive interface, allowing users to view both high-level architecture and detailed components simultaneously without switching between windows.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a spatial dimension to the display by arranging hierarchical levels in different regions or planes within the same window. This dimensional organization allows users to visually distinguish between different levels while maintaining a unified view, transforming the flat single-window interface into a multi-layered spatial representation.
2Loss of information
If numerous windows are opened to view different hierarchical levels, then component details become accessible, but time consumption increases due to cycling between windows
Solution Approach 1:
By merging all hierarchical levels into one display, the patent eliminates the time-consuming process of opening, switching, and closing multiple windows. Users can access component details at any level immediately without navigation delays, as all levels are simultaneously visible in the unified interface.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent performs preliminary organization of all hierarchical levels within the single display before the user needs to view them. The system pre-arranges components from different levels in their appropriate spatial positions, so when users need to analyze the design, everything is already in place and accessible without any setup or navigation time.
3Adaptability or versatility
If hierarchical design is organized into multiple levels, then design reusability and organization improve, but visualization of overall structure becomes difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses spatial arrangement within the single display to represent hierarchical levels, creating a visual map of the overall structure. Different levels are positioned in different regions or at different visual depths, allowing users to grasp the complete hierarchical organization at a glance while maintaining the benefits of multi-level design organization.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent segments the display into distinct regions or zones, each representing a different hierarchical level. This segmentation allows the overall structure to be visually parsed into manageable sections while maintaining the complete picture, making it easy to understand both the big picture and the details simultaneously.
Data Source
AI summary
A design is schematically displayed using a three-dimensional (3D) graphical user interface (GUI) by displaying, via the 3D GUI, a first plane extending along a first axis and a second axis different from the first axis, including displaying symbols corresponding to a set of first-level components of a first level of the design disposed on the first plane; and a second plane extending along the first axis and second axis, including displaying symbols corresponding to a first set of second-level components of a second level of the design disposed on the second plane. The two planes are displayed simultaneously, and respectively disposed at first and second positions along a third axis different from the first and second axes. Each level of the design may correspond to a respective level of a hierarchy of the design, a respective substrate the design will be implemented on, or a combination thereof.