Array Concatenation in Integrated Circuit Design
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing integrated circuit design processes face challenges in reducing the size of memory array representations, which hinders synthesis and verification efficiency due to performance overheads in evaluating large arrays and limitations in hardware accelerators, formal verification techniques, and port connectivity.
Innovation Solution
The method involves mechanisms to minimize memory array representations by eliminating redundant columns and ports, coalescing ports with equivalent addresses, simplifying enable conditions, and concatenating arrays with compatible ports, thereby reducing the number of arrays and address pins in a netlist.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If the size of memory arrays is reduced, then synthesis and verification efficiency is improved, but the complexity of array representations increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges multiple memory arrays into a single reduced array by concatenating their data elements. This consolidation reduces the total number of arrays from N to 1, thereby improving synthesis and verification efficiency while managing representation complexity through systematic combination of array elements from multiple sources.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent extracts and eliminates redundant columns and ports from the array representations. By removing unnecessary elements and consolidating duplicate structures, the patent reduces array size and complexity, directly addressing the contradiction between representation size and synthesis/verification efficiency.
2Adaptability or versatility
If the number of memory arrays is reduced, then hardware accelerator limitations are better satisfied, but information loss may occur
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges data elements from multiple memory arrays into a single consolidated array, preserving all necessary information through systematic concatenation. This merging process ensures that no information is lost while reducing the total number of arrays to comply with hardware accelerator limitations.
Solution Approach 2:
The reduced array structure serves multiple functions simultaneously, representing data from originally separate arrays while maintaining compatibility with hardware accelerator constraints. The universal array representation can handle operations that would have required multiple specialized arrays, thereby adapting to hardware limitations without information loss.
3Quantity of substance
If array ports are coalesced and redundant columns eliminated, then the number of address pins is reduced, but port connectivity complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges multiple port connections into unified port structures, eliminating redundant columns and consolidating address pin requirements. This consolidation reduces the total number of address pins while managing connectivity complexity through systematic port unification across multiple arrays.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent extracts and removes redundant port connections and columns from the array representations. By eliminating unnecessary ports and address pins, the patent reduces the quantity of address pins while managing connectivity complexity through targeted removal of redundant elements.
Data Source
AI summary
Mechanisms are provided in a design environment for array concatenation. The design environment comprises one mechanism to concatenate arrays with enable- and address-compatible ports, thereby reducing the number of arrays in a netlist. The design environment comprises another mechanism to migrate read ports from one array to another based upon compatible enable-, address-, and data-compatible write ports, thereby reducing the number of arrays in a netlist. The design environment comprises yet another mechanism to eliminate unnecessary arrays.