Transient Error Vulnerability Categorization in Circuit Flops
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing methods for analyzing the reliability of data processing circuits are inadequate as they do not accurately reflect the actual reliability of flops or circuit blocks, and are inconsistent, leading to unreliable safety assessments.
Innovation Solution
An apparatus and method that categorize flops as vulnerable, conditionally vulnerable, or isolated based on their vulnerability to transient errors, allowing for the determination of currently vulnerable flops during processing cycles, and adjust categorization to improve reliability by disabling conditionally vulnerable modules, thereby enhancing the accuracy and consistency of reliability analysis.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If previously proposed techniques consider the extent to which flops or circuit blocks are active or utilised during execution of a specific program, then the analysis can be performed, but the activity or utilization of a flop or circuit block does not represent the actual reliability of the block
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the circuit analysis by categorizing individual flops into three distinct vulnerability categories (vulnerable, conditionally vulnerable, isolated) based on their specific characteristics and error propagation potential. This segmentation allows for precise measurement of each flop's contribution to circuit reliability rather than treating all active flops uniformly.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies local quality by assigning different vulnerability characteristics to different flops within the same circuit based on their specific positions, functions, and error propagation behaviors. Each flop is analyzed individually to determine its unique vulnerability category, enabling accurate local reliability assessment that reflects actual circuit behavior.
2Productivity
If activity-based analysis is used to assess circuit reliability, then the analysis can be conducted, but the results are not consistent and cannot be trusted
Solution Approach 1:
The patent performs preliminary action by pre-categorizing each flop into vulnerability categories during circuit design or initialization, before actual execution. This preliminary classification creates a stable foundation for reliability analysis that remains consistent across different execution scenarios, enabling both efficient and trustworthy assessment.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent incorporates feedback mechanisms that track the actual execution states of flops and compare them against the pre-established vulnerability categories. This feedback loop ensures that the reliability analysis remains consistent with actual circuit behavior while maintaining the efficiency of pre-categorized analysis.
Data Source
AI summary
An apparatus is provided to measure vulnerability of a circuit to transient errors. The circuit includes processing circuitry and a plurality of flops. The apparatus includes categorisation obtaining circuitry that obtains a vulnerability categorisation of the flops. The vulnerability categorisation indicates whether each flop is vulnerable, conditionally vulnerable, or isolated. Analysis circuitry determines, for at least one cycle of the processing circuitry, a set of the flops that are currently vulnerable, based on the vulnerability categorisation of the flops.