Clock Gating Opportunity Detection in Pipelined Circuits
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current methods for identifying clock gating opportunities in pipelined electronic circuits are inadequate, leading to suboptimal power reduction in processors, as they fail to fully explore potential scenarios for clock gating, especially in complex architectures.
Innovation Solution
A design structure and method using simulation-based analysis in a computer-aided design system to identify clock gating opportunities in pipeline stages, where logic elements are clock-gated under predetermined conditions to conserve power, utilizing hardware description language (HDL) to generate a machine-executable representation of the processor device.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of energy
If manual study and simulation are used to determine clock gating opportunities, then power consumption can be reduced, but the design process becomes complex and time-consuming
Solution Approach 1:
The system automatically performs clock gating opportunity detection by analyzing the pipeline stage representation and determining clock gating opportunities without requiring manual study. The computer-aided design system self-determines which latches can be clock-gated based on predetermined conditions, eliminating the need for manual analysis while reducing power consumption.
Solution Approach 2:
The manual mechanical process of studying and simulating clock gating opportunities is replaced by an automated computer-based system. The computer-aided design system uses algorithms to automatically analyze pipeline stages and identify clock gating opportunities, substituting manual simulation with automated computational analysis.
2Loss of energy
If clock gating is applied to reduce latch clock activity, then power consumption decreases, but the risk of improper latch operation increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary analysis of the pipeline stage representation to determine predetermined conditions before applying clock gating. By pre-analyzing the pipeline stages and identifying safe clock gating opportunities in advance, the system ensures that clock gating is only applied when it will not affect latch functionality, thus maintaining reliability while reducing power consumption.
Solution Approach 2:
The computer-aided design system provides feedback by analyzing the pipeline stage representation and determining whether clock gating opportunities exist based on predetermined conditions. This feedback mechanism ensures that clock gating is applied only when safe, preventing improper latch operation while maximizing power savings.
3Loss of energy
If comprehensive simulation is performed to identify all clock gating opportunities, then power reduction is optimized, but the analysis time increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system segments the pipeline into multiple stages, each represented as a separate pipeline stage representation. By analyzing each segment independently and using the hierarchical structure of the pipeline, the system can efficiently identify clock gating opportunities across all stages without requiring exhaustive simulation of the entire complex system, thus reducing analysis time while maintaining comprehensive power reduction.
Data Source
AI summary
A design structure for a pipeline electronic processor device may be embodied in a machine readable medium for designing, manufacturing or testing a processor integrated circuit. The design structure may embody a pipeline electronic circuit that enables power conservation in the stages of the pipeline via a simulation that identifies clock-gating opportunities among the stages of the pipeline. In one embodiment, simulation results assist a designer in the design of the pipeline electronic circuit design structure to achieve power conservation by incorporating clock-gating circuitry among the stages of the pipeline at clock gating opportunity locations that the simulation identifies.