Distributed RDC Analysis for Interactive IC Debug

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing EDA applications face challenges in efficiently performing reset domain crossing (RDC) analysis, which can lead to metastability issues and require significant computing resources and time.

Innovation Solution

A scalable distributed environment is employed for RDC analysis, utilizing a primary process for common tasks and spawning secondary processes in parallel to handle specific scenarios, with results merged and debugged interactively.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Productivity

If traditional EDA applications perform RDC analysis using a single process, then the analysis can be completed, but the computing resources and time required are excessive

Engineering Contradiction:

ImproveRDC analysis speedVSAvoidRDC analysis time

Core Design Contradiction:

ProductivityVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The patent divides the RDC analysis process into multiple independent secondary processes that can execute in parallel. Each secondary process handles a specific scenario or portion of the design, allowing the overall analysis to be segmented into concurrent tasks that reduce total execution time and improve productivity.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

2Productivity

If multiple secondary processes are spawned in parallel for RDC analysis, then computing efficiency improves, but system complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:

ImproveRDC analysis efficiencyVSAvoiddistributed system complexity

Core Design Contradiction:

ProductivityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The primary process serves as an intermediary that coordinates between the user and multiple secondary processes. It manages the spawning, monitoring, and result aggregation of secondary processes, thereby handling the system complexity centrally while allowing individual secondary processes to remain simple and focused on specific analysis tasks.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

3Reliability

If RDC analysis is performed comprehensively to identify all metastability issues, then design reliability improves, but the computing resources required increase significantly

Engineering Contradiction:

ImproveIC design reliabilityVSAvoidcomputing resource consumption

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSUse of energy by moving object

Solution Approach 1:

The system performs RDC analysis on specific scenarios or portions of the design through secondary processes rather than attempting to analyze the entire design simultaneously. This partial action approach maintains comprehensive coverage of critical metastability issues while reducing overall computing resource consumption by dividing the analysis into manageable segments.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #16Partial or excessive action

Data Source

PatentUS20260050721A1Scalable distributed environment for reset domain crossing analysis and interactive debug

Publication Date: 2026.02.19 SYNOPSYS INC

AI summary

An integrated circuit (IC) design may be received by a first process. First reset domain crossing (RDC) analysis may be performed by the first process on the IC design to generate first RDC analysis results. A set of processes may be spawned by the first process, where a second process in the set of processes may read the first RDC analysis results, obtain information for an RDC scenario from the first process, perform second RDC analysis on the IC design based on the information for the RDC scenario to obtain second RDC analysis results, and send the second RDC analysis results to the first process. The second RDC analysis results received from the set of processes may be merged by the first process to obtain merged RDC analysis results.