Concurrent Placement and Routing via Extended Network Graph

Resolve Bottlenecks,
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions

Solution Overview

Problem

Conventional place and route flows for integrated circuits separate placement and routing steps, limiting the exploitation of synergies between them and relying on routing estimates for placement decisions, which may not reflect actual routing possibilities.

Innovation Solution

A method and system that combine logical and physical networks to perform placement and routing concurrently by converting the physical network into a routing graph and adding logical nodes to create an extended network, allowing actual routing decisions to guide placement.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Manufacturing precision

If placement and routing are performed separately with routing estimates, then the process is simpler and more manageable, but the placement quality is degraded because routing estimates do not reflect actual routing possibilities

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveplacement qualityVSAvoidprocess complexity

Core Design Contradiction:

Manufacturing precisionVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent merges placement and routing into a single concurrent operation by combining the logical network with the routing graph to form an extended network. This allows placement decisions to be made with actual routing information rather than estimates, improving placement quality while accepting increased process complexity.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #5Merging (Combining)

2Manufacturing precision

If placement and routing are performed concurrently on an extended network, then synergies between placement and routing are exploited and results quality is improved, but the computational complexity and processing time increase

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveresults qualityVSAvoidprocessing time

Core Design Contradiction:

Manufacturing precisionVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The patent enables continuous interaction between placement and routing decisions through the extended network structure. Routing information continuously guides placement decisions, and placement decisions continuously affect routing possibilities, eliminating the sequential wait-time between separate operations and improving overall results quality.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #20Continuity of useful action

3Productivity

If placement decisions are based on routing estimates, then the placement process is faster and more efficient, but delays and congestion increase due to inaccurate placement

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveplacement efficiencyVSAvoidrouting accuracy

Core Design Contradiction:

ProductivityVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The patent implements feedback by incorporating actual routing graph information into the placement process through the extended network. Placement decisions receive continuous feedback from real routing possibilities rather than estimates, improving routing accuracy while maintaining placement efficiency through integrated processing.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #23Feedback

Data Source

PatentUS10614191B1Performing placement and routing concurrently

Publication Date: 2020.04.07 XILINX INC

AI summary

Method and system relate generally to generating a physical design for a circuit design. In such a method, a logical network is obtained from a logical netlist for the circuit design. A physical network for an integrated circuit chip is obtained. The physical network is converted into a routing graph. The logical network and the routing graph are combined to build an extended network. Routing is performed on the extended network for the logical netlist to perform placement and the routing concurrently to provide the physical design.