IC Global Routing Patching for Lower DRC Violations
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current global routing solutions in IC design often fail to provide high-quality guidance to detailed routing, leading to costly and unpredictable failures due to unacceptably high design rule check violations, and existing methods lack a direct connection between global and detailed routing stages in commercial EDA tools.
Innovation Solution
A hybrid genetic metaheuristic approach that systematically patches problematic areas of global routing solutions using pieces from other solutions, generating superior global routing outcomes that reduce design rule check violations in detailed routing.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If conventional global routing methods are used, then the routing process can be completed, but the design rule check violations in detailed routing remain unacceptably high
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by performing global routing optimization before detailed routing begins. The genetic algorithm generates optimized route guides that serve as preliminary solutions, reducing the need for subsequent detailed routing iterations and minimizing design rule check violations from the outset.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements feedback by using design rule check results from detailed routing to evaluate and refine global routing solutions. The genetic algorithm uses this feedback to iteratively improve route guides, creating a closed-loop system that continuously reduces violations while maintaining routing efficiency.
2Manufacturing precision
If global and detailed routing stages are disconnected, then each stage can be optimized independently, but the overall routing quality deteriorates due to lack of coordination
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges global and detailed routing stages by establishing a direct feedback loop between them. The genetic algorithm in global routing uses design rule check results from detailed routing to optimize route guides, creating an integrated system that improves overall routing quality while managing complexity through automated coordination.
3Reliability
If standard routing iterations are performed without optimization, then the process remains simple, but the number of design rule check violations remains high
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies self-service by implementing an automated genetic algorithm that independently optimizes global routing solutions. The system evaluates its own performance through design rule check feedback and automatically refines route guides without manual intervention, achieving high design rule compliance through self-directed optimization.
Data Source
AI summary
A method for automatically creating a global routing solution for an integrated circuit. The method includes generating n original population of GR solutions. In one or more subsequent phases the method generates succeeding populations of GR solutions. The generation of each succeeding population includes determining a plurality of base GR solutions from the current population of GR solutions, determining a plurality of DRC hotspot areas within the plurality of base GR solutions, determining a plurality of patching GR solutions from which patches may be extracted, and hybridizing patching of GR solutions into base GR solutions.