TDM Routing for IC Net Congestion and Runtime
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current integrated circuit (IC) design techniques using time-division multiplexing (TDM) face challenges in efficiently routing nets across different fabric sub-regions, leading to routing congestion and increased runtime during the design flow, particularly for circuit designs operating at lower clock frequencies.
Innovation Solution
The method involves determining net signatures for each net, grouping them based on distance and TDM ratio, and connecting TDM transmitter and receiver circuits through selected interconnects to reduce the number of nets competing for long wires, thereby reducing routing congestion and enabling parallelization of implementation tools.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If traditional routing techniques are used to route nets across fabric sub-regions, then routing can be performed, but routing congestion increases and runtime increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments nets into different groups based on their destination fabric sub-regions and routes them through dedicated TDM transmitter/receiver circuits. This segmentation allows multiple nets to be routed simultaneously without congestion by dividing the routing task into manageable portions handled by separate circuit instances.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces TDM transmitter circuits and TDM receiver circuits as intermediary components between source and destination fabric sub-regions. These intermediaries manage the routing process by serializing and deserializing signals, thereby reducing direct routing congestion between sub-regions and enabling more efficient net transmission.
2Productivity
If traditional routing techniques are used, then routing can be performed, but EDA system runtime increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent performs preliminary actions by pre-configuring TDM transmitter and receiver circuits at designated locations within fabric sub-regions before routing occurs. This preliminary setup eliminates the need for dynamic routing decisions during the EDA process, significantly reducing runtime while maintaining routing effectiveness.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the operational parameters of net transmission by introducing time-division multiplexing with specific clock frequencies (e.g., 100 MHz for data transmission and 200 MHz for TDM operations). This parameter change enables faster routing operations and reduces EDA system runtime by optimizing the timing characteristics of signal transmission.
3Adaptability or versatility
If more nets are routed through long wires, then connectivity is achieved, but routing congestion increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent makes TDM transmitter and receiver circuits universal components that can handle multiple nets simultaneously. Each TDM circuit instance serves multiple destination sub-regions, allowing a single circuit to manage multiple routing tasks and reducing the overall number of competing nets for dedicated wiring resources.
Data Source
AI summary
Implementing a circuit design using time-division multiplexing (TDM) can include determining a net signature for each of a plurality of nets of a circuit design. For each net, the net signature specifies location information for a driver and one or more loads of the net. The plurality of nets having a same net signature can be grouped according to distance between drivers of the respective nets. One or more subgroups can be generated based on a TDM ratio for each group. For one or more of the subgroups, a TDM transmitter circuit is connected to a TDM receiver circuit through a selected interconnect, the drivers of the nets of the subgroup are connected to the TDM transmitter circuit, and loads of the nets of the subgroup are connected to the TDM receiver circuit.