Timing Analysis for Rise Fall Skew at Intermediate Nodes
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Solution Overview
Problem
Traditional timing analysis methods fail to account for rise/fall skew in data paths, leading to erroneous timing closure reports in systems, which can result in functional failures due to data corruption at intermediate nodes.
Innovation Solution
A method and apparatus for performing timing analysis that specifically checks for rise and fall skew at intermediate nodes by comparing maximum and minimum arrival times along data paths, ensuring valid signal propagation to destinations.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If traditional timing analysis is used, then the analysis process is simple and fast, but it fails to detect data corruption at intermediate nodes due to rise/fall skew
Solution Approach 1:
The timing analysis is segmented into multiple phases: traditional end-to-end path analysis, and additional intermediate node analysis. The intermediate node checking specifically examines rise/fall skew effects at each node along the data path, separating this complex analysis from the overall timing closure process while maintaining comprehensive coverage.
Solution Approach 2:
The method performs preliminary checks at intermediate nodes before final timing closure verification. By analyzing rise/fall skew effects at intermediate nodes in advance, the system identifies potential data corruption issues early in the design process, preventing false timing closure reports.
2Reliability
If rise/fall skew analysis is performed at intermediate nodes, then data corruption detection is improved, but computational overhead increases
Solution Approach 1:
The analysis applies local quality checking at intermediate nodes by examining only the specific rise/fall skew characteristics relevant to each node's data path. Instead of performing comprehensive analysis on entire system paths, the method focuses computational resources on localized intermediate node properties where skew effects manifest.
Solution Approach 2:
The method performs partial timing analysis by checking only the critical intermediate nodes where rise/fall skew is most likely to cause data corruption, rather than analyzing every node in the system. This selective approach reduces computational overhead while maintaining sufficient detection capability.
Data Source
AI summary
A method for designing a system on a target device includes performing timing analysis at an intermediate node on a data path from a source to a destination to determine whether rise and fall skew of components on the data path could result in data not being sampled at the destination.