CAD initiative picks IBM design model

Electronic News, June 24, 1996

Austin, Texas--The CAD Framework Initiative (CFI) selected IBM's Integrated Data Model on which to develop a standard design data model and programming interface.

Though the announcement did not come as a surprise, CFI was awarded the Sematech contract to acquire, enhance and standardize a design data model and PI upon which Sematech's Chip Hierarchical Design System (CHDS) will be built (EN, April 15) and IBM is key to work Sematech awarded to Synopsys recently for the CHDS for timing-driven electrical and physical design (EN, June 3).

CFI called their buy of IBM's model a major step toward bridging the gap between logical and physical design tools. CFI said they signed an agreement with IBM that transfers the copyrights for the data model and PI to CFI.

The data model and PI currently embody information about a design's connectivity, constraints for timing, power and area, floorplan clustering and physical layout including detailed placement and routing information. The data model and PI, which represent third-generation technology, are utilized by a variety of IBM's tools including synthesis, timing analysis, floorplanning and place and route tools used in the design of complex integrated circuits.

This effort, CFI said, is part of a design tools initiative formed by Sematech in the middle of last year to architect and build an EDA tool flow capable of designing complex ICs using 0.25-micron and below technologies.

Sematech awarded a contract to Synopsys as prime contractor to develop the new design system and the CAD group will work with Synopsys and other awardees of EDA-related Sematech contracts to enhance the IDM and PI to align them with existing standards such as SDF, DCL, SPEF, PDEF and to add refinements on the physical data required to handle 0.25-micron and below technologies used by Sematech member companies.

Greg Ledenbach, director of design at Sematech, said: "Sematech's Chip Hierarchical Design System is architected as a timing-driven flow with tight links between logical and physical design. To bridge the gap between these worlds, we must agree on data that will be shared by the tools and the methods that will be used to access the data.

"Once established, we will standardize the information for industry use. That's where the CFI data model and programming interface come into play," he continued.

The technology transfer of the IDM and PI to CFI is similar to the agreement between IBM and CFI established a year ago whereby IBM transferred the Delay Calculation Language (DCL) and PI to CFI for industry standardization. The DCL language and PI went from a proprietary language to a draft standard in just over a one-year period, CFI said.

An IBM Research unit is located in Austin, as well.