Modern ASIC Design with VHDL: Structured Logic Concepts

1. VHDLStructured Logic Design Ivan Dugic idugic@verat.net Veljko Milutinovic vm@etf.bg.ac.yu School of Electrical Engineering University of Belgrade Department of Computer Engineering

2. Table of contents • HDL Introduction • Structured Design Concepts • Basic Features of VHDL • Design Process Highlights Ivan Dugicidugic@verat.net

3. HDL Introduction Ivan Dugicidugic@verat.net

4. HDL Introduction Modern chip design aspects • Modern chips became too complex • The number of transistors in a modern chip is over a 100 M • Transistor count per chip and chip speed rise up to 50% per year • Estimated time needed for manual implementation (100 M transistor, 10 sec/transistor) – 135.5 years!!! Ivan Dugicidugic@verat.net

5. HDL Introduction Modern ASIC design approach • ASIC – Application Specific Integrated Circuit • Modeling system should be designed and described in the highest abstraction level possible • Simulation and testing at high abstraction level • Conversion of the modeled system into the low abstraction level model (gate, circuit, silicon level) using sophisticated synthesis tools • Key point – CAD (Computer Aided Design) Ivan Dugicidugic@verat.net

6. HDL Introduction Modern ASIC design approach • HDLs (Hardware Description Languages) are used for system description at the high abstraction level Design RTL Model Description Simulation & Testing HIGH ABSTRACTION LEVEL Conversion LOW ABSTRACTION LEVEL Gate Level Model Ivan Dugicidugic@verat.net

7. HDL Introduction VHDL • VHDL - VHSIC Hardware Description Language • VHSIC - Very High Speed Integrated Circuit • Development of VHDL began in 1983, sponsored by Department of defense, further developed by the IEEE and released as IEEE Standard 1076 in 1987 • Today it is De facto industry standard for hardware description languages Ivan Dugicidugic@verat.net

8. Structural Design Concepts Ivan Dugicidugic@verat.net

9. Structural Design Concepts The abstraction hierarchy • The abstraction hierarchy can be expressed in two domains: structural domain, behavioral domain • Structural domain – component model is described in terms of an interconnection of more primitive components • Behavioral domain – component model is described by defining its input/output response • VHDL is used for both structural and behavioral description • Six abstraction hierarchy levels of detail commonly used in design: silicon, circuit, gate, register, chip and system Ivan Dugicidugic@verat.net

10. Structural Design Concepts Design process • The design cycle consists of a series of transformations, synthesis steps: (1) Transformation from English to an algorithmic representation, natural language synthesis (2) Translation from an algorithmic representation to a data flow representation, algorithmic synthesis (3)Translation from data flow representation to a structural logic gate representation, logic synthesis (4) Translation from logic gate to layout and circuit representation, layout synthesis Ivan Dugicidugic@verat.net

11. Structural Design Concepts Design process • The design cycle steps can be carried out automatically in all stages except the first that is currently an active area of research • VHDL tools are used for algorithmic synthesis Ivan Dugicidugic@verat.net

12. Structural Design Concepts Design tools • Editors – textual (circuit level – SPICE gate, register, chip – VHDL) or graphic (used at all levels) • Simulators – stochastic (system level) or deterministic (all levels above the silicon level) • Checkers and Analyzers – employed at all levels, used for example (1) to insure that the circuit layout can be fabricated reliably (rule checkers), (2) to check for the longest path through a logic circuit or system (timing analyzers) • Synthesizers and Optimizers – improving a form of the design representation Ivan Dugicidugic@verat.net

13. Basic Features of VHDL Ivan Dugicidugic@verat.net

14. Basic Features of VHDL Design entities • In VHDL a logic circuit is represented as a design entity • A design entity consists of two different VHDL types of description: (1) Interface description (reserved word is entity) (2) One or more architectural bodies (reserved word is architecture) entity D_FF defining D FF interface (ports) D Q D FF R CLK architecture of D_FF specifying the behavior of the entity Designed digital device VHDL representation Ivan Dugicidugic@verat.net

15. Basic Features of VHDL Entity • The entity part provides system’s interface specification as seen from the outside and is generally comprised of: (1) Parameters (such as bus width or max clock frequency) (2) Connections (system input and output ports) entityDesignEntityNameis -- parameters … -- connections port (ports); end entityDesignEntityName; Ivan Dugicidugic@verat.net

16. Basic Features of VHDL Architectural bodies • Architectural bodies are specifying the behavior of the entity architectureArchitectureNameof DesignEntityNameis -- signal declarations begin -- concurrent statements end architectureArchitectureName; • There are two types of architectural bodies: algorithmic, structural • Algorithmic - at the beginning of the design process, designers usually would like to check the accuracy of the algorithm without specifying the detailed implementation • Structural - the logic design stage, detailed implementation, entity as a set of interrelated components Ivan Dugicidugic@verat.net

17. Basic Features of VHDL Processes • Process is another major modeling element in VHDL: ProcessLabel: ProcessName (sensitivity_list_of_signals) is begin -- sequential statements; end process; • Processes are used inside architectural bodies, specifying entity behavioral in algorithmic way • Whenever a signal in sensitivity list changes, the process is activated • Process execution is similar to program execution, barring one important difference: a process generally repeats indefinitely Ivan Dugicidugic@verat.net

18. Basic Features of VHDL Sequential and parallel processing • The statements within process are performed sequentially • The statements within architectural body are performed concurrent • Sequential and concurrent combination is called VHDL duality and it presents powerful mechanism for description of complex systems Ivan Dugicidugic@verat.net

19. Basic Features of VHDL Variables and signals • VHDL variable concept in many ways correspondents to a variable inherited from traditional sequential programming • Signals are the basic vehicle for information transmission in electronic systems • Signals model real devices’ wires and buses • Variable assignment is different from signal assignment • Main difference between variables and signals is that signal changes are visible only after process termination Ivan Dugicidugic@verat.net

20. Design Process Highlights Ivan Dugicidugic@verat.net

21. Design Process Highlights MAC (Multiply Accumulator) unit • Incoming part is based on MAC unit design and synthesis as part of Computer VLSI Systems, subject lectured by Dr. Veljko Milutinovic • Basic specification elements of MAC unit: (1) purpose – hardware support for numerous succeeding multiplication (2) Wishbone compatible (3) structural elements: FIFO, sequential multiplier, accumulator • MAC units are used as special CPU resource for digital signal processing Ivan Dugicidugic@verat.net

22. Design Process Highlights MAC (Multiply Accumulator) unit • MAC unit conceptual scheme: MAC unit FIFO Sequential Multiplier Accumulator Wishbone Interface data flow control data flow Ivan Dugicidugic@verat.net

23. Design Process Highlights MAC (Multiply Accumulator) unit • MAC unit detailed scheme – synthesis outcome: Ivan Dugicidugic@verat.net

24. Design Process Highlights MAC: Lessons Learned • Testing is extremely important aspect of device design • In the component design process it is essential to test all structure components of top-level entity separately, and after that top-level entity itself • While projecting MAC unit so called Regression Testing is used • Regression Testing includes testing both structural and behavioral architecture of every entity simultaneously Ivan Dugicidugic@verat.net

25. Design Process Highlights MAC: Lessons Learned • An example of regressive testing: entity TestBench is end entity TestBench; architecture Regression of TestBench is -- signal declaration begin BehModel: entity myModel (beh) port map (…); StructModel:entity myModel (struct) port map (…); stimulus: process is begin -- stimulation end process stimulus; Ivan Dugicidugic@verat.net

26. Design Process Highlights MAC: Lessons Learned verify: process (…) is begin assertbehOutSignal_i= structOutSignal_iand behOutSignal_j = structOutSignal_j report “Implementation Error!” severity error; end process verify; end architecture Regression; Ivan Dugicidugic@verat.net

27. Design Process Highlights MAC: Lessons Learned • Special problem in hardware component design: accommodation of VHDL source code with tool for synthesis • It is possible that VHDL code can be compiled regularly but synthesis tool registers errors • The solution of the problem: VHDL coding concerning synthesis tool requirements • It is necessary that VHDL code describes designed device as close as possible to the particular hardware elements which synthesis tool recognizes and synthesizes easily Ivan Dugicidugic@verat.net

28. References • James R. Armstrong, F. Gail Gray, Structured Logic Design with VHDL • Peter J. Ashenden, The Designer’s Guide to VHDL • Milutinovic Veljko, Surviving the Design of a 200 MHz RISC Microprocessor:Lessons Learned Ivan Dugicidugic@verat.net

29. Authors • Ivan Dugic, idugic@verat.net • Dr. Veljko Milutinovic, vm@galeb.etf.bg.ac.yu Ivan Dugicidugic@verat.net