Abstract: Systems and methods are disclosed that implement a tool for executing performance-aware topology synthesis of a network, such as a network-on-chip (NoC). The tool is provided with network information. The tool uses the network information to automatically determine data width and clock speed for each element in the network that meet the network's constraints and performance requirements. The tool is able to provide the performance-aware topology synthesis rapidly, while honoring the objectives and the network's constraints.

Abstract: System and methods are disclosed to qualify networks properties and that can be used for topology synthesis of networks, such as a network-on-chip (NoC). In accordance with various embodiments and different aspects of the invention, quality metric are generated, analyzed, and used to determine a quantitative quality set of values for a given generated solution for a network. The method disclosed allows the network designer or an automated network generation process to understand if the results produced are a good, an average or a bad solution. The advantage of the invention includes simplification of design process and the work of the designer by using quality metrics. Various quality metrics are generated using network definitions. These quality metrics provide quality evaluation and the quality assessment of the optimization process for a generated (optimized) network. The quality metrics include analyzing latency through a network and analyzing total wore length used by the network.

Abstract: A system and method for soft locking on an ingress port of a networking device in a network, such as a network-on-chip (NoC). Once a soft lock is established, the port is given transmitting priority so long has the port has an available packet or packet parts that can make forward progress in the network. When the soft lock port's packet parts, which can make forward progress in the network, are not available, the networking device may choose another port. The system transmits packet parts from the other port until the soft locked port has packet parts available that can make forward progress in the network. Any arbitration scheme may be used to select the port that is soft locked and to select the other ports to transmit from when the soft locked port does not have packet parts that can make forward progress in the network. Once the packet (or all the packet parts) on the soft locked port has completed transmission, the soft lock of the soft locked port is released.

Abstract: Systems and methods are disclosed synthesis of network, such as a network-on-chip (NoC). The network is initially synthesized. In accordance with various embodiments and aspects of the invention, a tool is used to synthesize and generate the NoC from a set of constraints. The tool produces consistent results between different synthesis runs, which have slight varying constraints.

Abstract: A system and method for adding interface protection to an electronic design using parameters. The electronic design and interface protection scheme are defined as parameters. An interface protection model creates interface protection implementation parameters that describe the implementation details of the interface protection. A hardware description model uses the electronic design parameters and the interface protection implementation parameters to create a hardware description. The interface protection scheme can be a built-in protection scheme, a user defined scheme, a scheme that includes place holders that the user may define later, and a combination of the preceding. The interface protection scheme may contain components to help with the retiming of the description of hardware.

Abstract: System and method are disclosed to detect potential failures in a network-on-chip (NoC) before the potential failures happen. The system tests connectivity from a master to all slaves by sending scrub transactions to test all paths. The scrub transactions are identified using a scrub bit. The scrub transactions are generated at a master scrubbing block/unit and terminated at a slave scrubbing block/unit. The slave scrubbing block sends scrub responses to the scrub transactions along the response path. The scrub responses to the scrub transactions are generated at the slave scrubbing block and terminated at the master scrubbing block. This allows detection of potential failures, which are reported to a system monitor. If a potential failure is detected, the system transitions to a fail-safe mode before the failure occurs.

Abstract: A tool is disclosed that includes a discriminant module. The discriminant module finds one configuration, which is selected from many different possible and legal configurations, that is optimal. The optimal configuration is translated into a set of optimized parameters (identified from the library of parameters that the user can select from) and provided to the designer. The designer reviews (and can manually revise or change) the optimized parameters. The optimized parameters are translated into engineering parameters. The engineering parameters are passed, as an input, to the RTL generation module. The RTL generation module produces the RTL description of the hardware function that is optimal and meets the designer's defined requirements.

Abstract: A cache coherent system includes a directory with more than one snoop filter, each of which stores information in a different set of snoop filter entries. Each snoop filter is associated with a subset of all caching agents within the system. Each snoop filter uses an algorithm chosen for best performance on the caching agents associated with the snoop filter. The number of snoop filter entries in each snoop filter is primarily chosen based on the caching capacity of just the caching agents associated with the snoop filter. The type of information stored in each snoop filter entry of each snoop filter is chosen to meet the desired filtering function of the specific snoop filter.

Abstract: Systems and methods are disclosed for synthesis of a network, such as a network-on-chip (NoC), to generate a network description. The system generates a NoC description from a set of physical constraints and performance constraints as well as a set of inputs to a sequencer. The system produces the NoC with all its elements. The resulting network description output includes placement of elements on a floorplan of a chip that represents the network, such as the NoC.

Abstract: A system and method for adding interface protection to an electronic design using parameters. The electronic design and interface protection scheme are defined as parameters. An interface protection model creates interface protection implementation parameters that describe the implementation details of the interface protection. A hardware description model uses the electronic design parameters and the interface protection implementation parameters to create a hardware description. The interface protection scheme can be a built-in protection scheme, a user defined scheme, a scheme that includes place holders that the user may define later, and a combination of the preceding. The interface protection scheme may contain components to help with the retiming of the description of hardware.

Abstract: System and methods are disclosed for aggregating identical requests sent to a target from multiple initiators through a network-on-chip (NoC). The requests are marked for aggregation. The NoC uses request aggregators (RA) as an aggregation point to aggregate the identical requests that are marked for aggregation. At the aggregation point, the identical requests are reduced to a single request. The single request is sent to the target. The process is repeated in a cascaded fashion through the NoC, possibly involving multiple request aggregators. When a response transaction is received back from the target, which is at the aggregation point closest to the target, the response transaction is duplicated and sent to every original requester, either directly or through other request aggregators, which further duplicate the already duplicated response transaction.

Abstract: A resilient system implementation in a network-on-ship with at least one functional logic unit and at least one duplicated logic unit. A resilient system and method, in accordance with the invention, are disclosed for detecting a fault or an uncorrectable error and isolating the fault. Isolation of the fault prevents further propagation of the fault throughout the system. The resilient system includes isolation logic or an isolation unit that isolates the fault.

Abstract: A system, and corresponding method, is described for finding the optimal or the best set of routes from a master to each of its connected slaves, for all the masters and slaves using a Network-on-Chip (NoC). More precisely, some embodiments of the invention apply to a class of NoCs that utilize a two-dimensional mesh topology, wherein a set of switches are arranged on a two-dimensional grid. Masters (initiators or sources) inject data packets or traffic into the NoC. Slaves (targets or destinations) service the data packets or traffic traveling through the NoC. The NoC includes switches and links. Additionally, the optimal routes defined by the system includes moving the traffic in a way that avoids deadlock scenarios.

Abstract: System and methods are disclosed for synthesis of network, such as a network-on-chip (NoC), to generate a network description. The system generates a NoC from a set of physical constraints and performance constraints as well as a set of inputs to a sequencer. The system produces the NoC with all its elements. The resulting output includes placement of the elements on a floorplan of a chip that represents the network, such as the NoC.

Abstract: Simulation or calculation to estimate activity per unit in a chip design, combined with estimation of the specific location or region in which the unit logic will be finally placed, provides for calculation of an estimation of the activity distribution within the floorplan. Activity distribution estimation can be performed with fine granularity (at a gate level), at coarse granularity (at a macro level), or at an intermediate granularity (at a network-on-chip unit level). The estimation is displayed, visually, to a user of a design tool. Furthermore, the estimation is used to make manual or automatic optimizations of the floorplan and the location and configuration of units within the floorplan.

Abstract: A system and method are disclosed for performing operations on data passing through the network to reduce latency. The overall system allows data transport to become an active component in the computation, thereby improving the overall system latency, bandwidth, and/or power.

Abstract: A cache coherent system includes a directory with more than one snoop filter, each of which stores information in a different set of snoop filter entries. Each snoop filter is associated with a subset of all caching agents within the system. Each snoop filter uses an algorithm chosen for best performance on the caching agents associated with the snoop filter. The number of snoop filter entries in each snoop filter is primarily chosen based on the caching capacity of just the caching agents associated with the snoop filter. The type of information stored in each snoop filter entry of each snoop filter is chosen to meet the desired filtering function of the specific snoop filter.

Abstract: System and methods are disclosed for transformation of a network, such as a network-on-chip (NoC). The system applies a method of clustering to nodes and edges. The clustering transforms the network and produces a deadlock free and (near-)optimal network that honors the constraints of the input network's floorplan and specification.

Abstract: A process is disclosed that automatically creates a network-on-chip (NoC) very quickly using a set of constraints, which are requirements for the NoC. The process takes a set of constraints as inputs and produces a NoC with all its elements configured and a placement of such elements on the floorplan of the chip.

Abstract: A system, and corresponding method, is described for using a model to predict the physical behavior of IP from an HDL representation of the IP. The system generated data for training and testing the model by treating the logical parameters and physical parameters subset as one for the IP block. The system digitizes the non-numerical parameters and compresses timing arcs. The system uses the trained model to characteristic behavior for an IP block directly from the combined vector of logical parameter values and physical parameter values.