Patents by Inventor Mark Allen Williams

Mark Allen Williams has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Publication number: 20230394212
    Abstract: An example system includes a processor to receive a high-level design representation of a system architecture. The processor can synthesize a logic design and generate an associated synthesis history based on the high-level hardware design representation. The processor can then execute an equivalence check between the high-level design and the synthesized logic design based on the generated synthesis history.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 1, 2022
    Publication date: December 7, 2023
    Inventors: Alexander IVRII, Jason Raymond BAUMGARTNER, Robert Lowell KANZELMAN, Mark Allen WILLIAMS, Mihir CHOUDHURY, Ayesha AKHTER
  • Patent number: 8407641
    Abstract: A technique for verification of a retimed logic design using liveness checking includes assigning a liveness gate to a liveness property for an original netlist and assigning a fairness gate to a fairness constraint for the original netlist. In this case, the fairness gate is associated with the liveness gate and is asserted for at least one time-step during any valid behavioral loop associated with the liveness gate. The original netlist is retimed, using a retiming engine, to provide a retimed netlist. The liveness and fairness gates of the retimed netlist are retimed such that a lag of the fairness gate is no greater than a lag of the liveness gate. Verification analysis is then performed on the retimed netlist. Finally, when the verification analysis yields a valid counter-example trace for the retimed netlist, a liveness violation for the original netlist is returned.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 30, 2012
    Date of Patent: March 26, 2013
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Jason R. Baumgartner, Gabor Bobok, Paul Joseph Roessler, Mark Allen Williams
  • Patent number: 8255848
    Abstract: A technique for verification of a retimed logic design using liveness checking includes assigning a liveness gate to a liveness property for an original netlist and assigning a fairness gate to a fairness constraint for the original netlist. In this case, the fairness gate is associated with the liveness gate and is asserted for at least one time-step during any valid behavioral loop associated with the liveness gate. The original netlist is retimed, using a retiming engine, to provide a retimed netlist. The liveness and fairness gates of the retimed netlist are retimed such that a lag of the fairness gate is no greater than a lag of the liveness gate. Verification analysis is then performed on the retimed netlist. Finally, when the verification analysis yields a valid counter-example trace for the retimed netlist, a liveness violation for the original netlist is returned.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 27, 2009
    Date of Patent: August 28, 2012
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Jason R. Baumgartner, Gabor Bobok, Paul Joseph Roessler, Mark Allen Williams
  • Publication number: 20120192133
    Abstract: A technique for verification of a retimed logic design using liveness checking includes assigning a liveness gate to a liveness property for an original netlist and assigning a fairness gate to a fairness constraint for the original netlist. In this case, the fairness gate is associated with the liveness gate and is asserted for at least one time-step during any valid behavioral loop associated with the liveness gate. The original netlist is retimed, using a retiming engine, to provide a retimed netlist. The liveness and fairness gates of the retimed netlist are retimed such that a lag of the fairness gate is no greater than a lag of the liveness gate. Verification analysis is then performed on the retimed netlist. Finally, when the verification analysis yields a valid counter-example trace for the retimed netlist, a liveness violation for the original netlist is returned.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 30, 2012
    Publication date: July 26, 2012
    Applicant: INTERNATIONAL BUISNESS MACHINES CORPORATION
    Inventors: Jason R. Baumgartner, Gabor Bobok, Paul Joseph Roessler, Mark Allen Williams
  • Patent number: 7210109
    Abstract: A method, apparatus, system, and signal-bearing medium that in an embodiment apply a latch behavior to a first and second netlist, where the latch behavior exhibits transparent behavior. Flush enabling conditions are applied to the first netlist and a second netlist. For each latch in a first scan chain in the first netlist, a corresponding latch in the second netlist is found. Cones of logic are then extracted from the latches under the constraints enabling the flush operation, and the cones of logic are compared for functional equivalence. If all the cones are functionally equivalent, then the flush reset states of the netlists are functionally equivalent. If at least one of the cones is not functionally equivalent, then the flush reset states of the two netlists are not equivalent.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 24, 2004
    Date of Patent: April 24, 2007
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Kenneth Michael Caron, Robert Lowell Kanzelman, Scott Henry Mack, Lance Gordon Thompson, Mark Allen Williams
  • Patent number: 6993734
    Abstract: The disclosed design verification system includes a verification engine to model the operation of an integrated circuit and to assess the model's adherence to a property during N time steps of its operation. The value of N is recorded and propagated. The propagated value of N is used to reduce resources expended during subsequent analysis of the integrated circuit by ignoring the model's adherence to the property during the early stages of subsequent analysis (during time steps less than N). The system may include a diameter estimator that identifies a value of N beyond which subsequent modeling of the integrated circuit produces no new states. Property checking is ignored during states having a time step value greater than the estimated diameter.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 20, 2003
    Date of Patent: January 31, 2006
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporatioin
    Inventors: Jason Raymond Baumgartner, Hari Mony, Viresh Paruthi, Mark Allen Williams
  • Publication number: 20040168137
    Abstract: The disclosed design verification system includes a verification engine to model the operation of an integrated circuit and to assess the model's adherence to a property during N time steps of its operation. The value of N is recorded and propagated. The propagated value of N is used to reduce resources expended during subsequent analysis of the integrated circuit by ignoring the model's adherence to the property during the early stages of subsequent analysis (during time steps less than N). The system may include a diameter estimator that identifies a value of N beyond which subsequent modeling of the integrated circuit produces no new states. Property checking is ignored during states having a time step value greater than the estimated diameter.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 20, 2003
    Publication date: August 26, 2004
    Applicant: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Jason Raymond Baumgartner, Hari Mony, Viresh Paruthi, Mark Allen Williams