Method and apparatus for controlling power level during BIST

• US 6,330,681 B1
• Filed: 12/22/1998
• Issued: 12/11/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 12/31/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Mentor Graphics Corporation (Siemens AG)
• Original Assignee: Logicvision, Inc. (Siemens AG)
• Inventors: Cote, Jean-François, Gauthier, Pierre, Nadeau-Dostie, Benoit
• Primary Examiner(s): Heckler, Thomas M.
• Application Number:
  US09/218,764
• Time in Patent Office: 1,085 Days
• Field of Search: 713/322, 713/501, 713/601, 702/117, 714/718, 714/719, 714/724, 714/733, 714/735
• US Class Current: 713/322
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 31/318552 Clock circuits details
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/3203 Power management, i.e. event-based initiation of a power-saving mode

Abstract

An improvement in a method of testing a digital circuit or system, having a plurality of scannable memory elements, in accordance with conventional BIST methods in which, at a reference clock, a test stimulus is shifted into the memory elements, the response of the elements is captured and the captured data is shifted out of the elements and analyzed, the improvement comprising controlling the average power consumption of the circuit during the test by suppressing clock pulses from the reference clock during phases of the test that do not require the maximum level of activity or in which the performance of the circuit is not to be evaluated; and, suppressing no clock pulses from the reference clock in phases of the test in which the performance of the circuit is to be evaluated, so that the conditions are substantially as those of normal mode of operation of the circuit.

Claims

1. A clock controller for use during testing of a digital circuit or system, comprising:

means responsive to a reference clock applied to said controller for generating a test clock signal for use by said digital circuit;

said means including means responsive to a first value of a test phase signal for periodically suppressing clock cycles from said reference clock so as to operate said circuit at a lower power level than a maximal power level and responsive to a second value of said test phase signal for not suppressing clock cycles from said reference clock so as to operate said circuit at the frequency of said reference clock.

2. A clock controller as defined in claim 1, said means for generating including a duty cycle generator for generating first and second values of a clock disable signal for disabling and enabling clock cycles of said reference clock.

3. A clock controller as defined in claim 2, said duty cycle generator including a counter having a clock input for receiving said reference clock and a comparator for comparing the count of said counter against a predetermined value, said counter being responsive to said first value of said test phase signal by continuously counting clock cycles between 0 and a maximum value indicative of a maximal power level, said comparator producing said second value of said clock disable signal when said count is less than or equal to said predetermined value so as to generate an output pulse and for producing said first value of said clock disable signal so as to suppress a reference clock pulse.

4. A clock controller as defined in claim 2, further including means responsive to said first and second test phase signals and said clock disable signal for generating said test clock signal.

5. A clock controller as defined in claim 1, said means responsive to said first value of said test phase signal being further responsive to a power level signal representative of a desired fraction of the maximal power level for suppressing all but a number of clock cycles specified by said power level signal from consecutive sequences of a number of clock cycles of said reference clock representative of said maximal power level.

6. A clock controller as defined in claim 1, said clock controller further including:

a duty cycle generator having a test phase input for receiving said test phase signal, a duty cycle input for receiving a duty cycle signal representative of said lower power level, and a clock input for said reference clock, said duty cycle generator generating a clock disable signal for each cycle of said reference clock in response to said second value of said test phase signal and otherwise generating a clock disable signal for only one cycle of each of a predetermined number of cycles of said reference clock specified by said duty cycle signal;

an AND gate for receiving said test phase signal and said clock disable signal and providing an output;

a transparent latch having a clock input for receiving said reference clock, an input for receiving said output of said and gate output and a latch output; and

an OR gate having an input for said reference clock and an input for said latch output.

7. A clock controller as defined in claim 6, said duty cycle generator further including a counter having a clock input for receiving said reference clock and a comparator for comparing the count of said counter against a predetermined value, said counter being responsive to said first value of said test phase signal by continuously counting clock cycles between 0 and a maximum value indicative of a maximal power level, said comparator producing a second value of said clock disable signal when said count is less than or equal to said predetermined value so as to generate an output pulse and for producing a first value of said clock disable signal when said count is greater than said predetermined value so as to suppress a reference clock pulse.

8. A clock controller for use during testing of a digital circuit or system, comprising:

means responsive to a reference clock applied to said controller for generating a test clock signal for use by said digital circuit;

said means including means responsive to a first value of a test phase signal for periodically suppressing clock cycles from said reference clock so as to operate said circuit at a lower power level than a maximal power level and responsive to a second value of said test phase signal for not suppressing clock cycles from said reference clock so as to operate said circuit at the frequency of said reference clock, said means responsive to said first test phase signal being further responsive to a power level signal representative of a desired fraction of the maximal power level for suppressing all but a first predetermined number of clock cycles from each of a second predetermined number of clock cycles of said reference clock;

said clock controller further including;

a duty cycle generator having a test phase input for receiving said test phase signal, a duty cycle input for receiving a duty cycle signal representative of said lower power level, and a clock input for said reference clock, said duty cycle generator generating a clock disable signal for each cycle of said reference clock in response to said second value of said test phase signal and otherwise generating a clock disable signal for only one cycle of each of a predetermined number of cycles of said reference clock specified by said duty cycle signal;

an AND gate for receiving said test phase signal and said clock disable signal and providing an output;

a transparent latch having a clock input for receiving said reference clock, an input for receiving said output of said AND gate output and a latch output; and

an OR gate having an input for said reference clock and an input for said latch output;

said duty cycle generator further including a counter having a clock input for receiving said reference clock and a comparator for comparing the count of said counter against a predetermined value, said counter being responsive to said first value of said test phase signal by continuously counting clock cycles between 0 and a maximum value indicative of a maximal power level, said comparator producing a second value of said clock disable signal when said count is less than or equal to said predetermined value so as to generate an output pulse and for producing a first value of said clock disable signal when said count is greater than said predetermined value so as to suppress a reference clock pulse.

9. In an integrated circuit having core logic having scannable memory elements configurable in scan mode for shifting in a test stimulus during testing and shifting out captured data, and a capture mode for capturing the response of said elements to said test stimulus, the improvement comprising:

a test controller for generating first and second values of a test phase signal, said first value being indicative of a requirement for performing a phase of a test of said circuit at a lower power level than a maximal power level, said second value being indicative of a requirement for performing a phase of a test at a maximum frequency of a test clock;

a clock controller having means responsive to a reference clock applied to said controller for generating a test clock signal for use by said core logic and said test controller, said means including means responsive to said first value of said test phase signal for periodically suppressing clock cycles from said reference clock so as to operate said circuit at said lower power level than said maximal power level and responsive to said second value of said test phase signal for not suppressing clock cycles from said reference clock so as to operate said circuit at the frequency of said reference clock.

10. In an integrated circuit as defined in claim 9, said means operable including a duty cycle generator for generating first and second values of a clock disable signal for disabling and enabling clock cycles of said reference clock.

11. In an integrated circuit as defined in claim 10, said duty cycle generator including a counter having a clock input for receiving said reference clock and a comparator for comparing the count of said counter against a predetermined value, said counter being responsive to said first value of said test phase signal by continuously counting clock cycles between 0 and a maximum value indicative of a maximal power level, said comparator producing said second value of said clock disable signal when said count is less than or equal to said predetermined value so as to generate an output pulse and for producing said first value of said clock disable signal when said count is greater than said predetermined value so as to suppress a reference clock pulse.

12. In an integrated circuit as defined in claim 9, further including means responsive to first and second test phase signals and said clock disable signal for generating said system clock signal.

13. In an integrated circuit controller as defined in claim 9, said means responsive to said first value of said test phase signal being further responsive to a power level signal representative of a desired fraction of the maximal power level for suppressing all but a number of clock cycles specified by said power level signal from consecutive sequences of a number of clock cycles of said reference clock representative of said maximal power level.

14. In an integrated circuit as defined in claim 9, said clock controller further including:

a duty cycle generator having a test phase input for receiving said test phase signal, a duty cycle input for receiving a duty cycle signal representative of said lower power level, and a clock input for said reference clock, said duty cycle generator generating a clock disable signal for each cycle of said reference clock in response to a second value of said test phase signal and otherwise generating a clock disable signal for only one cycle of each of a predetermined number of cycles of said reference clock specified by said duty cycle signal;

an AND gate for receiving said test phase signal and said clock disable signal and providing an output;

a transparent latch having a clock input for receiving said reference clock, an input for receiving said output of said AND gate output and a latch output; and

an OR gate having an input for said reference clock and an input for said latch output.

15. In an integrated circuit as defined in claim 14, said duty cycle generator further including a counter having a clock input for receiving said reference clock and a comparator for comparing the count of said counter against a predetermined value, said counter being responsive to said first value of said test phase signal by continuously counting clock cycles between 0 and a maximum value indicative of a maximal power level, said comparator producing a second value of said clock disable signal when said count is less than or equal to said predetermined value so as to generate an output pulse and for producing a first value of said clock disable signal when said count is greater than said predetermined value so as to suppress a reference clock pulse.

16. In a integrated circuit as defined in claim 9, further including means providing said reference clock.

17. In an integrated circuit as defined in claim 9, further including a phase-lock loop responsive to an input reference clock and applying said reference clock to said clock controller.

18. In an integrated circuit as defined in claim 17, further including a multiplexer responsive to a test mode signal for selectively applying the output of phase-lock loop or the clock input to said core logic to said phase-lock loop.

19. In a method of testing a digital circuit or system, having a plurality of scannable memory elements, in accordance with a conventional built-in self-test (BIST) method in which, at a reference clock, a test stimulus is shifted into the memory elements, the response of the elements is captured and the captured data is shifted out of the elements and analyzed, the improvement comprising controlling the average power consumption of the circuit during the test by:

(a) suppressing clock pulses from said reference clock during phases of the test that do not require the maximum level of activity or a which the performance of the circuit is not to be evaluated;

(b) suppressing no clock pulses from the reference clock in phases of the test in which the performance of the circuit is to be evaluated, so that the conditions are substantially as those of normal mode of operation of the circuit; and

wherein said step of suppressing clock pulses includes, for each sequence of a predetermined number of consecutive clock pulses representative of a maximal power level, generating a number of pulses such that the ratio of said number of pulses to said predetermined number of consecutive clock pulses is a predetermined fraction of said maximal power level and suppressing all other pulses in said sequence.

20. A method as defined in claim 19, said step of generating a number of pulses comprising counting reference clock cycles from 0 to said predetermined number of consecutive clock pulses and generating an output pulse when said counter reaches said predetermined number.

21. A method as defined in claim 19, further including the step of, prior to performing a test, specifying the number of clock cycles which are to be suppressed during said phases of the test that do not require the maximum level of activity.

22. A method as defined in claim 19, further including the step of, during a test, specifying the number of clock cycles which are to be suppressed during said phases of the test that do not require the maximum level of activity.

23. In a method of testing a digital circuit or system, having a core logic and a plurality of scannable memory elements, in accordance with a conventional built-in self-test (BIST) method in which, at a reference clock, a test stimulus is shifted into the memory elements, the response of the elements is captured and the captured data is shifted out of the elements and analysed, the improvement comprising controlling the average power consumption of the circuit during the test by:

(a) providing a signal representative of a reduced power level for use during non-performance critical phases of a test, said signal being expressed in terms of a number of clock pulses;

(b) providing a signal indicating whether a current phase of a test is a performance critical test phase or a non-performance critical test phase;

(c) for each performance critical test phase, generating a test clock having the same frequency as said reference clock;

(d) for each non-performance critical test phase, for each of a plurality of consecutive clock pulses corresponding to a maximal power level, generating a number of clock pulses specified by said signal representative of a reduced power level and suppressing all other pulses of said plurality of pulses such that the power consumption during said non-performance critical test phase is a predetermined fraction of said maximal power level.