Method and system for implementing an analytical wirelength formulation
First Claim
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1. A computer implemented method of estimating an interconnect line length cost to connect circuit elements of a net in an integrated circuit (“
- IC”
) layout, the net representing interconnections between a set of circuit elements in the IC layout, the method comprising;
using a processor configured for;
identifying a plurality of circuit elements for the net, wherein at least one diagonal routing direction is available to route at least one of the interconnections between at least two of the plurality of circuit elements;
determining a bounding box that encompasses the plurality of circuit elements of the net, whereinat least a part of boundaries of the bounding box is determined by a continuous formulation rather than by a point-by-point comparison of coordinates for locations of a plurality of points to route for the plurality of circuit elements; and
using the bounding box to estimate the interconnect line length cost to connect the plurality of circuit elements of the net; and
using a computer readable storage medium or a computer storage device for storing at least the bounding box or using a display apparatus configured for displaying the bounding box.
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Abstract
Disclosed are methods and systems for specifying an analytical wirelength formulation that is continuous along with its derivative. One approach performs a wirelength estimate in which a continuous formulation is employed to identify and use a bounding box to enclose circuit elements of a net, and in which an attribute of the bounding box may be completely or partially diagonal. Such formulations are used for optimizing the wirelength using numerical approaches.
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Citations
26 Claims
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1. A computer implemented method of estimating an interconnect line length cost to connect circuit elements of a net in an integrated circuit (“
- IC”
) layout, the net representing interconnections between a set of circuit elements in the IC layout, the method comprising;using a processor configured for; identifying a plurality of circuit elements for the net, wherein at least one diagonal routing direction is available to route at least one of the interconnections between at least two of the plurality of circuit elements; determining a bounding box that encompasses the plurality of circuit elements of the net, wherein at least a part of boundaries of the bounding box is determined by a continuous formulation rather than by a point-by-point comparison of coordinates for locations of a plurality of points to route for the plurality of circuit elements; and using the bounding box to estimate the interconnect line length cost to connect the plurality of circuit elements of the net; and using a computer readable storage medium or a computer storage device for storing at least the bounding box or using a display apparatus configured for displaying the bounding box. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 14)
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11. A computer program product comprising a computer usable storage medium having executable code which, when executed by a processor, causes the processor to execute a process for estimating an interconnect line length cost to connect circuit elements of a net in an integrated circuit (“
- IC”
) layout, the net representing interconnections between a set of circuit elements in the IC layout, the process comprising;using the processor configured for; identifying a plurality of circuit elements for the net, wherein at least one diagonal routing direction is available to route at least one of the interconnections between at least two of the plurality of circuit elements; determining a bounding box that encompasses the plurality of circuit elements of the net, wherein at least a part of boundaries of the bounding box is determined by a continuous formulation rather than by a point-by-point comparison of coordinates for locations of a plurality of points to route for the plurality of circuit elements; and using the bounding box to estimate the interconnect line length cost to connect the plurality of circuit elements of the net. - View Dependent Claims (12, 13)
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15. A system for estimating an interconnect line length cost to connect circuit elements of a net in an integrated circuit (“
- IC”
) layout, the net representing interconnections between a set of circuit elements in the IC layout, the system comprising;a processor configured for; identifying a plurality of circuit elements for the net, wherein at least one diagonal routing direction is available to route at least one of the interconnections between at least two of the plurality of circuit elements; determining a bounding box that encompasses the plurality of circuit elements of the net, wherein at least a part of boundaries of the bounding box is determined by a continuous formulation rather than by a point-by-point comparison of coordinates for locations of a plurality of points to route for the plurality of circuit elements; and using the bounding box to estimate the interconnect line length cost to connect the plurality of circuit elements of the net; and a computer readable storage medium or a computer storage device for storing at least the bounding box or a display apparatus configured for displaying the bounding box. - View Dependent Claims (16, 17, 18)
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19. A computer implemented method of estimating an interconnect line length cost to connect circuit elements of a net in an integrated circuit (“
- IC”
) layout, the net representing interconnections between a set of circuit elements in the IC layout, the method comprising;using a processor configured for; identifying a plurality of circuit elements for the net, wherein at least one diagonal routing direction is available to route at least one of the interconnections between at least two of the plurality of circuit elements; determining an octagonal bounding box that encompasses the plurality of circuit elements of the net, wherein at least a part of boundaries of the octagonal bounding box is determined by a continuous formulation rather than by a point-by-point comparison of locations of a plurality of points to route for at least some of the plurality of circuit elements; and using the octagonal bounding box to estimate the interconnect line length cost to connect the plurality of circuit elements of the net; and using a computer readable storage medium or a computer storage device for storing at least the bounding box or using a display apparatus configured for displaying the bounding box. - View Dependent Claims (20)
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21. A computer program product comprising a computer usable storage medium having executable code which, when executed by a processor, causes the processor to execute a process for estimating an interconnect line length cost to connect circuit, elements of a net in an integrated circuit (“
- IC”
) layout, the net representing interconnections between a set of circuit elements in the IC layout, the process comprising;using a processor configured for; identifying a plurality of circuit elements for the net, wherein at least one diagonal routing direction is available to route at least one of the interconnections between at least two of the plurality of circuit elements; determining an octagonal bounding box that encompasses the plurality of circuit elements of the net, wherein at least a part of boundaries of the octagonal bounding box is determined by a continuous formulation rather than by a point-by-point comparison of locations of a plurality of points to route for at least some of the plurality of circuit elements; and using the octagonal bounding box to estimate the interconnect line length cost to connect the plurality of circuit elements of the net; and using a computer readable storage medium or a computer storage device for storing at least the bounding box or using a display apparatus configured for displaying the bounding box. - View Dependent Claims (22, 23)
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24. A system for estimating an interconnect line length cost to connect circuit elements of a net in an integrated circuit (“
- IC”
) layout, the net representing interconnections between a set of circuit elements in the IC layout, the system comprising;a processor configured for; identifying a plurality of circuit elements for the net, wherein at least one diagonal routing direction is available to route at least one of the interconnections between at least two of the plurality of circuit elements; determining an octagonal bounding box that encompasses the plurality of circuit elements of the net, wherein at least a part of boundaries of the octagonal bounding box is determined by a continuous formulation rather than by a point-by-point comparison of locations of a plurality of points to route for at least some of the plurality of circuit elements; and using the octagonal bounding box to estimate the interconnect line length cost to connect the plurality of circuit elements of the net; and a computer readable storage medium or a computer storage device for storing at least the bounding box or a display apparatus configured for displaying the bounding box. - View Dependent Claims (25, 26)
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Specification