VLSI design with object-oriented knowledge bases

Abstract

One major technology that is needed is the development of a system that can integrate design tools and design databases, and is able to design an entire engineering system based on formal specifications. In this paper, a knowledge engineering framework for designing VLSI computer architectures is introduced. This framework introduces three core concepts: knowledge abstraction, object-oriented design, and very high-level design programming. The input to the system is a descriptive specification of the behaviour of a computing system. The description is then matched against the existing design knowledge in the knowledge base, where the knowledge is abstracted and organized as classes. If a match can be found, the abstract knowledge is instantiated and can be reused; otherwise a heuristic synthesis process will be performed according to the design knowledge stored in the system. In the worst case, the designer goes one level down and decomposes the system into a set of smaller systems, where a structural description among different modules is specified, but only the behavioural specification for each module is given. The process is then repeated until a complete structural description is developed. At the bottom level, the system is designed to support and automate the following tasks: integration of layout design tools; propagation of dynamic changes; propagation and abstraction of performance measurements; incremental design rule checking; and version control.