Re-configuring RISC-V Post-Silicon

Re-configuring RISC-V Post-Silicon
by Bernard Murphy on 12-07-2022 at 6:00 am

Post Silicon RISC V extensions min

How do you reconfigure system characteristics? The answer to that question is well established – through software. Make the underlying hardware general enough and use platform software to update behaviors and tweak hardware configuration registers. This simple fact drove the explosion of embedded processors everywhere … Read More


Ant Colony Optimization. Innovation in Verification

Ant Colony Optimization. Innovation in Verification
by Bernard Murphy on 11-28-2022 at 6:00 am

Innovation New

Looking for better ways to search a huge state space in model checking, Ant Colony Optimization (ACO) is one possible approach. Paul Cunningham (Senior VP/GM, Verification at Cadence), Raúl Camposano (Silicon Catalyst, entrepreneur, former Synopsys CTO and now Silvaco CTO) and I continue our series on research ideas. As always,… Read More


Configurable Processors. The Why and How

Configurable Processors. The Why and How
by Bernard Murphy on 11-16-2022 at 6:00 am

ARC Configurability min

Configurable processors are hot now, in no small part thanks to RISC-V. Which is an ISA rather than a processor, but let’s not quibble. Arm followed with configurability in Cortex-X. Both were considerably preceded (a couple of decades) by Synopsys ARC® RISC CPUs and CEVA DSPs. Each stressed configurability as a differentiator… Read More


MIPI in the Car – Transport From Sensors to Compute

MIPI in the Car – Transport From Sensors to Compute
by Bernard Murphy on 11-09-2022 at 6:00 am

NXP Camera subsystem min

I’ve written on and off about sensors, ML inference of the output of those sensors and the application of both in modern cars. Neither ADAS nor autonomous/semi-autonomous driving would be possible without these. But until now I have never covered the transport between sensors and the compute that safely turns what they produce… Read More


Slashing Power in Wearables. The Next Step

Slashing Power in Wearables. The Next Step
by Bernard Murphy on 11-02-2022 at 6:00 am

Fitness bamd and phone min

In wearables and hearables, low power is king. Earbuds for example still only manage a half-day active use before we need to recharge. Half a day falls short of truly convenient for most of us – a full day would be much better, allowing for overnight recharge. Physics limits battery sizes so system designers must look to SoC architectures… Read More


Post-Silicon Consistency Checking. Innovation in Verification

Post-Silicon Consistency Checking. Innovation in Verification
by Bernard Murphy on 10-26-2022 at 6:00 am

Innovation New

Many multi-thread consistency problems emerge only in post-silicon testing. Maybe we should take advantage of that fact. Paul Cunningham (Senior VP/GM, Verification at Cadence), Raúl Camposano (Silicon Catalyst, entrepreneur, former Synopsys CTO and now Silvaco CTO) and I continue our series on research ideas. As always,… Read More


WEBINAR: Flash Memory as a Root of Trust

WEBINAR: Flash Memory as a Root of Trust
by Bernard Murphy on 10-09-2022 at 4:00 pm

secure flash

It should not come as a surprise that the vast majority of IoT devices are insecure. As an indication, one survey estimates that 98% of IoT traffic is unencrypted. It’s not hard to understand why. Many such devices are cost-sensitive, designing security into a product is hard, buyers aren’t prepared to pay a premium for security … Read More


Siemens EDA Discuss Permanent and Transient Faults

Siemens EDA Discuss Permanent and Transient Faults
by Bernard Murphy on 10-05-2022 at 6:00 am

wafer image min

This is a topic worth coverage for those of us who aim to know more about safety. There are devils in the details on how ISO 26262 quantifies fault metrics, where I consider my understanding probably similar to other non-experts: light. All in all, a nice summary of the topic.

Permanent and transient faults 101

The authors kick off … Read More


Test Ordering for Agile. Innovation in Verification

Test Ordering for Agile. Innovation in Verification
by Bernard Murphy on 09-29-2022 at 6:00 am

Innovation New

Can we order regression tests for continuous integration (CI) flows, minimizing time between code commits and feedback on failures? Paul Cunningham (Senior VP/GM, Verification at Cadence), Raúl Camposano (Silicon Catalyst, entrepreneur, former Synopsys CTO and now Silvaco CTO) and I continue our series on research ideas.… Read More


Arm and Arteris Partner on Automotive

Arm and Arteris Partner on Automotive
by Bernard Murphy on 09-28-2022 at 6:00 am

Arteris Arm partnership

Whenever a new partnership is announced, the natural question is, “why?” What will this partnership make possible that wasn’t already possible with those two companies working independently? I talked yesterday with Frank Schirrmeister of Arteris on the partnership. (Yes, Frank is now at Arteris). And I just got off an Arm press… Read More