RTL-based synthetic circuit generation for the evaluation of advanced computer-aided design algorithms and integrated circuits

我们将研究自动生成可用于评估计算机辅助设计(CAD)工具的合成电路的技术，这些工具通常用于集成电路(IC)的制造。开发这些工具的公司需要评估他们的算法，而要做到这一点，唯一有效的方法是使用“基准”用户电路来测试它们。获得这些示例电路是困难的。另一种选择是使用一种“电路生成器”，它可以生成具有许多真实电路特性的合成结构。虽然以前已经有了电路生成器，但它们都是在低抽象级别(在门级)创建电路。然而，如今大多数CAD工具在寄存器传输级别(RTL)上处理电路，这是一个更高的抽象级别；评估这些工具中使用的算法只能在有限的范围内使用以前的生成器。在这个项目中，我们将开发一个电路生成器，它在这个更高的抽象级别上创建电路。 创建这样的生成器需要在RTL对电路进行有效的操作。Invionics是一家总部位于温哥华的公司，该公司生产的一个平台提供了一个应用编程接口(API)，允许设计人员快速轻松地创建在此级别操作电路的应用程序。在这个项目中，Invionics和不列颠哥伦比亚大学的研究人员将共同研究如何利用Invionics的平台来支持这种电路生成器的创造。 这项研究的结果将有三个方面：(1)电路生成器将免费提供给研究人员作为其实验平台的一部分，(2)电路生成器将作为Invionics客户的参考设计，使他们能够更好地了解如何使用Invionics平台，以及(3)随着Invionics进一步开发他们的平台，该生成器将在Invionics内部发挥作用。

We will investigate techniques to automatically generate synthetic circuits that can be used to evaluate Computer-Aided Design (CAD) tools, commonly used in the manufacture of integrated circuits (ICs). Companies that develop these tools need to evaluate their algorithms, and the only effective way to do this is to test them using "benchmark" user circuits. Obtaining these example circuits is difficult. An alternative is to employ a "circuit generator" which can generate synthetic structures that have many of the properties of real circuits. Although there have been previous circuit generators, they all create circuits at a low-level of abstraction (at the gate level). However, most CAD tools today process circuits at the Register Transfer Level (RTL) which is a higher level of abstraction; evaluating the algorithms used in these tools can only use previous generators to a limited extent. In this project, we will develop a circuit generator that creates circuits at this higher level of abstraction. Creating such a generator requires the efficient manipulation of circuits at the RTL. Invionics, a Vancouver-based company, produces a platform which provides an Application Programming Interface (API) that allows designers to quickly and easily create applications that manipulate circuits at this level. In this project, researchers at Invionics and the University of British Columbia will work together to investigate how Invionics' platform can be used to support the creation of such a circuit generator. The outcome of this research will be threefold: (1) the circuit generator will be made available, free of charge, to researchers to use as part of their experimental platform, (2) the circuit generator will serve as a reference design for Invionics customers, allowing them to better understand how to use the Invionics platform, and (3) the generator will be useful within Invionics as the company further develops their platform.