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ReShape Releases PD Builder with Support for Cadence Encounter Global Physical Synthesis
ReShape's Modular Physical Design Reference Flow Supports
Industry-Leading Technology from Cadence
SAN JOSE, Calif.—(BUSINESS WIRE)—Jan. 20, 2005—
ReShape, Inc. today announced it has shipped its enhanced PD
Builder(TM), which supports SoC Encounter(TM) Global Physical
Synthesis (GPS) from Cadence Design Systems, Inc. (NYSE:CDN)
(Nasdaq:CDN). Cadence(R) SoC Encounter GPS combines RTL synthesis,
silicon virtual prototyping, and full chip implementation into a
single system. ReShape, working in collaboration with multiple
customers that use Cadence software, utilized the PD Builder Open Flow
feature to embody expert tool user practices in its programmable
reference design flow.
"This release demonstrates how ReShape's Open Flow technology
really works to embody the best practices of tool users," said Jim
Douglas, president and CEO of ReShape. "Customers leverage PD
Builder's architecture, ReShape's reference flow library, and the Open
Flow technology to propagate expertise in a scalable and reusable way
across the enterprise."
The conventional design flow specification is based on the use of
scripting languages such as TCL, Perl, Cadence's SKILL, or Synopsys'
Scheme to capture chip construction recipes. These recipes -- or
scripts -- have three problems. First, the scripts are written by
engineers for their own use; they are rarely written to be maintained
by other engineers, so reuse and maintenance is impractical. As a
result, flows are rewritten for every project -- squandering precious
human resources.
Second, scripts are brittle; they frequently break when chip
specifications (netlist, floorplan, IP) change, and designers are
forced to recode their scripts. Third, debugging these scripts is
painful because they contain hundreds of thousands of lines of script
code and are written in a way that binds design specifics such as
knowledge of the netlist, floorplan, timing constraints, libraries,
and tool versions. It is a huge challenge for the team to locate and
fix problems.
PD Builder overcomes these problems by generating a
design-specific chip construction recipe at runtime. It "elaborates"
the front-end team's netlist and design constraints along with the
physical designer's chip construction recipe, using a library of
modular flow library elements supplied by ReShape or created using the
Open Flow capability. The result is tens of thousands of lines of
script customized for the design at hand.
PD Builder's persistent flow execution server then controls the
execution of the tens of thousands of commands without human
intervention. PD Builder is essentially a flow compiler that in
conjunction with commercial physical design tools can build the most
complex SoCs in less than 24 hours. PD Builder enables 10X+ runtime
reduction on physical design compilation times. Now design teams can
explore more design options, quickly verify them to layout quality,
and produce SoCs with much greater design margin over conventional
methods.
Designers use PD Builder in conjunction with their existing
physical design tools from Cadence, Mentor Graphics (NASDAQ:MENT) and
Synopsys (NASDAQ:SNPS) to perform placement, routing, and sign-off
verification functions for their challenging SoC designs.
Availability
PD Builder with support for SoC Encounter GPS from Cadence is
available immediately.
About ReShape
ReShape Inc. is the leading provider of Chip-Level Design
Automation (CLDA) software that enables fast design closure for the
most complex SoCs. Powered by its patented flow elaboration and
cross-block optimization technologies, ReShape enables physical
designers to capture design intent at a high level, freeing them to
focus on exploring and optimizing the design instead of managing
design tool complexity. Leading integrated device manufacturers and
fabless chip companies use ReShape's CLDA software to reduce time to
design closure, improve schedule predictability, and chip quality of
results. For more information, including a white paper on CLDA, please
visit our website at www.reshape.com.
ReShape is a registered trademark of ReShape Inc. Open Flow, PD
Optimizer, PD Builder, and PD Planner are trademarks of ReShape Inc.
All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.
Contact:
Cayenne Communication
Lois DuBois, 650-851-8256
lois.dubois@cayennecom.com
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