¿Cómo pueden los núcleos ASIC IP reducir el tiempo y el coste de desarrollo?

ASIC IP cores, also known as Application-Specific Integrated Circuit Intellectual Property cores, are like ready-made puzzle pieces for designing custom computer chips. Picture them as pre-designed and pre-checked building blocks of electronic logic or circuits that do specific jobs. These blocks are like superhero tools for chip designers because they've already been proven to work well.

ASIC IP cores reduce development time and cost by providing pre-designed, validated building blocks for common functionalities like memory controllers, processors, and communication interfaces. This allows designers to avoid reinventing the wheel and focus on integrating these cores into custom designs. Using IP cores accelerates the design process, reduces the risk of errors, and ensures reliability due to their proven functionality. Additionally, it lowers the need for extensive verification and testing, saving both time and resources. By leveraging existing solutions, companies can reduce development cycles and focus on differentiating their products, ultimately cutting down on overall project costs.

Processors are a type of ASIC IP core that is delivered in synthesizable RTL code. The common processor cores to choose from range across different ISAs or Instruction Set Architectures like ARM’s RISC based cores, SiFive’s (open-sourced) RISC-V cores, Synopsys ARC and ARC-V cores and Intel’s original x86 based cores.

If we are building a custom chip, instead of starting from scratch and reinventing the wheel, we get to pick these already-made and tested blocks that do certain jobs really well. So, ASIC IP cores save designers a ton of time and effort. They're like shortcuts that allow designers to focus on the unique and cool parts of their chip design, rather than spending ages on basic, already-solved problems. By using the ASIC IP cores, we can speed up the whole process of creating new chips.

Not only can you used verified IP cores, but you can use verified subsystems that have a collection of cores aggregating commonly used functions in one block. Why? Because it speeds up development time. If it’s not something your company can do at 1/10th of the cost or aggressively better or differentiated from an IP vendor then purchasing IP cores or subsystems will save you the headache and 💰 of designing each IP yourself.

Most people choose ARM because it’s a safe verified Processor IP choice but there’s a lot to choose from in the industry that’s just as mature. You want to qualify size, speed, flexibility, reliability (functional safety enabled?) and many more variables outside of just cost and name brand recognition. These days security is becoming an issue so features for managing trusted access in various regions is becoming just as important as the ability to have power gating in relation to power consumption. Everything must be looked at before making a decision.

Choosing ASIC IP cores is crucial in the design process. These pre-designed functional blocks can be integrated into an ASIC design, saving time and resources. Key considerations include functionality requirements, vendor reputation, compliance with industry standards, customization flexibility, performance metrics, documentation and support, verification and testing, ease of integration, power consumption, royalty and licensing terms, long-term availability, security considerations, and previous success stories.

Early RTL power estimation and reduction techniques are pivotal in ASIC design. They help ensure power efficiency from the outset. By assessing power consumption at the RTL stage, designers can make informed decisions about architectural choices, clock gating, and data path optimizations. This proactive approach minimizes late-stage surprises and avoids costly redesigns, aligning with the overall goal of reducing development time and cost in ASIC design. It's an indispensable part of the process that promotes both technical and economic efficiency. Making good use of industry leading RTL power solutions like Ansys PowerArtist can bring lot of value to any ASIC design process and avoid late surprises. Most leading chip makers do same. #power

To mention examples, we use ASIC IP cores like DSP cores, Ethernet MAC controllers, encryption/decryption cores for the Base stations in telecommunications.