System on Chip Design, Architecture and Applications

By : Dimas Ruliandi

Introduction

SoC Architecture

SoC Design

SoC Applications

Summary

Refferences

Outline

Introduction

• Technological Advances

• today’s chip can contains billions of transistors .

• transistor gate lengths are now in term of nano meters .

• approximately every 18 months the number of transistors on a chip doubles – Moore’s law .

• The Consequences

• components connected on a Printed Circuit Board can now be integrated onto single chip .

• hence the development of System-On-Chip design .

Introduction

• SoC: System-on-a-Chip or System-on-Chip

• System:

•A collection of all kinds of components and/or subsystems that are appropriately interconnected to perform the specified functions for end user

• SoC refers to integrating all components into a single integrated circuit (chip)

IntroductionWhat is SoC..?

SoC

IntroductionSoC is Everywhere..

SoC Design & ArchitectureSoC Paradigm

• A system-on-chip architecture integrates several heterogeneous components on a single chip

• A key challenge is to design the communication or integrated between the different entities of a SoC….

• Resulting 1 word : COMPLEXITY

SoC ArchitectureTypical SoC Architecture

• Smaller device geometries, new processing (e.g., SOI)

• Higher density integration

• Low Power requirement

• Higher frequencies

• Design Complexity

• Verification, at different levels

• Time-to-market pressure

SoC DesignSoC Design Challenges!!

Source : On-Chip Communication Architectures (Sudeep Parischa – Nikil Dutt)

SoC DesignSoC Design Challenges!!

SoC Design GAP

• Use a known real entity• A pre-designed component (IP reuse) or IP based design

• A platform (architecture reuse) or Platform based design

• Partition• Based on functionality

• Hardware and software

• Modeling• At different level

• Consistent and accurate

SoC DesignConquer the complexity

• Intellectual Property Cores

• Parameterized components with standard interfaces facilitating high level synthesis

• Cores available in three forms

• Hard

• Black-box in optimized layout form and encrypted simulation model. Example: microprocessors

• Firm

• Synthesized netlist which can be simulated and changed if needed

• Soft

• Register transfer level (RTL) HDLs; user is responsible for synthesis and layout

SoC DesignIP Based Design

Reusability portabilityflexibility

Predictability, performance, time to market

Softcore

Firmcore

Hardcore

Trade-off among soft, firm, and hard cores

SoC DesignIP Based Design

• Platform-based SoCs are systems embedded on a chip that contain

• IP blocks like embedded CPU, embedded memory,

•Real-world interfaces (e.g., PCI, USB),

•Mixed signal blocks and

•Software components• Device drivers, real-time operating systems and

application code

SoC DesignPlatform Based SoC

• Embedded Applications built using

•Common architectural blocks and

•Customized application specific components

• Common architectures

•Processor, memory, peripherals, bus structures

• Common architectures and supporting technologies (IP libraries and tools) together called as platforms or platform-based designs

• Latest trend in the Embedded Systems

SoC DesignPlatform Based Design

SoC DesignSoC Platform Design

Two-stage platform-based design methodology

• Speech Signal Processing .

• Image and Video Signal Processing .

• Information Technologies

• PC interface (USB, PCI,PCI-Express, IDE,..etc) Computer peripheries (printer control, LCD monitor controller, DVD controller,.etc) .

• Data Communication

• Wireline Communication: 10/100 Based-T, xDSL, Gigabit Ethernet,.. Etc

• Wireless communication: BlueTooth, WLAN, 2G/3G/4G, WiMax, UWB, …,etcData Communication

• Mobile phone/Smart phone

• Smart Home Appliances

SoC ApplicationsMajor Application

SoC ApplicationsSmartphone Typical Platform

SoC ApplicationsTI OMAP5430 SoC

• Technological advances mean that complete systems can now be implemented on a single chip

• The benefits that this brings are :

– Lower cost per gate

– Lower power consumption

– Faster circuit operation

– More reliable implementation

– Smaller physical size

– Greater design security

– Significant in terms of speed , area and power

Summary

• The principle drawbacks of SoC design are associated with the design pressures imposed on today’s engineers , such as :

– Time-to-market demands

– Exponential fabrication cost

– Increased system complexity

– Increased verification requirements

Summary

• Yen-Kuang Chen and S.Y. Kung, “Trend and Challenge on System-on-a-Chip Designs” , Journal of Signal Processing Systems, vol.53 Issue 1-2, November. 2008

• Linda E.M. Brackenbury, Luis A. Plana, and Jeffery Pepper, “System-on-Chip Design and Implementation”, IEEE Transactions on Education, vol. 53, No. 2, May. 2010.

• Wayne Wolf, Ahmed Amine Jerraya, and Grant Martin, “Multiprocessor System-on-Chip”, IEEE Transactions on Computer-Aided Design of Integrated Circuits and Systems, vol. 27, No. 10, October 2008

• Lech Jozwiak, “Quality-driven design in the System-on-a-Chip era: Why and how ?”, Journal of Systems Architecture 47 (2001) 201-224.

• On-Chip Communication Architectures : System on Chip Interconnect, Morgan Kaufmann Publishers, 2008.

• R. Saleh et al. ,”System-on-Chip : Reuse and Integration”, Proceedings of The IEEE, vol. 94 , No. 6, June 2006.

• Henry Chang et al. ,”Surviving the SOC Revolution : A Guide ti Platform-Based Design”, Dordrecht :Kluwer Academic Publisher, 1999

• OMAPTM 5 mobile application platform, Texas Instruments Inc., Dallas, TX, 2011.

• McKinsey on Semiconductor, Issue 2 Autum 2012

Refferences