Computer implemented system and method for generating a layout of a cell defining a circuit component

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11288432-B2
Application number	US-202017062567-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 3, 2020
Priority date	Nov 19, 2013
Publication date	Mar 29, 2022
Grant date	Mar 29, 2022

Abstract

Various implementations described herein are directed to a method. The method may provide a tile database with multiple tiles that define one or more first component sections for a memory device. The method may define an array of storage elements having a specified memory array width. The method may define one or more second component sections having at least part of a standard cell based tile with standard cells arranged in multiple standard cell rows. The method may generate a memory instance by defining a layout for the memory device with the multiple tiles selected from the tile database based on matching the multiple standard cell rows to the specified memory array width of the array of storage elements.

First claim

We claim:

1. A method comprising:
providing a tile database with multiple tiles that define one or more first component sections for a memory device;
defining an array of storage elements having a specified memory array width;
defining one or more second component sections having at least part of a standard cell based tile with standard cells arranged in multiple standard cell rows; and
generating a memory instance by defining a layout for the memory device with the multiple tiles selected from the tile database based on matching the multiple standard cell rows to the specified memory array width of the array of storage elements.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the tile database includes a memory array custom tile that defines the array of storage elements with the specified memory array width.

3. The method of claim 2 , wherein the multiple standard cell rows are configured to match the specified memory array width of the memory array custom tile.

4. The method of claim 3 , wherein a portion of the standard cell based tile is formed using the standard cells arranged in the multiple standard cell rows that are configured to align with the specified memory array width of the memory array custom tile.

5. The method of claim 3 , further comprising:
receiving input parameters for generating the memory instance; and
constructing the memory instance based on the multiple tiles selected from the tile database in accordance with the input parameters.

6. The method of claim 5 , wherein the multiple tiles selected from the tile database include the memory array custom tile and the standard cell based tile.

7. The method of claim 1 , further comprising manufacturing an integrated circuit, or causing an integrated circuit to be manufactured, in accordance with the memory instance generated by defining the layout for the memory device.

8. A method comprising:
obtaining a first cell layout of a cell from a tile database;
identifying one or more cut lines based on the first cell layout of the cell, wherein the one or more cut lines run horizontally through the cell in a height dimension or run vertically through the cell in a width dimension;
generating an output data file of the cell for the tile database by performing a resizing operation on the first cell layout of the cell in the height dimension or in the width dimension using a resizing amount for each cut line of the one or more cut lines; and
generating a second cell layout of the cell that corresponds to the first cell layout of the cell by performing a cell generation operation based on the output data file.

9. The method of claim 8 , wherein the resizing operation is a stretching operation in the height dimension or in the width dimension with the resizing amount as a stretching amount, wherein the cut lines run horizontally through the cell to enable the cell to be stretched in the height dimension or in the width dimension.

10. The method of claim 8 , wherein the resizing operation is a shrinking operation in the height dimension or in the width dimension with the resizing amount as a shrinking amount, wherein the cut lines run vertically through the cell to enable the cell to be shrunk in the height dimension or in the width dimension.

11. The method of claim 8 , further comprising:
providing the tile database with multiple tiles that define component sections for a memory device,
wherein the tile database includes a memory array custom tile that defines an array of storage elements having a specified memory array width.

12. The method of claim 11 , wherein:
the tile database has a standard cell based tile that defines a component section having at least part of the standard cell based tile with standard cells arranged in standard cell rows to define components of the component section, and
the standard cell rows are configured to match the specified memory array width of the memory array custom tile.

13. The method of claim 12 , further comprising:
receiving input parameters for generating a memory instance; and
fabricating the memory instance from the multiple tiles that are selected from the tile database based on the input parameters,
wherein the multiple tiles include the memory array custom tile and the standard cell based tile.

14. The method of claim 8 , further comprising manufacturing an integrated circuit, or causing an integrated circuit to be manufactured, based on the second cell layout.

15. A method comprising:
accessing a tile database that identifies a cell layout for a cell;
identifying one or more cut lines relative to the cell architecture;
specifying a resizing amount for each cut line of the one or more cut lines; and
generating an output data file for the tile database that resizes the cell layout of the cell based on the resizing amount corresponding to each cut line.

16. The method of claim 15 , wherein:
the resizing amount refers to a stretch amount or a shrink amount, and
resizing the cell layout of the cell refers to stretching or shrinking the cell layout of the cell based on the stretch amount or the shrink amount corresponding to each cut line.

17. The method of claim 15 , further comprising manufacturing an integrated circuit, or causing an integrated circuit to be manufactured, based on the cell layout of the cell.

18. The method of claim 15 , further comprising:
identifying the cell layout for the cell architecture as a first cell layout for a first cell;
identifying a second cell layout for a second cell that is different than the first cell layout of the first cell;
resizing the first cell layout of the first cell architecture at the one or more cut lines to match the second cell layout of the second architecture; and
generating another output data file for the tile database in reference to the second cell layout of the second architecture.

19. The method of claim 18 , wherein resizing the first cell layout to match the second cell layout refers to stretching or shrinking the first cell layout of the first cell architecture relative to the resizing amount corresponding to one or more cut lines to match the second cell layout of the second architecture.

20. The method of claim 18 , further comprising manufacturing an integrated circuit, or causing an integrated circuit to be manufactured, based on the second cell layout of the second cell.

Assignees

• Advanced Risc Mach Ltd

Inventors

• Chen Andy Wangkun
• Chong Yew Keong
• Shore Tom
• Yeung Gus
• Frederick Jr Marlin Wayne
• Thyagarajan Sriram

Classifications

• G06F30/398 Primary

  Design verification or optimisation, e.g. using design rule check [DRC], layout versus schematics [LVS] or finite element methods [FEM] (optical proximity correction [OPC] design processes G03F1/36) · CPC title

• G06F30/39 Primary

  Circuit design at the physical level (physical level design for reconfigurable circuits G06F30/347) · CPC title

• G06F30/392

  Floor-planning or layout, e.g. partitioning or placement · CPC title

• G06F30/394

  Routing (G06F30/396 takes precedence) · CPC title

• G06F2111/04

  Constraint-based CAD · CPC title