Scan cell selection for partial scan designs

One or more non-transitory computer-readable media storing computer-executable instructions for causing one or more processors to perform a method of weight-based determination of state elements to be converted into scan cells in a partial scan design, the method comprising:

• computing at least one controllability value for one or more state elements in a circuit design, including assigning a controllability value to be zero for a state element that forms a self-loop;
• computing at least one observability value for the one or more state elements based on the at least one controllability value and a structure of the one or more state elements;
• determining at least one weight parameter according to a complexity of the one or more state elements;
• computing at least one control weight value based on the at least one weight parameter and the at least one corresponding controllability value of the one or more state elements;
• computing at least an observation weight value based on the at least one weight parameter and at least one corresponding observability value of the one or more state elements;
• selecting one or more of the state elements to be scan cells based on the at least one control weight value and the at least one observation weight value associated with the one or more state elements;
• and
• converting the selected one or more of the state elements in the circuit design into scan cells, thereby generating a partial scan design for the circuit design.

A computerized system for designing partial scan circuits, comprising:

• a signal probability determination unit configured to determine at least one current-state signal probability value for state elements in a circuit design, wherein the at least one current-state signal probability value is assigned to be zero so as to maintain a self-loop intact for a respective state element that forms a self-loop;
• a next-state capture probability computation unit configured to compute at least one next-state capture probability value for the state elements in the circuit design based on the current-state at least one current-state probability value and a structure of the state elements
• a probability-based scan cell selection unit configured to select scan cells from the state elements based on the next-state capture probability values;
• and
• a weight-based scan cell selection unit configured to further select scan cells from the state elements based on at least one weighted sum of one control weight depth value, one observation weight depth value, and one weighted difference of the at least one control weight depth value and the at least one observation weight depth value of the state elements, wherein the at least one control weight depth value is associated with a first predetermined weight parameter and the at least one observation weight depth value is associated with a second predetermined weight parameter.