Method and apparatus for facilitating manufacturing of semiconductor device

An apparatus for facilitating manufacturing of a semiconductor device, the apparatus comprising:

• an input module, which is configured to receive a custom design data set, wherein the custom design data set complies with a first element-identification scheme;
• a compatibility module, which is configured to generate a compatible design data set using the custom design data set, wherein some data elements in the compatible design data set correspond to some data elements in the custom design data set, and wherein the compatible design data set is compatible with a dummy-pattern-data generation module;
• the dummy-pattern-data generation module, which is configured to generate a first dummy-pattern data set using the compatible design data set;
• a customization module, which is configured to generate a second dummy-pattern data set using the first dummy-pattern data set, wherein some data elements in the second dummy-pattern data set correspond to some data elements in the first dummy-pattern data set, and wherein the second dummy-pattern data set complies with the first element-identification scheme;
• and
• hardware circuits configured to perform one or more tasks associated one or more of the input module, the compatibility module, the dummy-pattern-data generation module, and the customization module.