US 7,032,191 B2 · Method and architecture for integrated circuit design and manufacture

Abstract

A system for integrated circuit (IC) design. A structural multi-project wafer (SMPW) comprises a plurality of pre-manufactured and pre-validated functional blocks. The SMPW is pre-fabricated up to a contact layer so that a user can customize and program different blocks of the SMPW to the user's requirements. An SMPW provider maintains an inventory of SMPWs. If one of the SMPWs can meet all of a user's IC design requirements, or can serve an intermediate step in a user's IC design process, such as market/concept validation or IP validation, the SMPW is provided to the user. The user can then proceed directly to production using a streamlined design flow having a very short cycle time of 1–3 months. Otherwise, the user proceeds to production using a normal design flow having a much longer cycle time.

Claims17

Dependent claims

A method for designing an integrated circuit (IC) comprising:

providing a plurality of structural multi-project wafers (SMPWs), each SMPW comprising a plurality of pre-manufactured and pre-validated dice, each die configured to be separately programmed into a customized concept validating IC;
if one of the plurality of SMPWs meets an IC designer's requirements, proceeding to a streamlined design flow and production for fabricating separate ICs from each of the concept validating ICs, the design flow having no IP integration or floor planning requirements;
if one of the plurality of SMPWs is usable as an intermediate step, extracting at least one of a usable SMPW component and an SoC structure for use in a normal COT flow;
and
if one of the plurality of SMPWs does not meet a user's requirement and is not usable as an intermediate step, extracting at least one of a usable IP and an SoC structure from the plurality of SMPWs for use in a normal COT flow.

2 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Method and architecture for integrated circuit design and manufacture

Life of this patent

Method and architecture for integrated circuit design and manufacture

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims17