The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Apr. 22, 2003
Filed:
Mar. 26, 2001
Masakazu Tanaka, Kyotanabe, JP;
Masahiro Fukui, Ibaraki, JP;
Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd., Osaka, JP;
Abstract
There is no conventional method for precisely estimating under what external conditions each partial circuit, such as a library cell, is utilized in an actual integrated circuit at the time of designing the partial circuit. Therefore, by estimating the external conditions of a partial circuit when used in an integrated circuit so that the partial circuit is designed in accordance with the external conditions, the partial circuit having optimal performance for the external conditions can be designed. The step of external condition estimation can be formed so as to include the technology conversion step which technologically converts the layout for external condition extraction, that is prepared in advance, based on the technology information of an integrated circuit, which is the design objective; the layout extraction step of extracting layout extraction information which is external information influencing the operation of the partial circuit from the layout for external condition extraction that has been technologically converted; and the external condition calculation step of calculating external conditions of the partial circuit from the layout extraction information. In addition, by simply replacing the designed partial circuit with a partial circuit of a circuit for evaluation, the evaluation of the designed partial circuit can be easily carried out.