Synopsys Announces System-Level Library

Sunnyvale, California — Synopsys introduced the DesignWare®System-Level Library. The library provides SystemC transaction-level simulation models (TLMs) for assembling virtual platforms, including instruction set simulators (ISS), and TLMs of Synopsys' DesignWare cores and AMBA components. All DesignWare System-Level Library models are written in SystemC and work in IEEE 1666 (SystemC) compliant simulation environments, making them tool-independent.

Users can find pre-assembled platforms that address specific application areas as well as combine the models to assemble platforms specific to their market. This introduction is a departure from the focus on SystemVerilog marketing and reminds the industry that Synopsys was responsible for introducing SystemC and continues to be dedicated to supporting the language.

ESL methodologies have suffered from a lack of standard tools and methods. The work by the TLM technical group of OSCI has addressed the use of Transaction-level models in system level design. Synopsys is now introducing a product that gives substance to the engineering work performed by OSCI.

The DesignWare System-Level Library features more than 50 TLMs, including high performance microprocessor models and models of DesignWare standards-based connectivity IP such as USB 2.0 HS OTG, SATA AHCI and AMBA components. Also included are pre-assembled models of complete platforms which can be used as reference designs for driver development or as a starting point for building larger virtual platforms.

The licensing mechanism used is platform oriented and somewhat innovative. Customers purchase a yearly license that allows the use of a specified number of "tokens". Each model in the library has a token value, generally from one to three. When the engineer assembles a design using models from the library, the specific execution module uses only the number of tokens associated with the model that has the highest "token value". That is if library models used in the module have a total value of fifteen tokens, for example, and the highest "token value" for a model in the module is three, the license manager only uses three tokens.

The library is simulator-independent and available immediately.