The workshop will focus on the topics indicated below. Each topic is used as a theme for a half day session. The people co-ordinating the set up of the sessions are listed below. Please contact them by clicking their name if you want more information on a Session.
It may be worthwhile to contact a topic-coordinator early if you know of an interesting contribution to the Session

Sessions for which contributions are sollicited

Objectives of the Session:
Major challenges in DSP System design for VLSI implementation originate from trends in applications and in technologies. They influence all phases in the design flow: specification, simulation, architecture and layout synthesis, verification and testing. New requirements in applications relate mostly to communications and multimedia. This brings up many design questions related to e.g. real-time operating systems, the value of emulation, efficient high-speed architecture synthesis, etc. Besides, they present new possibilities for design trade-offs by novel requirements like the need to incorporate general purpose and application-specific cores or like the need for low power solutions for portable applications. Tools for support of the above problems are mainly in an early state of development. Nevertheless this Session aims to overview the state of the art in the broad field of Design Methods and Tools for DSP System-on-a-Chip Design.

Session 2: Design of Systems-on-a-Chip
Topic Co-ordinator: Carlos Beltran Almeida

Objectives of the Session:
Actual VLSI circuits can provide capabilities to design Systems-on-a-Chip formerly achieved with Wafer Scale Integration. This new microelectronic area is under a fast development in response to the industrial requirements for high performance systems subject to constraints such as size, weight, power, cost or working environments. This session aims to cover all the aspects related to the CAD tools used to integrate microelectronic system modules and to perform trade-off studies. Topics for oral or poster presentations include, but are not limited to, CAD for design of large area monolithic ICs and MCM based systems, mixed analog and digital systems, tools to perform 2-D and 3-D simulation, placement and routing, power estimation, clock and signal distribution, cost modeling, thermal analysis, yield prediction, system test, fault location and system repair.

Session 3: Challenges of mixed signal design
Topic Co-ordinator: Birger Schneider

Objectives of the Session:
For many European companies, the mixed-signal area presents a vital area for their system design and test. Tools for this domain are still lagging significantly compared to what is available in the digital field. The session will focus on new methodologies for designing and testing mixed-signal chip systems. For mixed-signal design this includes: analogue synthesis, mixed-signal simulation, analogue HDL, mixed-signal floorplanning as well as route and placement, and the mixed-signal test topics typically include transfer of results from design-to-test, mixed-signal verification, how can the chip designer take more responsibility of the mixed-signal chip test and verification? etc. The session will include 5 presentations as well as 1 hour poster presentations, where more people will have the opportunity to present interesting results and/or views on the challenges of mixed-signal.

Session 4: Microsystems: CAD and Experiences
Topic Co-ordinators: Karl-Heinz Diener and Colin Lyden

Objectives of the Session:
Microsystem technology, the integration of chemical, mechanical and other sensors and actuators together with electronic components onto silicon systems, is of rapidly growing importance. The most important applications of microsystems are expected to be in information technology industries, the automotive industry, environmental protection, medical technology, production engineering.

In order to save costs the development of microsystems is focused on exploiting the technology already available in the IC business. The design of such systems is complicated by the multi-disciplinary nature of the problem. There are mature design tools in many of the individual areas, particularly in the IC and mechanical fields, but little which covers the whole problem. From the complexity point of view the design and construction of microsystems is comparable to that of VLSI ICs. A uniform design environment is very important for reducing time to market. That makes it easier to exploit designs developed for and tested in other widely used applications.

Oral and poster presentations are sought on all aspects of CAD for microsystems, including CAD tools, modelling, design methodologies and interesting examples of the use of microsystem CAD.

Working Session: CAVE predictions for 2002
Topic Co-ordinator: Gordon Adshead.

Objectives of the Session:
The workshop will be divided into 5 groups, each brainstorming where Design Technology and CAD will be in 5 year's time. A Plenary Session will then be held to review, combine and vote on the key predictions. A brief look back at the predictions we made in 1986 and 1991 will provide a stimulatiung starting point.
Persons wishing to lead discussions or present posters giving strong predictions are asked to contact Gordon Adshead as soon as possible.

Pages maintained by Ludwig D.J. Eggermont

Last Updated: 8 March 1996