The Week In Review: Design/IoT

Legal
A U.S. District Court invalidated three patents related to emulation, which were part of a patent infringement lawsuit filed by Synopsys against Mentor Graphics. The fourth patent will be reviewed by the U.S. Patent Trial and Appeal Board. Synopsys said it is evaluating an appeal and criticized the decision. “Synopsys strongly disagrees with the court’s decision,” said a Synopsys spokesperson. “These patents are fundamental to EDA and helped revolutionize chip design.” (See related story here.)

Tools
Mentor Graphics rolled out embedded virtual prototype kits to optimize software on a number of platforms. The company is targeting the solution for automotive in-vehicle infotainment, electronic control unit networks, medical, industrial, networking and mil/aero markets.

IP
Synopsys rolled out new verification IP for JEDEC’s UFS, MIPI and eMMC protocols in an effort to speed up the verification process for complex mobile platforms. Synopsys also received HDMI 2.0 certification for its transmitter and receiver controllers and PHY IP.

Deals
Rambus won a deal with Tezzaron, which will use Rambus’ Resistive RAM technology in 3D memory devices for military, aerospace and commercial applications. Tezzaron also plans to use it inside of SoCs, FPGAs and processors. One of the big advantages of ReRAM is the combination of high performance and low power.

Cadence is working with UMC to deliver a 28nm reference flow for ARM Cortex-A7 multi-core SoCs. The flow is aimed at entry-level smartphones, tables and wearable electronics. Cadence also won a deal with Japan’s Digital Media Professionals, which will use Cadence’s emulation platform to develop high-performance graphics IP cores.

ARM is working with University College London to launch an education kit for students to learn IoT technical skills. The goal is to encourage more graduates in math and science to stay in those fields. ARM also developed a safety document for its Cortex-R5 processor for safety-critical applications. The company said it is a first step for using the chip across markets such as automotive, health care and industrial.