ASSASSIN: an assembly, specification and analysis system for speed-independent control-unit design in integrated circuits using path-programmable logic (PPL)

Abstract: Numerous efforts have been made to automatically implement the control-units and datapaths of synchronous systems in integrated circuits. Speed-independent systems have not yet been extensively explored in the context of the integrated circuit. Presented in this thesis is a software system--ASSASSIN: an Assembly, Specification and Analysis System for Speed-Independent Control-Unit Design--which aids the systems designer in specification, simulation and implementation. PSL (Portable Standard LISP) is used as the implementation language for ASSASSIN. It is shown that the implementation of speed-independent control-units implemented using well-known techniques is feasible and shows that PPL is indeed amenable to CAD tool development. It also demonstrates the power and appropriateness of a PSL based environment for VLSI design.