Cadence VIRTUOSO LAYOUT SUITE XL Datasheet - page 4
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VirTuoSo LAyouT SuiTE XL
and guided routing are built on the Virtuoso
common constraint system and connectivity-
driven layout flow. These features boost
productivity for almost all layout engineers,
freeing them from generating complicated
scripts to achieve desired results.
ADVANCED EDITING wITh
CLONING
Virtuoso Layout Suite XL has a unique
capability that allows users to “clone”
portions of the layout without disrupting or
violating connectivity. What differentiates
cloning from a more traditional copy of
geometry is that cloning supports both a
geometric copy and a connectivity update.
This capability is essential in today’s
connectivity-driven methodologies.
in addition to cloning, users can
synchronously clone portions of the layout
so that a single change in a member of
a clone group updates all partner clones.
This capability is a huge productivity
enabler when working in a connectivity-
driven environment.
hIERARChICAL, MULTI-wINDOw,
MULTI-TABBED, INTUITIVE EDITING
ENVIRONMENT
Virtuoso Layout Suite XL enables users to
open multiple cells or blocks in a single
editing session, or different views of the
same design, to more effectively edit large
hierarchical designs. users can also open
and manage their designs more quickly by
using tabs, bookmarks, and history.
A tabbed approach to viewing layouts,
similar to functionality in today’s popular
web browsers, simplifies window
management and provides fast access to
multiple designs in an intuitive manner.
This is particularly helpful when copying
portions of a layout from one design to
another, or when using a pre-existing
design as a reference.
The concepts of bookmarks and history
are similar to what we see in web
browsers as well. users can “bookmark”
commonly accessed designs or view
the history of recently opened designs.
Bookmarks can be a single cell or a group
of cells that appear in individual tabs. A
“personal bookmarks toolbar” makes
accessing commonly used bookmarks
extremely quick and easy.
Virtuoso Layout Suite XL shares the same
look and feel as Virtuoso Schematic Editor
and Virtuoso Analog Design Environment.
This consistent use model enables a fully
featured, intuitive, front-to-back design flow.
DOCkED LAYOUT ASSISTANTS
Docked assistants are user interface widgets
that surround the main layout editing canvas.
Within Virtuoso Layout Suite XL are a rich set
of assistants including a Design Navigator,
Property Editor, Search, and World View that
enhance layout productivity.
Through the Design Navigator Assistant, users
can quickly and efficiently access specific cells
that may be in a lower level of the design
hierarchy via a built-in tree browser. Cells,
nets, and pins can also be selected, sorted,
and probed through the Design Navigator.
This is a very effective feature when designing
and debugging complex layouts.
The Property Editor Assistant is a new
twist on the traditional “Edit Properties”
pop-up form. its streamlined interface
increases layout canvas space while
decreasing mouse clicks and space-
consuming pop-up dialog boxes.
The Search Assistant provides layout
engineers with comprehensive search
capabilities. it categorizes the “found”
items into logical groups (cells, pin names,
properties, etc.) and displays these items
in a tree structure, making it easy for users
to find and access information within the
design, design libraries, menu commands,
and even the SKiLL programming language
manuals. Context-sensitive menus and
double-click operations allow for rapid
operations on selected results.
The World View Assistant is an intuitive
navigational aide that allows users to
always see the entire design even while
zoomed-in to a specific section of layout.
This is particularly useful when working
with large layouts where users have
to perform editing while zoomed-in
on a portion of the design. Being able
to concentrate on a specific section of
layout, while still having the full layout
context available, decreases the need
for repetitive panning and zooming. This
translates into fewer mouse clicks, which
improves layout productivity.
FLEXIBLE PCELLS
Parameterized cells (Pcells) provide an
advanced level of design automation to
minimize tedious and repetitive layout
tasks. Pcells support the changing of
the size, shape, or contents of each cell
instance without changing the original
cell. They raise the level of abstraction to
the component level. This dramatically
improves the productivity of layout creation
and editing of complex shapes and
devices. Devices can be generated, edited,
and managed with variable settings,
thus improving layout productivity while
reducing design-rule violations.
Figure 4: Docked layout assistants include a
Design Navigator, Property Editor, and World
View, which enhance layout productivity