Standardized Functional Verification- P11:Every manager who brings a design to tape-out or who purchases IP must eventually face these questions. The ability to answer these questions based on quantitative analysis is both vital and yet elusive. In spite of the enormous technical advances made in IC development and verification software, the answers to these questions are still based largely on guesswork and hand waving. | Interpretation of the Specification 1 85 error-correction and for accommodating mandated changes such as might come from a standards-setting body. The result of this effort reading the various documents that define the design discussing them with team members must yield an exhaustive list of all variables with precise definitions exact ranges and clearly defined relations between dependent ranges and independent variables. The category subspace of a variable is determined by whether its value will be used while creating the instance the context the activation the operation or the excitation. Likewise this effort must also yield an exhaustive list of rules how the design must behave and guidelines how the design should behave . Well-written specifications will contain keywords that indicate which are which. Words such as must will and shall indicate that a rule is being described whether explicitly or implicitly. Words such as should recommended preferred and optimum indicate that a guideline is being described. Additionally this step will very likely expose bugs contradictions ambiguities omissions etc. in the specification itself. Clarification and agreement on such matters should be obtained as early as possible in the development to facilitate more rapid project execution and consequent faster time-to-market for the device. Finally specifications will change whether to eliminate bugs or to incorporate enhancements. In particular industry standards are often revised on schedules contrary to the needs of the many teams around the world who are attempting to realize devices compliant to these specifications. Consequently it s vital to associate all variables and their ranges and all rules and guidelines with a particular version of the specification. When revised specifications are published another pass at interpretation will be needed to bring the resulting sets of variables rules and guidelines up to date with the revisions. The results to be obtained from a
