High-level synthesis
Automated design from behavioral specification to RTL structure.
Last updated
High-level synthesis (HLS) is an automated design process that converts an abstract behavioral specification into a register-transfer level structure.[1] The goal is to let hardware designers efficiently build and verify hardware by working at a higher abstraction level while the tool handles RTL implementation.[2]
Quick Facts
- First tapeout
- 2001 by Sony using Cynthesizer
- First commercial tool
- Behavioral Compiler by Synopsys in 1994
- Key acquisition
- AutoESL acquired by Xilinx in 2011
- Hall of fame induction
- SDC modulo scheduling technique inducted to FPGA and Reconfigurable Computing Hall of Fame in 2022
Facts from the source article.
Key facts and history
The SDC scheduling algorithm was implemented in the xPilot HLS system developed at UCLA. xPilot is a behavior synthesis system from C or SystemC to RTL code with design constraints.[3][4] AutoESL, which licensed xPilot, was acquired by Xilinx in 2011, and the tool became the base of Vivado HLS and Vitis HLS.[3] Synopsys launched the first generation of behavioral synthesis tools, called Behavioral Compiler, in 1994, and it accepted designs written in Verilog or VHDL.[5] Because of the totally unimodular property, a linear programming solver can find the optimal solution to the scheduling problem in polynomial time.[6]
What the cited sources add
The HLS Book website states that HLS converts untimed or partially timed behavioral descriptions into efficient hardware descriptions in Verilog or VHDL.[7] HLS optimizations include unrolling loops, pipelining them, or inlining functions through synthesis directives.[7] The xPilot system targets both processor-based synthesis for configurable processors and hardware-based synthesis for FPGAs and ASICs. xPilot focuses on optimizing performance, resource usage, interconnection, and throughput.[4] The xPilot system was licensed by AutoESL Design Technologies as the basis for an advanced commercial-strength ESL synthesis tool.[4]
References
- Wikipedia, "High-level synthesis" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "High-Level Synthesis - Springer", 2008; McFarland, "The high-level synthesis of digital systems", Proceedings of the IEEE, February 1990, p. 301–318; "HLS Book : Home", www.hlsbook.com (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "High-level synthesis" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Bowyer, "The 'why' and 'what' of algorithmic synthesis", EE Times, 2005-05-02 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "High-level synthesis" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Cong, "2006 43rd ACM/IEEE Design Automation Conference", IEEE, 2006, p. 433–438; "xPilot: Platform-based Behavior Synthesis System VAST lab", vast.cs.ucla.edu; Cong, "High-Level Synthesis for FPGAs: From Prototyping to Deployment", IEEE Transactions on Computer-Aided Design of Integrated Circuits and Systems, April 2011, p. 473–491 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
- "xPilot: Platform-based Behavior Synthesis System VAST lab", vast.cs.ucla.edu. facts only, no text reused. vast.cs.ucla.edu
- Wikipedia, "High-level synthesis" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Publications and Presentations", Bdti.com (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "High-level synthesis" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Cong, "High-Level Synthesis for FPGAs: From Prototyping to Deployment", IEEE Transactions on Computer-Aided Design of Integrated Circuits and Systems, April 2011, p. 473–491 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- "HLS Book : Home", www.hlsbook.com. facts only, no text reused. hlsbook.com
Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article High-level synthesis (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.
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Sources
Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.
- Wikipedia: High-level synthesis (CC BY-SA 4.0).
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