Rapid Prototyping of Microelectronic Systems

The need for reduced time to market of new designs has mandated the development of a new generation of computer-aided design tools and design methodologies. The active pursuit of a substantial time reduction in the design process is encompassed in rapid system prototyping. This chapter introduces the eld and the disciplines it comprises, and presents extensive examples of research activities in many key disciplines. New technologies, such as eld programmable gate arrays, and new methodologies, such as subsystem reusability, are presented. The directions in formalizing the process of system design from speciications through delivery of a functional system are also discussed.