Extending End-to-End Traceability into the Semiconductor Design Cycle
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In this blog, we recap our recent Whitepaper, “Extending End-to-End Traceability into the Semiconductor Design Cycle.”
Extending End-to-End Traceability into the Semiconductor Design Cycle
Modern semiconductor design is a high-stakes, high-complexity endeavor. With fabless semiconductor companies evolving rapidly & tackling increasing design challenges, effective requirement traceability across the entire design lifecycle has never been more critical. Traditionally limited to the later stages of development, traceability now demands an upstream extension, covering Electronic Design Automation (EDA) and verification tools.
Why does this matter? Extending requirement traceability earlier into the semiconductor design cycle doesn’t just minimize errors; it ensures efficiency, reduces costs, and bolsters compliance. This whitepaper explores why integrating traceability into EDA tools benefits chip and system-on-chip (SOC) projects and how companies can set themselves up for success.
Why Extend Requirement Traceability to EDA Tools?
Manage Complexity Across Distributed Teams
Fabless semiconductor companies and Integrated Device Manufacturers (IDMs) increasingly rely on globally distributed teams and specialized domains for system, hardware, and software design. This decentralization makes collaboration more challenging, and critical requirements may get lost in translation.
Without clear traceability, common pain points include:
- Miscommunication about design intent across teams
- Misinterpretation of product requirements
- Testing against outdated requirements
- Uncertainty and risks in IP reuse, especially when lineage and design intent are undocumented
By extending the reach of traceability into EDA tools and workflows, organizations can create a direct link between system requirements, IP blocks, design intent, and test benches. This reduces the risk of potential miscommunication & ensures that every design artifact aligns with higher level business goals.
Identify Risks Early in the Design Cycle
Simulation and Verification capabilities in an EDA tool are critical checkpoints for ensuring alignment between architectural design and performance requirements. When connected to traceability frameworks, these tools elevate quality assurance and minimize risk.
Through such an integration, teams can:
- Detect and correct inconsistencies in architecture, performance, and design constraints before tape-out
- Proactively identify gaps in requirements coverage
- Continuously monitor power, performance, and area (PPA) metrics as designs evolve
- Increase chances of first silicon success
By tying simulations and verifications directly to requirements, companies preserve agility while safeguarding against expensive last-minute failures.
Lay the Foundation for Generative AI Integration
From defect prediction to automated generation of requirements and test cases, AI is transforming the semiconductor industry. To fully leverage AI’s potential, organizations need well-structured data from across their lifecycle that is traceable. This includes EDA tool and serves as fuel for AI-driven insights such as:
- Defect predictions and design inconsistencies
- Automated requirement creation and test case generation
- Robust analytical capabilities with intelligent suggestions for coverage gaps and test improvement
This end-to-end integration is essential for companies aiming to improve the structure of their engineering data so it can be used as a data pipe to feed other AI/ML projects and initiatives.
RELATED: Join the Leaders Choosing Jama Connect® for Semiconductor
Avoid Failure Despite Mature Processes
Even the most advanced requirements management processes can fail to bridge the gap between early design work and high-level product goals. This disconnect can result in overruns on cost and time while missing performance or functional
targets.
Without tightly linking decisions in early-stage EDA tools to requirements, organizations face:
- Misaligned timing, throughput, or power targets during critical milestones
- Slow root cause analysis when performance benchmarks are missed
Extending traceability ensures visibility into how each design decision affects product goals, enabling rapid adjustments and informed decision-making.
Facilitate Efficient Change Impact Analysis
Semiconductor design is an iterative process where late-stage requirement changes can ripple across RTL, DFT, and verification layers. Effective traceability enables teams to propagate changes efficiently and assess downstream impacts in real-time.
When EDA tool outputs, constraints, and simulations are part of the traceability chain:
- Impact analysis for system requirement changes becomes seamless
- Verification teams can identify affected test plans and test constraints instantly
- Regulatory compliance processes become auditable and efficient
This end-to-end integration is essential for companies aiming to improve the structure of their engineering data so it can be used as a data pipe to feed other AI/ML projects and initiatives.
Ensure Regulatory Compliance and Certification
Whether it’s automotive (ISO 26262), aerospace (DO-254), or medical devices, safety-critical industries demand rigorous traceability and accountability.
By extending traceability into EDA ecosystems, semiconductor companies can provide proof of:
- How requirements were implemented in RTL and verified through simulations
- Continuous validation of system-level intents
This level of transparency is crucial for certification in highly regulated industries, ensuring customer and stakeholder confidence while avoiding compliance gaps.
RELATED: Buyer’s Guide: Selecting a Requirements Management and Traceability Solution for Semiconductor
Practical Approach to Achieving End-to-End Traceability
Here’s how fabless semiconductor companies can implement a traceability framework that extends across the design, simulation, and verification layers.
System Layer: Where it All Begins
End-to-end traceability starts with a solid foundation at the system layer. This stage focuses on managing requirements and maintaining a clear connection between what the product must deliver and how those goals translate to system functions.
Key Takeaways:
- Jama Software serves as the traceability hub to ensure alignment across teams
- Model-Based Systems Engineering (MBSE) Tools such as Cameo enable detailed system modeling
- Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) Tools like Windchill help track complete product lifecycles
Key Artifacts:
The artifacts at this stage include product requirements, architecture models, and functional and non-functional requirements such as PPA (power, performance, area) metrics.
Traceability Links:
High-level requirements are seamlessly linked to system functions and verification criteria, ensuring no gaps between product expectations and system capabilities.
Design Layer: Bridging Hardware and Software
Once system requirement baselines are established, the focus shifts to the design layer, where the intricate dance between hardware and software development takes place.
Key Tools and Resources:
- RTL Design Software, like Synopsys VCS, simplifies design processes
- Software Tools, such as Jira, streamline task management
- Prototyping Tools, including Xilinx Vivado, assist with early-stage testing
Key Artifacts:
The main outputs here are HDL (Hardware Description Language) modules, design specifications for hardware and software, and integration plans to bring it all together.
Traceability Links:
At this stage, system requirements feed directly into design specs, which flow into HDL and software modules to uphold interconnected traceability.
Download the full whitepaper to learn more about the following topics:
- EDA Toolchain Integration Layer: Simulations at the Core
- Verification and Validation Layer: Testing the Foundation
- Analytics and Decision Support Layer
- Transforming Requirement Traceability with Jama Software
- Set Up Your Semiconductor Design for Success
DOWNLOAD THE ENTIRE WHITEPAPER TO LEARN MORE:
Extending End-to-End Traceability into the Semiconductor Design Cycle
Director of Product and Solution Marketing at Jama Software
Experienced in all aspects of the software development lifecycle with a particular focus on requirements management. Currently managing a team of pre-sales solution architects. We are passionate about understanding our client's business challenges and what it takes to solve them. We are innovative, agile, and have the pleasure of working with the best in class solution.
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