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DAC 2016: IoT Designs Require Robust Ecosystem

Brian Fuller
Brian Fuller
June 20, 2016
3 minute read time.

Chinese Version(中文版) :DAC 2016: 物联网设计需要强健的生态系统

We argue about the definition and scope of the Internet of Things (IOT) but what, to me, is inarguable is its profound impact on design.

A market with a nearly infinite number of design possibilities is one with which the electronics design world is experiencing for the first time. It has been used to building big tools, platforms and SoCs for big-reward markets: Workstations, personal computers, mobile phones networking gear and the like. It’s at its most efficient and profitable when process, methodology and design coalesce to take advantage of large-volume opportunities.

But IoT is none of that. But yet the industry, from IP to EDA, has pivoted deftly in recent years to start to meet the challenge.

This was on display last week at Design Automation Conference 2016 here.

“What we need to understand about IoT is that it is literally everything—gateways, sensors, smart phones,” said Nandan Nayampally, vice president of marketing with ARM. “IoT is not a device. It’s not even a segment. It’s delivering service across the cloud to connected devices. In the IoT world, it’s not about delivering the killer SoC; silicon is a vehicle that delivers your killer solution.”

He said that it’s really about bringing multi-disciplinary expertise and using silicon as an enabler for newer, untethered--but connected--use models.

And what’s more important he said, “one size does not fit all.”

Herein lies the challenge: How to develop flexible and scalable IP and the right mix of EDA tools, methodologies and services to serve and enable this market.

And for the developers, how do you pick your spots and with what?

“It’s tough to design monetization up front,” said Frank Schirrmeister, senior group director, product management and marketing, with Cadence Design Systems. Schirrmeister said wearables profitability can be elusive, given the uncertain volumes and competition. But there is profitability to found around the device.

“For the startup, the question becomes how will I monetize? Is it the app? Is it the chip?” he said.

Scaling up

Today, most startups are small-scale affairs, some with crowd funding, some with funding from their own pockets. And it’s an era in which interesting designs get started on platforms like Raspberry Pi and Arduino. Remember that just a few short years ago, startups needed big ASIC teams paying hefty NRE to get a design to market.

This innovation empowerment is extraordinary, but for most it’s only a start, and can be insufficient to achieve escape velocity.

“Lowering the hurdle to design cost and verification/implementation cost is huge,” Schirrmeister said.

Nayampally said it’s all about “time to money.” Enabling that initial design is key, of course, but after that it becomes a race to volume, and in IoT this is a competitive race.

“You can design for one vertical, but that vertical may not be enough to sustain you,” Nayampally said on a ChipEstimate.com panel with Schirmmeister here at DAC. “You may need to scale this design for something that scales horizontally as well. The  one thing we can do is lower the barrier to allow for rapid innovative design.”

Removing Design Roadblocks

ARM continued confronting that challenge this week when it announced an expansion of the DesignStart program and unveiled an ARM-approved design house service. Both are intended to give designers and developers easy access to an ecosystem of tools and support for everything from prototyping to production.

In expanding DesignStart, ARM now offers simplified and expedited access to EDA tooling and design environments from Cadence and Mentor Graphics.

The new ARM Approved Design Partner program provides DesignStart users with a global list of audited design houses for expert support during development. The first four, announced June 6, are Open-Silicon, Sondrel, eInfochips, and SoC Solutions.

“With DesignStart, it’s a simple three steps, easy access to design. You can download Cortex-M0 with a license for free, start playing around with it,” Nayampally said. “Then you can prototype, plus put in your logic into an FPGA. It’s really good for startups and makers to get their designs worked out and get their next level of funding.”

Nayampally said ARM has had partners who’ve taken the system design kit and gone to tapeout in 4 months.

“That’s very good if you’re startup paced,” he said.

Anonymous
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