May 9, 20161

Design Challenges in the era of IoT & M2M

applications

May 9, 2016

Satinder Paul Singh Huawei Technologies

May 9, 20162

Agenda

• Introduction

• IoT and M2M Systems– Decoding the hype

• Embedded Software challenges

• Architecture level challenges

• SoC/ASIC Design and Verification level challenges

• System Test Challenges

• Value beyond Silicon and Software

• Conclusion

IoT – Internet of Things , M2M – Machine to Machine , SoC – System on Chip

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Introduction

• IoT = sensing + aggregation + analytics

• IoT/M2M consists of distributed services based on sensing, sharing, and controlling through new nodes .

• The nodes are the big hardware opportunity

Low cost

Low energy

Unique form factors

Lots of new sensors

Always alert (Device or Subsystem in SoC)

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Typical IoT System Design Flow.

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Typical IoT System Design Flow

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Embedded Software Challenges

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• System Architecture

• Configuration

• Booting

• Debugging

• Separation

• Device Sharing

• Inter Process Communications (IPC)

• Security

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Architecture level challenges

Rich Analog

Radio + MAC + Baseband

Low Noise Amplifier (Rx)

Power Management Unit

Integrated Power Amplifier

Optimized Digital Logic

Low energy processor

On chip memory

Digital Baseband Hardware block

Rich sensor I/O

UART , SPI , I2C , High speed GPIO

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Architecture level challenges

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• No processor cores ideally suited for all three functions

Sensing and actuating

Computation and data processing

Communication

• Microcontrollers have limited DSP capabilities

• Signal processing workload is growing in complexity over time

• Every IoT application is slightly different

• Energy efficiency is extremely important

• Cost and ease of use drive desire for one core for IoT

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Architecture level Requirements

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• IoT Data processing capability.

• More memory : HDD , TLC , NVMs

• Meaningful information closer to the networking node.

• Performance tailored to application.

• Very less or bare minimum latency.

• Excellent controller and server performance.

• Bandwidth monitoring and control allowing maximum connectivity.

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Memory for IoT

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IoT/M2M SoC Design level challenges

• Original view was digital part fairly easy with most of work done in cloud

Thanks to latency and security limitations , digital part is complex

CPUs , Bus , Fabrics , Radio Power Management drives digital crazy

• Power Management

Ultra low Power techniques has impact on timing and reliability

• Requires careful management and use of AVS (Adaptive Voltage Scaling)

• AMS is a big consideration for sensors.

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IoT/M2M SoC Design level challenges

• Lot of Flux around Radios

LTE is great for range but very expansive on power

BLTE is better but short in range.

ZigBee may be promising

• No longer just a few analog blocks on edge of the digital now you have nested digital in analog also for digital tuning of analog in advanced processes, programmable signal processing are some examples.

• This makes timing closure and power management more complicated

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IoT/M2M SoC Verification level challenges

• More Protocols per chip

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IoT/M2M SoC Verification level challenges

• Larger Designs

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IoT/M2M SoC Verification level challenges

• Lower Power (Power Management Verification)

• Accurate power dissipation is not easy to capture in Digital Test bench.

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IoT/M2M SoC Verification level challenges

• Higher Software content

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IoT/M2M SoC Verification level challenges

• Increasingly software-driven requiring more emulation and prototyping

• Complexity of verification goes up because of co-verifying against the next level up (fog/gateways/...) which is also in flux in design, standards, etc.

• System level coverage more important to define and measure, particularly around software use-cases, complemented by simulation, static and formal methods

• Verification at AMS boundaries becomes more complex both for standard functional verification and for low power verification for reasons mentioned above (nested A/D)

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IoT/M2M SoC/ASIC Test challenges

• Selecting the Right Wireless Module

• Designing and Debugging Complex Mixed Signal Devices (Analog + Digital +RF)

• Maximizing Battery life

• Passing EMI and EMC certification

• Speeding Through Wireless Standards Certifications

• Combatting the Interference of Things.

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System Test Challenges

• ATE is for todays SoC are not suitable for IoT devices or systems

• BISR/BIST or cloud based software driven test and repair.

• Error and defect resilient and self healing systems.

• Can Big data be used to improve yield , productivity , efficiency and product reliability.

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Value beyond Silicon and Software

• Get out of C/C++ programming box

• Analog and Mixed Signal capability

• Deep trace IoT protocol debug

• Compliance artifacts

• Remote access

• Cloud IP integration

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Value beyond Silicon and Software

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Conclusion

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END

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