Non-Rectangular Reconfigurable Cores for System-on-Chip

Non-rectangular cores of standard-cell-based reconfigurable logic can be used to fill space left on System-on-Chips, thereby providing the system with hardware reconfigurability. The proposed architecture for a non-rectangular reconfigurable core is based on a fixed set of blocks that implement logic functions, interconnections and configurable switching. The basic blocks connect by abutment to form clusters and clusters abut to form a complete reconfigurable core. A software tool was created to generate a gate-level netlist and the floorplan data of the reconfigurable logic core together with a basic testbench. Cores with non-rectangular shapes were created using 90 nm and 45 nm standard-cell technologies and validated by simulation. The results demonstrate the feasibility of a flexible, technology-independent architecture for non-rectangular reconfigurable logic cores that can be physically implemented using a standard digital design flow.