Strategic relationship with SiliconAid extends ScanWorks® into chip test and verification

As the result of a recent strategic agreement with SiliconAid, Inc., ASSET will integrate its first integrated circuit (IC) test tools into the ScanWorks® platform for embedded instruments and resell SiliconAid’s insertion and verification tools that support the emerging IEEE P1687 Internal JTAG (IJTAG) standard and other established IEEE 1149.x standards for embedded instrumentation. SiliconAid is a supplier of world class chip verification and debug tools that support the IEEE 1149.x boundary-scan standards.

“This is just the first step toward our vision of a continuous test flow beginning at the chip level and extending to circuit boards and systems,” said Glenn Woppman, president and CEO of ASSET. “Beyond this chip debugger that we’ll be integrating into the ScanWorks platform, we can see a time when extensive chip tests can be re-used in circuit board and system test, saving manufacturers considerably on test development and shortening time-to-market. We’re also excited about promoting Silicon Aid’s IEEE P1687 IJTAG tools. We want to encourage the adoption of this emerging industry standard because we believe it will be critical to the effective utilization of embedded instrumentation in future test and measurement applications.”

SiliconAid’s JTD™ chip debugger, which will be integrated into ScanWorks immediately, is a robust real-time test and debug tool that can monitor structures inside chips and give visibility through an intuitive graphical interface to the engineer who is debugging the device. Although ASSET will initially resell SiliconAid’s IEEE P1687 IJTAG synthesis (JTS™) and verification (JTV™) tools, future plans could call for these tools to be integrated into ScanWorks as well. JTS™ and JTV™ allow chip designers to automatically insert IJTAG capabilities into chips and subsequently verify the implementation. IEEE P1687 provides a standard interface to instrumentation embedded in chips.

“We are excited about teaming up with ASSET to resell our tools and to help lead the industry’s adoption of the IJTAG IEEE P1687 standard,” said Jim Johnson, president of SiliconAid. “This standard is not just important for our two companies. It will be critical to the industry as embedded instrumentation proliferates in next-generation devices. Standards like IEEE P1687 enable a higher level of integration and automation, beginning with chip design and test, and then transitioning seamlessly into board test. Adding IEEE P1687 IJTAG tools into our suite is a natural next step for us to leverage our existing products and offer more value to our customers.”