System and method for behavioral description translation

Claim 5

A method as defined in claim 2 wherein said access functions are selected from a set of voltage and current functions identified in a contribution statement in said higher-level behavioral description.

Claim 6

A method as defined in claim 3 where output access functions are used to specify signals and are found on the left-hand side of the contribution statement and input access functions are used to monitor signals and are found in expressions on the right hand side of the contribution statement such that output access functions are controlled sources and input access functions are probes.

Claim 7

A method as defined in claim 4 wherein signals produced by said sources are controlled by signals measured by said probes in a manner specified by the contribution statement.

Claim 8

A method as defined in claim 2 wherein said structural representations are constructed using one or more primitive branch types from a set containing voltage probes, current probes, voltage sources, and current sources.

Claim 9

A method as defined in claim 2 wherein said structural representations comprise a list of all of components in said circuit coupled with parametric information and terminal information.

Claim 10

A method as defined in claim 2 wherein a combination of said structural representations comprise a netlist.

Claim 11

A method as defined in claim 6 wherein said sources and said probes are S-type branches (voltage sources and current probes) and combine in series when from the same component and attached to the same two nodes.

Claim 12

A method as defined in claim 6 wherein said sources and said probes are P-type branches (current sources and voltage probes) and combine in parallel when from the same component and attached to the same two nodes.

Claim 13

A method as defined in claim 2 wherein said generated set of relationships further comprises a combination of three sets of relationships: nodal analysis relationships of KCL; constitutive relationships for P-type branches; and constitutive relationships for S-type branches.

Claim 14

A computer circuit simulation system for behavioral description translation of a higher-level behavioral description into a lower-level specification such that users of the computer circuit simulation system can treat voltages and currents symmetrically when formulating the higher-level behavioral description, the computer circuit simulation system comprising: a computer processor unit; memory media storage connected to said computer processor; and a computer program in communication with said memory media storage and said computer processor unit performing the operation of: identifying all access functions in the higher-level behavioral description wherein said higher-level behavioral desorption describes voltages and currents symmetrically; constructing a structural representation for each component in a circuit from identified access functions such that said structural representation contains a branch internal to said each component that describes behavior of said each component from the structural representations, performing the steps of: collapsing all S-type branches connected in series between a pair of nodes into one new branch where voltage on the new branch is a sum of voltages of said all S-type branches; and collapsing all P-type branches connected in parallel between another pair of nodes into one second new branch where current through the second new branch is a sum of currents of said all P-type branches; from said first new and second new branches, generating a set of branch relationships describing said circuit; and combining the generated set of branch relationships to eliminate unnecessary branch relationships therefrom.

Claim 15

A computer circuit simulation system for behavioral description translation of a higher-level behavioral description into a lower-level specification such that users of the computer circuit simulation system can treat voltages and currents symmetrically when formulating the higher-level behavioral description, the computer circuit simulation system comprising: a computer processor unit; memory media storage connected to said computer processor; and a computer program in communication with said memory media storage and said computer processor unit performing the operation of: identifying all access functions in the higher-level behavioral description wherein said higher-level behavioral desorption describes voltages and currents symmetrically; constructing a structural representation for each component in a circuit from identified access functions such that said structural representation contains a branch internal to said each component that describes behavior of said each component from the structural representations, performing the steps of: collapsing all S-type branches connected in series between a pair of nodes into one new branch where voltage on the new branch is a sum of voltages of said all S-type branches; and collapsing all P-type branches connected in parallel between another pair of nodes into one second new branch where current through the second new branch is a sum of currents of said all P-type branches; from said first new and second new branches, generating a set of branch relationships describing said circuit; and combining the generated set of branch relationships to eliminate unnecessary branch relationships therefrom.

Claim 16

A computer circuit simulation system as defined in claim 12 wherein said higher-level behavioral descriptions are supplied by a supplied computer program syntax using a modeling language.

Claim 17

A computer circuit simulation system as defined in claim 12 wherein said system is implemented using a SpectreHDL behavioral modeling language.

Claim 18

A method as defined in claim 5 wherein said higher level behavioral description permits Ohm's Law to be expressed in said contribution statement with an input current probe and equivalently in a second contribution statement with an input voltage probe.

Claim 19

A method as defined in claim 15 wherein said each component is chosen from a group consisting of a resistor, a capacitor, an inductors, a conductance, and a transistor.

Claim 20

A method as defined in claim 16 wherein said circuit includes an RLC circuit.

Claim 21

A method as defined in claim 5 wherein said higher level behavioral description permits Faraday's Law of Inductance to be expressed in said contribution statement with an input current probe and equivalently in a second contribution statement with an input voltage probe.

Claim 22

A method as defined in claim 2 wherein on each S-type branch of said all S-type branches, said voltage on said each S-type branch is a function of a voltage in said circuit and a current in said circuit, and wherein at least one of said all S-type branches is a conditional S-type branch such that a sum of voltages on said each S-type branch is a difference between a voltage at a first node of said conditional S-type branch and a voltage at a second node of said conditional S-type branch when an S-type driver is active and is a current through said conditional S-type branch when no S-type drivers are active.

Claim 23

A method as defined in claim 2 wherein on each P-type branch of said all P-type branches, said voltage on said each P-type branch is a function of a voltage in said circuit and a current in said circuit, and wherein at least one of said all P-type branches is a conditional P-type branch such that a sum of voltages on said each S-type branch is a difference between a voltage at a first node of said conditional S-type branch and a voltage at a second node of said conditional S-type branch when an S-type driver is active and is a current through said conditional S-type branch when no S-type drivers are active.

Claim 24

A computer circuit simulation system as defined in claim 12 wherein said access functions are selected from a set of voltage and current functions identified in a contribution statement in said higher-level behavioral description.

Claim 25

A computer circuit simulation system as defined in claim 21 where output access functions are used to specify signals and are found on the left-hand side of the contribution statement and input access functions are used to monitor signals and are found in expressions on the right hand side of the contribution statement such that output access functions are controlled sources and input access functions are probes.

Claim 26

A computer circuit simulation system as defined in claim 22 wherein signals produced by said sources are controlled by signals measured by said probes in a manner specified by the contribution statement.

Claim 27

A computer circuit simulation system as defined in claim 12 wherein said structural representations are constructed using one or more primitive branch types from a set containing voltage probes, current probes, voltages sources, and current sources.

Claim 28

A computer circuit simulation system as defined in claim 12 wherein said structural representations comprise a list of all of components in said circuit coupled with parametric information and terminal information.

Claim 29

A computer circuit simulation system as defined in claim 12 wherein a combination of structural representations comprise a netlist.

Claim 30

A computer circuit simulation system as defined in claim 24 wherein said sources and said probes are S-type branches (voltage sources and current probes) and combine in series when from the same component and attached to the same component and attached to the same two nodes.

Claim 31

A computer circuit simulation system as defined in claim 24 wherein said sources and said probes are P-type branches (current sources and voltage probes) and combine in parallel when from the same component and attached to the same component and attached to the same two nodes.