Zocalo Tech Rolls Out Zazz EDA Software
Zocalo Tech, Inc., an Electronic Design Automation (EDA) company focusing on Assertion Based Verification (ABV) productivity software, is shipping Zazz[tm] . Zazz, first introduced at DVCon in February 2009, is the first EDA software product to make using assertion libraries quick, easy and accurate by automating tedious error prone tasks with its easy to use intuitive Graphical User Interface (GUI). With Zazz, the checkers from the most widely used assertion libraries can be attached to a design and documented in minutes.
Most experts agree that assertion checkers added by designers have significant impact on detecting problems early in the functional verification process. The designer is the most familiar with the intent and limitations of the design and is in the best position to define where they are needed during simulation. Additionally, with checkers in place, formal verification can begin at the earliest stage and at the “sweet spot” for formal verification. Designer-provided assertion checkers result in increased communication between the designers and verification engineers. For example, when a designer-provided checker fails, both the designer and the verification engineer have a common point of reference.
“Nearly all designers can add assertion checkers manually. This rarely happens because the time required for creating, debugging, attaching and documenting them is difficult to justify when considering the typical chip design schedule. The availability of assertion libraries reduces that time, but not nearly enough for wide scale use by designers. With Zazz, attaching and documenting the library checkers that cover most of the designer’s requirements, takes less than a minute each. This level of productivity and the low cost of Zazz make designer provided assertions highly effective,” remarked Howard Martin, Zocalo President.
About Zazz
Zazz is Linux-based and supports any mix of Verilog 1995, Verilog 2001 and SystemVerilog design files. The Zazz Front End includes an advanced incremental parser, elaborator and design viewer. An existing design or new design can be read into Zazz where it is parsed, elaborated and graphically displayed. The design may then be modified with the editor of choice without leaving Zazz. The design viewer provides superior design presentation and navigation. When a design is modified and saved, it is incrementally parsed and elaborated. The incremental feature, along with the built-in modification monitoring quickly updates the graphical display and gives immediate feedback about errors. The Zazz Front End provides designer productivity advantages even when assertion libraries are not being added or used.
Integrated with the Zazz Front End, Assertion Library Support software provides:
- Ease of selecting checkers from assertion libraries
- Ease of binding the checkers to the design file
- Ease of configuring the checkers
- Ease of exportation and management of bind files
- Automatic creation of verification plan documentation
Support is provided for Accellera’s Open Verification Library (OVL), Cadence’s Incisive Assertion Library (IAL), Mentor’s Questa Verification Library (QVL) and Synopsys’ SystemVerilog Assertions Checker Library with Coverage Level Reporting.
Availability and Pricing
Zazz is available now. The list price is $4950 for a one-year subscription. Through September 30, 2009, single copies are available at a volume purchase price of $2,950. Go online to see a demo and download a free 14-day trial. If the project is not ready to move forward with the full Zazz capability, the Assertion Library Support is automatically disabled and the Front End capabilities of Zazz remain for continued use at no cost.
About Zocalo Tech
Zocalo Tech, Inc., incorporated in 2006, is focused on productivity software for quick and easy creation, use and reuse of assertion checkers working seamlessly with any popular functional verification flow. Zocalo software, marketed under the name Zazz, has been architected and developed from the ground up with one goal in mind: increased productivity for engineers adopting and utilizing Assertion Based Verification.
Zazz is a trademark of Zocalo Tech, Inc.
If you are familiar with RSS feeds, you can also sign up for our free news feed. Our RSS feed is updated in real-time while our newsletter is updated daily.