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This document is intended to guide users of NanoXplore NXmap graphical software interface through all the steps involved in the design flow options and the options possibilities available to perform floorplanning exploration. This document is an addition to the NXmap User manual which focus exclusively on the NXmap graphical interface.
Package description
The provided NXmap archive contains the following directories:
bin folder contains binary files for each supported Linux distribution
doc folder contains documentation files in pdf format
example folder contains several examples of different projects with design sources in VHDL
lib64 folder contains dynamic libraries and Python modules for each supported Linux distribution and associated Python version
share folder contains additional files (vhdl libraries, simulation libraries, etc...)
Installation
To install NXmap, the user needs to unpack nxmap-VERSION.tar.gz file into the installation directory (e.g. /opt/NanoXplore) using the following command:
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To set the license, it is required to export the following shell variable:
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$> export LM_LICENSE_FILE=27000@servername |
Where servername is the hostname of the server running the license daemon and 27000 is the port the daemon listens to.
Run Nxmap
To run nxmap, use the following command:
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$> /opt/NanoXplore/nxmap/VERSION/bin/nxmap |
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User can mask/show Interpreter widget, which allows to write and execute python methods in using command lines.
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outside existing regions, the logic is scattered into the fabric (identified as top level element with ‘~') and a right click on this gives access to General and Region '~’ menus
General allows to Edit Fabric dimensions inside which logic should be mapped, Create a Region or Create an Obstruction from scratch
Region ‘~’ allows to edit the dimensions of the top level '~’ region of the design, which represents by default the top level design and the logic inside it which is not constrained within user-defined regions
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→ Select General → Edit Fabric to open the labelled editor and edit the dimensions of the fabric '~' as well as the relative focus point in order to modify the size of the matrix used by default to map resources
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→ Select General → Create obstruction to open the labelled editor and create a user-defined obstruction with desired coordinates
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→ If coordinates are missing or out of bounds, NXmap will issue a red warning message and won’t be able to validate the obstruction creation until the coordinates are corrected
→ Select General → Create Region to open the labelled editor and create a user-defined region with desired Name, color Tone, choose if the region is exclusive or not, set Aperture coordinates to define the location and size of the region, set Anchor coordinates for the focus point (placed in the middle of the fabric by default when inherit focus is picked)
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Moving the mouse cursor on an existing region or module will give you access to the following menu using right click, you can edit specific region and/or any module attached to the region
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characteristics of existing regions
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For existing regions that have been declared though nxpython methods in a dedicated script, logic instances have been constrained into these regions via module identification:
project.constrainModule(hierarchy, moduleName, type, leftCol, topRow, width, height, regionName)
user has the possibility through Right click → Module → Edit to move instance logic attached to a module from one region to another one
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→ for the associated module, select which region will used to constrain the associated logic instances
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→ click on accept when the destination region is selected and you will observe in the floorplan that the logic instances colour identification will be modified to match the destination region color
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→ don’t forget to click on Refresh button for the modifications to be taken into account into the graphical floorplan view
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user also has the possibility to import any constraint change performed into NXmap graphical into python equivalent commands for a python script view : click on Copy constraints andpaste the commands into the script
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Copy constraints can only import modifications of existing regions into contrainModule() commands. If regions have been created through nxpython old methods (createRegion(), addModule(), confineModule()), NXmap won’t be able to make a Copy constraints and will generate an error. |
Once you created or modified a region or an obstruction constraint, don’t forget to click on Apply constraints to save the changes into the nym database file.
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