Semiconductor IP News and Trends Blog

Top 22 Blogs on Chipestimate.com “IP Insider”

While admittedly long, this list captures the diversity of our coverage – from IP trends to the Rule of Nine, lost innocence, Indy racing, sci-fi, and the Acorn.

It’s time again for my yearly retrospective look at all of the stories that I’ve covered on “IP Insider.” This breadth of coverage is why I enjoy working with the folks at Chipestimate.com (i.e., they allow my carte-blanche selection of topics!). Their only request is that the subject matter bares some connection to the world of semiconductor IP. Fair enough!

Below are my two favorite blogs from each month in 2013 based upon the quirkiness of the topic – from the extreme to the mundane. There’s always something of interest to report in even the most unassuming of stories. Happy Holidays! -JB

January

• Moore’s Law Meets Death Star – Will the rapid growth of the patent-troll business model end technical innovation as we know it?
• The Rule of Nine: Challenges Facing the Semiconductor IC Supply Chain – While the Global Semiconductor Alliance (GSA) report focuses on China, the challenges discussed apply to the global IC-supply-chain market.

February

• Flexible Yogurt-Lid Electronics Become a Reality – Truly flexible electronics from processor, memory, interface, and battery components are here, thanks to Intel, IBM, STMicro, Leti, Imec, Kaist, Kovio, and others.
• Robbing Engineers of their Innocence – The discussion continues on the need for more well-rounded engineers.

March

• Moore’s Cycle, Fifth Horseman, Mixed Signals, and IP Stress – What do all of these things have in common? They were key topics addressed by Cadence, Samsung, and others at CDNLive 2013.
• Trends in Subsystem Semiconductor IP – As IP leads semiconductor growth, subsystem blocks cause node-based cost challenges, verification issues, hidden embedded cores, interface preferences, and more.

April

• Are Designers Really Affected by the Semi Supply Chain? – Do chip designers really need to worry about these external influences? Serus, Dassault Systemes, Mentor Graphics-Valor, and Open Silicon share their insights.
• Do 3D Printers Challenge Semiconductor IP and Fabs? – What does a futuristic matter replicator from the ’70s have to do with today’s patent and semiconductor IP systems? The answer lies in 3D printers.

May

• CMMI Past Awakens Semiconductor Reboot – A visit near DoD Mitre territory reinforces the need for hardware and software capability assessment in the semiconductor market.
• Long Standards, Twinkie IP, Macro Trends, and Patent Trolls – In Part II, IP Extreme’s Savage reveals why IP standards take so long while discussing brand values, macro trends, and changes wrought by patent trolls.

June

• What Is Hardware–Software Integration? – The left-hand side of the systems-engineering Vee-diagram is where hardware and software subsystems really come together. But in what context?
• DAC Report – Latency; Platform as a Service; 262626; and ARM-12 – Notes from my Tuesday DAC visits with CAST IP, Mentor Graphics, Dassault Systemes, Chipestimate.com, and Globalfoundries-ARM.

July

• Is IP Theft the Leading Cause of Tech Decline in the US? – A recent Financial Times (FT) article doesn’t mince words in calling China’s “international theft of inventions part of a national business model.” According to the story, China is following an approach long sanctioned by many other Asian countries.
• Imec Talks Boundaries, Innovation, and IP at Semicon West – Crossing interdisciplinary boundaries, 3D stacked-die collaboration, open innovation, and IP challenges were the topics of an Imec interview at Semicon West.

August

• Images from Sonoma Indy Race – Cars, electronics, and the race make for a great day at the Sonoma Indy raceway.
• Semiconductor IP Company Makes Actual Consumer Product? – “Coincidences mean you’re on the right path.” –Simon Van Booy, Love Begins in Winter: Five Stories

September

• EDA Survives Export Control, Thanks to a Few – A few EDAC export-control experts save the EDA industry from potentially devastating technology, IP, and encryption regulations.
• RF Designers Favor Which Processes and PAs? – Data from Globalfoundries and an independent CDT survey confirm growth in RF silicon designs, III-IV challenges, and trends in power-amplifier techniques.

October

• 6052, Acorn, ARM, and the IoT – Do you remember developing on the 6502 processor? How about Acorn’s BBC Micro? Well, surely you’ve heard of ARM. If you answer “no” to any of the above and are interested in developing for the Internet of Things (IoT), this video will help.
• Knight’s Nod to Semiconductor Industry Veterans – Walter Knight’s latest romp includes cameos by Cadence, former CEO of Chipestimate.com Adam Traidman, and veteran writer Max Maxfield.

November

• High-Tech Travel Log: IEF and Imec – Time for another ChipEstimate.TV “Travel Log.” This time, I cover highlights from the International Electronics Forum (Dublin) and the Imec Technology Forum.
• Synaptic Transistors Should Improve Brain Models – Creating a working synaptic-transistor device should help with the modeling of neurons in the Human Brain Project. But would the IP be open to all?