Headquartered in Tokyo, TOREX Semiconductor (TOREX) is a renowned manufacturer specializing in the development of Analog CMOS power integrated circuits (ICs). TOREX’s products are recognized in the market for their optimal balance between ultra-compact size and competitive cost. To continuously expand its portfolio of low-power microcircuits while ensuring rigorous reliability, TOREX has trusted and implemented the Tanner design solution suite from Siemens EDA.

The TOREX team is using Tanner software.

1. The Challenge for the IC Design Team

TOREX’s flagship product is the step-down DC/DC power converter (XC9281/XC9282 series). The engineering team set a goal to make this product the smallest converter in its class by maximally reducing the entire IC area, including both the circuit and peripheral components (input/output capacitors, inductors).

However, in the traditional IC design workflow, engineers often faced difficulties when switching back and forth between the schematic and the layout. “If we continued using the old methods, the design would not be able to meet the market’s severe demands for both size and cost,” shared Nobuhiro Aoki, a representative of the XCL Product Design Group at TOREX.

They needed a flexible solution that allowed engineers to freely tweak the design, maintain optimal performance, and minimize variations caused by temperature or manufacturing processes.

2. The Tanner EDA Solution

To solve this problem, TOREX deployed the Tanner™ software from Siemens EDA. This is a comprehensive design environment tailored for Analog/Mixed-Signal ICs, covering the entire workflow from schematic entry and simulation to Layout design and verification (DRC/LVS).

By applying a proprietary feedback loop control method on the Tanner platform, TOREX successfully shrank the entire power converter IC package to just 1/10th of the size of conventional products, while perfectly controlling signal noise levels.

• S-Edit & L-Edit: The TOREX team highly appreciates the usability of the S-Edit schematic editor and the L-Edit layout editor.

• Accurate Simulation: “During the simulation phase, Tanner provides extremely efficient functional verification capabilities, such as high-impedance verification,” Aoki noted. The early detection of potential operational issues completely eliminates risks before moving into mass production.

• High Flexibility: Tanner supports both Windows® and Linux®. TOREX engineers can easily run the Eldo™ simulator and the Calibre® verification tool right on their personal laptops when presenting directly at client offices.

3. Compatibility with Semiconductor Foundries

Another benefit since TOREX integrated the Tanner tool into their workflow is the seamless communication with semiconductor foundries. The foundries directly provide certified Process Design Kits (PDKs) for Tanner, which include simulation models, parameterized cell libraries, and DRC/LVS/RC extraction rule files, helping to maximize the accuracy of simulation results.

“When we transitioned our front-end design tools to Tanner, the system allowed for a smooth transfer of all our legacy design data assets into the new environment,” shared Hiroyuki Nakano from the Process Engineering Department at TOREX. “Our mission is to build a highly reliable design flow that helps shorten development time. With a proven tool in the Analog domain like Tanner, TOREX has significantly improved its design ROI (Return on Investment).”

Contact VBTECH today for in-depth consultation on genuine Siemens EDA software solutions tailored to your business needs.

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