Three Steps for USB Application Success – Design, Verify, Certify

With the USB protocol being so popular nowadays (and frankly speaking, was there ever a time it wasn’t?), there are many advantages of enabling USB in an application, like versatility, ease of use, proliferation within the industry. However, there are also some hidden potential traps, which I'll discuss in more detail here.

Trap #1 – Designing with IP outsourced from multiple vendors

USB design IP has been available in the market for a long time. Many companies have, therefore, specialized in providing either controller or PHY IP. At Cadence, you can find complete USB solutions with integrated controller, PHY and firmware, which is a unique offering for USB application designers. Integration of all these elements in a single, complete solution is critical for a couple of reasons:

1. It’s faster to bring up – lots of work is already done, and in most cases the user can simulate the USB functionality in their environment within days – not weeks or months
2. It comes pre-verified – this can save even more time, as verification is by large the most time-consuming part of SoC development
3. It’s designed to go well together – controllers can take advantage of all PHY and firmware features and vice versa, with the user getting the best of both worlds

Trap #2 – Sub-par IP verification and/or quality

Cadence has extensive experience in verification, and there are many reasons why we’re the VIP market leader. Our USB VIP has been deployed at multiple Tier 1 vendors, and the feedback we've received has helped us improve the product even more. Therefore, testing our USB IP against our VIP is like testing it against all these leading customer applications.

Apart from that, Cadence has introduced an extensive IP quality flow that verifies the IP from multiple angles. Our reports are available for customers, so they can see for themselves how high we’re setting a bar for our products before they’re released to customers.

Trap #3 – Industry-certified compliance

Last but not least, USB certification is a crucial step for securing compliance with USB protocol specification and giving much needed confidence to customers when it comes to newly available solutions. This is why Cadence has placed extremely high priority on certifying its USB Device and Host Controllers in 16FF technology, and did so as a first USB IP vendor. We’re proud of being able to re-assure our customers in advanced nodes that by going with Cadence, they can rely on us to meet all the functional requirements and provide interoperability with virtually all devices available in the market.

Best way to avoid traps – choose Cadence USB IP

Cadence has invested a lot of effort into not only providing a complete portfolio of USB products, but also into making them actually work with each other as integrated subsystems. The controller and PHY IP are designed to work with each other and to be complemented by reference USB firmware. On top of this, we have certified most of the available combinations, most importantly the Device and Host IP on 16FF, where our leading customers are investing and expecting excellent results to drive the industry. To see the whole IP offering, please make sure to visit our website at ip.cadence.com.

Jacek Duda