It started with a basic level Arduino board introduction (not details), and from there we entered a processor (assumed its a RISC-V based processor), then explained how to design a RISC-V SoC where we used Raven SoC from Efabless Corp. Pvt. Ltd., and then finally implemented few blocks of E31 RISC-V core from SiFive, as a part of project work. We also covered some basic C program compilation using SPIKE and risc-v obj-dump to give a feel of RISC-V flow and assembly language programming

 

This 5-day content is becoming quite a standard one in all universities in India for Industry grade Level-1 VLSI trainings for freshers. Next we are going for an advanced level, called as Level-2 VLSI training, where we are using Synopsys/Mentor tools. This happens for only those students who have covered above Level-1 workshop.

 

Pretty soon, you will find all of above on cloud, as every year, the number of college students opting for Level-1 trainings is increasing. You might want to pour in your ideas on how to provide better and better experience to students.

 

Finally, I am really Thankful to Jack, Naveed and Tim Edwards for their immense contribution towards E31 design and open-source EDA tools. These are good enough for trainings and quickly getting hands on the complex topics. As I write this email,  I am leaving for another 2-day workshop at another state in India (Orissa), who want the entire state to opt for Level-1. Let me know if you have any ideas on how to do things differently

 

For more upcoming events (next is Synopsys ICC2 workshop), please refer to below website:

 

That's how my 2019 ends :)

Wish all of you a very Happy and successful New Year.....