Does your chipneed a designerlabel?
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With the new Algotronix DesignTagno one will take your work for granted...
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Today the semiconductor industry is more complex

the chip within - a time consuming and expensive

than ever before. CAD Tool companies, design

procedure which is rarely used.

service companies, IP core vendors and a multitude oftalented individual design and verification engineers

From a diagnosis and maintenance perspective relying

all contribute to a successful System on Chip product.

on chip package markings for product and productMoreover, programmable devices such as FPGAs areversion identification is also problematic. Markings canblurring the distinction between hardware andbe faded or there may simply not be enough space onsoftware.

a small package to convey the required information.
FPGA chips where designs are updated in the field

Semiconductor product labelling, however, still relies

provide an insoluble challenge when determining

on ink markings on the chip package just as in theproduct version from package markings.

earliest days of the industry. This simple approach is
becoming increasingly inadequate. Marking on FPGA

The solution to these problems is a machine-readable

chip packages, for example, credits the FPGA vendor

e-tag implanted within the active circuitry on the chip.

- not the creator of the design it implements. TheA web-based database indexed by the tag code

marking on a complex SoC chips credits only theallows users to provide a rich set of information aboutcompany that markets the final product - all otherthe tagged product. Algotronix’ standard Red Tag

contributors in the value chain are invisible to the end

product is a low cost solution intended primarily forcustomer, market researchers, analysts and the press.

product identification and version control. Black Tag is

Unfortunately, invisible contributors have difficulty ina 'hardened' version of the DesignTag intended for

obtaining fair value for their work - or fair valuations

covert use and detection of intellectual property

for their businesses.

misuse. Multiple Black tags can be associated with asingle chip. Finally, with the Algotronix DesignTag, ICThe simple approach of adding text to the chipproduct labelling steps into the internet age.

package is also insufficient for the companies at thetop of the value chain. It is trivial to mislabel a
product to increase its value or to pass off inferior'clones', test failures or devices reclaimed from
scrapped equipment as high value 'brand name'merchandise. Detecting this kind of fraud requires
depackaging the device and microscopic analysis of

Where will your IP go today?

It’s your design...
Take Credit
Everyone deserves to be acknowledged for their work. But in the chip industry only thecompany at the top of the value chain gets their name on the package lid. CAD Toolvendors, design services companies and individual engineers who make a vital
contribution to the product go unacknowledged. Sometimes, even the IC supplier goes
without credit as powerful customers insist on marking key chips with their own logo.
FPGA chip packages are marked by the FPGA vendors - not the creators of the circuit
they implement.
Now, the Algotronix DesignTag links a machine-readable identifier on each individual chip to a web-based
database. Finally, designers can tie a rich set of information directly to the product: datasheets, marketing
literature or even movie-like credits acknowledging the contributors to the chip.

Take Action
Up until now misuse of IP blocks and CAD tool licences has been an almost undetectable
crime. Only by removing the chip package and time consuming microscopic analysis
could suspicious vendors determine whether their Intellectual Property was contained ina particular chip. With encrypted FPGA bitstreams or antifuse FPGAs or where the IP has
been compiled by synthesis and place and route tools even microscopic analysis may beinsufficient.
Algotronix Black Tags can be added to IP cores or inserted into designs by CAD tools. They provide a strong
deterrent to IP misuse, whether intentional or unintentional. Use of tools or IP Cores supplied underevaluation or educational licences to create commercial products or use of IP supplied under a single project
licence in multiple projects can be detected by scanning the final product. With Black Tag the terms of IP
and software licence agreements become enforceable.

Take Care
Fraudulently marked 'fake' or 'ghost' chips have been reported in the supply chain.
Changing the package markings to increase the speed grade or make a 'Commercial'temperature range chip into an 'Industrial' or 'Military' device will increase its value - andin most cases the substitution will never be detected. Even more subtle changes - likemarking 'no name' clone products as coming from well known brands, recycling 'ghost'chips from scrapped equipment as new devices or selling test failures as good devices
are also occurring and in most cases will go undetected because of the difficulty and expense of matching
the package markings to the chip within.
The Algotronix DesignTag allows the end user to 'look through' the package and directly identify the chip
within.

About theAlgotronix
DesignTag
The Algotronix DesignTag is avery small, low power active
circuit element which can beadded to electronic designs.
The DesignTag is a digital
circuit which can be used in
FPGA designs. Multiple tags
can be present in a single chip.
An external scanner can detect
the presence and serial
number of the tag and use thisinformation to access anexternal web-based databaseto provide a rich set of
information about the taggedchip.

Take Control
Diagnosing problems in electronic equipment usually involves determining part andversion information for integrated circuits assembled onto circuit boards. This simple
step is complicated by the fact that package markings can be faded, obscured or
insufficient to identify the component.

Security mechanisms allow
DesignTag users to control
who can detect their tag or to

The Algotronix DesignTag can provide a unique machine readable identifier for aparticular chip component and design version. Linking this identifier to a web based database allows richinformation on the component to be delivered automatically to service engineers.

restrict elements of theDesignTag also allows IP core vendors to independently determine which version of their product has beenused in a particular chip in the event of customer complaints.

database.

information stored in the web

Keeping an eye on your IP
Algotronix is a well established security andconsulting company based in Edinburgh in theUnited Kingdom. It was founded in 1998 as a spinout from Xilinx a leading vendors of FPGA chips.
Algotronix' customers include multinational
defence companies, government agencies andfinancial institutions. Algotronix AES encryption
cores are securing communication systems used bymany NATO countries and in commercial
applications ranging from casino gaming machines
to network test equipment. Algotronix has strong
ties to the leading FPGA research group at
Imperial College in London and to the System on
Chip design expertise of the Institute for System
Level Integration (ISLI) in Scotland.

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The DesignTag product brings together
Algotronix' experience in implementing
cryptography with its research into Digital
Rights Management systems in a novel
combination which is the subject of multiple
patent applications.
The Design Tag
The Algotronix DesignTag intentionallycreates a 'side channel' between the tag
circuit implanted within the chip and an offchip detector.
This side channel isengineered to transmit a small amount ofdata - the tag code - covertly, reliably andreasonably quickly to the detector without
requiring electrical contact. Thus DesignTag
can be detected without any knowledge ofthe function or documentation of the pinoutof the chip being scanned. A sensor is simply
placed in contact with the top of thepackage. It is also possible, in principle, tooperate without direct contact to the chip.
The DesignTag system consists of fourcomponents: the small tag circuit fragment
attached to the user design, a sensor forcollecting data from the tagged chip,
software running on a laptop computer and a
web based database of tag codes anddesign information.

The Algotronix Design Tag Product Options
ProductTags per chip

Covert Use

Generally Available

Application

Red Tag

OneNo

Yes

Design identification / version control

Black Tag

ManyYes

Limited Access

IP tracking

Private Label

Customised high security tagging for large organisations

Tag
The tag is a small digital circuit. It requires nospecial analog components and can beimplemented on an FPGA. The tag requiresvery little area and is low power. To further
reduce power the tag can optionally beconfigured to switch off a few minutes after
the chip is powered on - in this case tag
scanning must take place immediately after
power on.
Scanner
The sensor is a low-cost, off the shelfcomponent. Data can be collected using ahigh precision digital multimeter with data
logging capability or, more conveniently,
using a data logging unit supplied by
Algotronix which connects directly to acomputer running the Algotronix software
using a USB cable.
Software
Algotronix supplies a software application

which runs under Microsoft Windows. Thisapplication, in conjunction with Algotronix'
web service, can process a file of sensor datacollected using a digital multimeter orprocess data as it is collected from theAlgotronix data logging unit.
When
DesignTags are detected the software will
provide tag codes which can be looked up in
the Algotronix web database.
Web Service
Algotronix is developing a web databasewhich will be closely integrated with the tag
scanning software to deliver additional
information on the tagged products.
Customers will have the option to associate
datasheets or marketing materials with thetagged chips or to provide backgroundinformation on the design. Naturally,customers also have the option to keep tag
information private and restrict the situations
in which it will be reported

www.algotronix.com
algotronix ltd PO Box 23116 Edinburgh EH8 8YB United Kingdom +44 131 556 9242
Copyright © 2007 Algotronix Ltd. Algotronix is a registered trademark ® of Algotronix Ltd. in the United States and United Kingdom and a
trademark TM in other countries. The Algotronix Logo, the word 'DesignTag' and the phrases 'Red Tag', 'Black Tag', 'Designer Label' and'Private Label' in the context of integrated Circuit product labelling are trademarks TM of Algotronix Ltd. Encryption products are subject toexport control regulations and cannot be supplied to some countries.