Patent ID: 8689164

Claim:
A computer-implemented method for generating a placement for a plurality of instances in an integrated circuit (IC), wherein positions of the plurality of instances are defined according to a plurality of coordinates, wherein each position has a value in each coordinate of the plurality of coordinates, the method comprising the steps of: a. providing an objective function comprising a continuously differentiable weighted-average wirelength model to approximate the total wirelength for the placement, wherein the weighted-average wirelength model comprises a weighting for each value in each coordinate of the plurality of coordinates for each of the plurality of instances to derive the approximation of the maximum span in each coordinate for the plurality of instances, wherein the weighting corresponding to each value of a coordinate is respectively according to a function of the value of the coordinate only; and b. generating, by using a computer, the placement for the plurality of instances, by iteratively moving the plurality of instances according the direction taken by the gradient of the objective function to minimize the cost of the objective function.