Saber® Frameway For Mentor Graphics ePD: User Guide

Saber
Frameway for Mentor

Graphics ePD
User Guide
Version V-2004.06-SP1, September 2004
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Family Name Product Name Manual Type, version W-2004.09
i
ii
Preface
What You Need to Know to Use This Manual
This manual assumes that you are familiar with the following procedures:
How to create a schematic in your design capture tool
How to view the contents of a file
How to use a text editor to create a file or edit the contents of a file
If this is your first time using SaberDesigner, you should run through the
tutorial presented in the Getting Started with SaberDesigner document. This
manual provides an excellent overview of the process described in this
chapter.
Overview of the ViewLogic Frameway Integration
This Frameway Integration allows you access to Saber tools from ViewLogic
applications. You can create designs with the ViewDraw design capture
application using symbols provided with Saber. The designs are then
converted into Saber netlists by the netlister programs. SaberGuide and
SaberScope can be invoked from within the PowerView applications to
simulate and analyze the design. Cross-probing is provided to allow you to use
SaberScope to easily plot simulation results for selected nets in the
PowerView environment.
The ViewLogic applications are modified to allow access to Saber applications.
These modifications include: addition of new commands, changes to ViewDraw
and PowerView menus and dialog boxes, and inter-process communication
with Saber applications. These changes are referred to as integrations into
these applications.
Analyzing Designs Using SaberDesigner (July 2002) v

Copyright 1985-2002 Synopsys, Inc.
Preface
These netlisters can be invoked from PowerView Cockpit to produce a Saber

netlist (.sin file). You can invoke and interact with SaberGuide and
SaberScope from ViewDraw. You can also access some of the Saber tools
directly from menus, dialog boxes, and palette icons within the PowerView
cockpit.
What This Manual is About
In this manual you will find information about how to analyze a design using
SaberDesigner from schematic capture, to executing analyses, through tuning
parameter values.
SaberDesigner is an extremely powerful set of tools that allow you to analyze
your design in numerous ways. Thus allowing you to save design time, lower
production costs and create a more profitable product.
The following list overviews the chapters and appendices in this manual:
Chapter 1: Capturing the design describes the process of creating a
schematic. This chapter provides a generic approach to
schematic capture highlighting the features added to ViewDraw
to enable you to use Avant!-supplied parts in your designs.
Chapter 2: Simulating the Design. After you create the schematic, the next
step is to simulate the design in Saber. Chapter 2 describes the
methods to invoke the Saber simulator from within the design
capture tool.
A netlist is an ASCII representation containing the instance

names, connection points, and non-default parameter values for
the parts in the schematic. Because each design capture tool uses
a different design database format to store schematic
information, you can use a netlister to create a netlist that Saber
can read.
A Saber-compatible netlist is written in the MAST analog

hardware description language. The MAST language is an
extremely powerful method for describing the functionality of
analog, digital, mechanical, and control system components. Just
about anything that you can describe with an equation, can be
modeled using the MAST language.
Chapter 2 also discusses the basic elements of the SaberDesigner

user interface, how to view the netlist within the simulator, and
how to alter part and design parameters.
vi Analyzing Designs Using SaberDesigner (July 2002)

What This Manual is About
You can analyze your design using any of the analyses provided
within Saber. You chose the proper analysis to run based on the
design specification that you want to verify. The remaining steps
in this list show the types of analyses that you can execute
within Saber. The process for running each of these analyses,
from displaying the form through evaluating the results, is
described in this manual.
Appendix A: Files Used during Saber Simulation describes the files that
Saber creates and generates during a simulation session.
Appendix B: Netlister Reference describes the netlisters used to convert the

schematic into a Saber netlist.
Appendix C: Simulating Digital Parts in Saber describes how Saber maps

signal values between analog and digital parts using
Hypermodels.
Analyzing Designs Using SaberDesigner (July 2002) vii

Preface
Related Documents
The SaberDesigner Reference describes the features of the

SaberSketch and SaberScope applications along with general
SaberDesigner functionality, such as menu usage and printing.
Getting Started with SaberDesigner allows you to analyze two tutorial
circuits and explore key processes in SaberDesigner.
Managing Symbols and Templates describes how to setup your parts
library containing Cadence symbols and MAST templates. This manual
also describes how to map symbols to templates so that the netlister
will instantiate the proper template in the Saber netlist.
viii Analyzing Designs Using SaberDesigner (July 2002)

Table Of Contents
Preface ................................................................................................................. v
What You Need to Know to Use This Manual .............................................. v
Overview of the ViewLogic Frameway Integration ...................................... v
What This Manual is About.......................................................................... vi
Related Documents .....................................................................................viii
Chapter 1. Capturing the Design with ViewDraw ......................................1-1

Creating a Project........................................................................................1-1
Invoking Powerview and Creating a Project ........................................1-2
Invoking Workview Office and Creating a Project ............................... 1-2
Opening a ViewDraw Schematic ................................................................1-4
Opening a ViewDraw Schematic in Powerview (UNIX) ......................1-4
Opening a ViewDraw Schematic in Workview Office (Windows NT) . 1-5
Choosing Models..........................................................................................1-5
Choosing and Placing Parts on a ViewDraw Sheet ...................................1-6
Using the Saber Part Form to Place Supplied Parts............................ 1-7
Parts Gallery Overview .........................................................................1-7
Using the Parts Gallery to Place Supplied Parts .................................1-8
Using the Add Component Dialog Box to Place Supplied Parts ....... 1-10
Adding Power and Simulation Stimulus Parts .................................. 1-10
Including Digital Parts in Designs......................................................1-11
Adding Hypermodels ...........................................................................1-11
Connecting a Part to a Node of the Proper Connection Type ............ 1-12
Annotating Attributes...............................................................................1-13
Modifying Attributes ...........................................................................1-13
Specifying Attribute Values Globally..................................................1-14
Attributes on Supplied Symbols..........................................................1-14
Saber Frameway for Mentor Graphics ePD User Guide (Sept. 2004) ix
Table Of Contents
Applying Values to Characterize a Template................................ 1-15

Defining and Passing Parameters.......................................................1-16
Parameter Passing Example..........................................................1-17
Drawing a Net ...........................................................................................1-18
Naming Nets ........................................................................................1-19
Checking and Saving the Design..............................................................1-19
Chapter 2. Running SaberDesigner in ViewLogic Frameway .................... 2-1

ViewLogic Frameway Simulation Concepts...............................................2-1
Preparing to Simulate the Design..............................................................2-2
Simulating a ViewLogic Design in SaberDesigner.................................... 2-5
Verifying Design Functionality .............................................................2-6
Tuning Design Parameters....................................................................2-6
Frameway Process Executed prior to Running the Analysis .............. 2-7
Viewing Analysis Waveforms......................................................................2-9
Specifying ViewDraw Nets or Pins to Create Waveforms ................... 2-9
Viewing Signals Internal to a Template .............................................2-10
Cross-Probing ViewDraw Nets or Pins............................................... 2-10
Making Design Changes to a ViewLogic Design ..................................... 2-11
Changing Property/Parameter Values in Saber .................................2-11
Back Annotating DC Values in ViewDraw .........................................2-12
Releasing the ViewLogic Frameway License ...........................................2-13
Exiting Saber.............................................................................................2-13
Opening a New Netlist..............................................................................2-14
Examining the SaberDesigner Environment - Frameways Integration 2-14
Examining the User Interface.............................................................2-15
Using the Mouse within Graph Windows...........................................2-16
Using Forms and Dialog Boxes ...........................................................2-16
Appendix A. Files Used by Designer Tools .................................................... A-1

Preference Files .......................................................................................... A-1
Startup Files............................................................................................... A-6
Log Files...................................................................................................... A-7
Project Files ................................................................................................ A-8
Report Files ................................................................................................ A-8
x Saber Frameway for Mentor Graphics ePD User Guide (Sept. 2004)
Table Of Contents
Appendix B. Netlister Command Reference ................................................. B-1

vwltosv Command................................................................................. B-2
Appendix C. Simulating Digital Parts in Saber ............................................ C-1

Hypermodels - Overview............................................................................ C-1
Using Default Hypermodels ...................................................................... C-2
Using Ideal Hypermodels .......................................................................... C-3
Using Technology-Specific Hypermodels................................................... C-3
Hypermodel Filenames and Logic Families.............................................. C-4
Creating Part Number-Specific Hypermodels .......................................... C-5
Using Multiple Hypermodel Families in a Design ................................... C-6
Selecting Hypermodels from the Saber/Netlister Settings Form ............ C-7
Net Re-naming Due to Hypermodel Insertion.......................................... C-8
Index ......................................................................................................... Index-1
Bookshelf ............................................................................................Bookshelf-1
Saber Frameway for Mentor Graphics ePD User Guide (Sept. 2004) xi
Table Of Contents
xii Saber Frameway for Mentor Graphics ePD User Guide (Sept. 2004)
chapter 1
Capturing the Design with ViewDraw
The first step in the design analysis process is to capture the design. The
following topics describe the general process of creating a schematic with
ViewDraw and provide additional information for adding components
supplied with the Saber simulator. For detailed information on capturing
schematics, refer to the Viewlogic product documentation.
1. Creating a Project
2. Opening a ViewDraw Schematic
3. Choosing Models
4. Choosing and Placing Parts on a ViewDraw Sheet
5. Annotating Attributes
6. Drawing a Net
7. Checking and Saving the Design
In the next chapter, you will netlist the schematic and simulate the design.
Creating a Project
You have to set up a project before you can open a design in ViewDraw. In the
UNIX environment you use Powerview to do this, while in Windows NT you
use Workview Office. See the following topics for additional information:
Invoking Powerview and Creating a Project
Invoking Workview Office and Creating a Project
After you create a project, you can create a schematic in ViewDraw as
described in the next topic.
Saber Frameway for Mentor Graphics ePD User Guide (Sept. 2004) 1-1
Chapter 1: Capturing the Design with ViewDraw
Invoking Powerview and Creating a Project
In the UNIX environment, the Powerview cockpit manages the Viewlogic tools
that allow you to create and analyze circuits. In this first step, you will invoke
the Powerview cockpit and create a project by following these steps:
1. Invoke the powerview cockpit by typing:
powerview
The Powerview cockpit session window appears.

2. Create a project which will contain your Saber design files (Project >
Create)
The Powerview cockpit transcript window should indicate that the
project was created.
NOTE
In order to locate supplied ViewDraw symbols, you must
modify the viewdraw.ini file to replace the
$(install_home) placeholder with the full pathname
to the install_home/framework/viewlogic directory.

In the Windows NT environment, Workview Office manages the Viewlogic

tools that allow you to create and analyze circuits. You have to set up a project
before you can open a design in ViewDraw. A project is a working directory for
a design; it contains the files, directories, and libraries (or references to
libraries) needed for a design.
You can invoke Workview Office and create a project as follows.
1. Invoke Workview Office:
From the Windows NT Start Menu
From a desktop shortcut
The Workview Office task bar appears on the desktop.
1-2 Saber Frameway for Mentor Graphics ePD User Guide (Sept. 2004)
2. Create a project as follows:

a. Invoke the Project Manager. (You can click on the Project Manager
icon in the Workview Office task bar or use either the Workview
office popup menu or the Windows NT Start menu.)
b. In the Project Manager dialog box, select the File > New menu item or
click on the Project Manager Wizard icon in the icon bar. The initial
dialog box of the Project Manager Wizard.
A dialog box may appear asking if you want to copy the library
search paths from a previous project to the new project. This is the
easiest way to import search paths; if the paths are not correct for
your design, you can edit them later in the project setup process. You
can also import the search paths from a viewdraw.ini file. See the
Library search paths discussion under Step c for additional
information.
c. Use the dialog boxes in the Project Manager wizard to specify the
following information:
Project name and project directory.
The project directory is the directory where your design files are
located.
Project file directory.
The project file need not be in the project directory.
Library search paths.
In addition to any FPGA and Viewlogic library search paths, you
need to supply search paths to the supplied ViewDraw symbols
in the install_home/framework/viewlogic directory (where
install_home is the path to your Saber installation).
You can carry over the search paths from another project (as
mentioned earlier) and edit them in the Project Manager Wizard,
if necessary, or you can import them from a viewdraw.ini file
(by clicking on the Import button in the Project Manager wizard).
A template viewdraw.ini file exists in the
install_home/framework/viewlogic directory. You can copy
this file to your project directory and then edit the library search
paths, replacing the installation-dependent portions of the
appropriate paths with the path to your install_home directory.
d. Exit the Project Manager wizard and save the project. (Select
File > Save in the Project Manager dialog box.)
For detailed information on Workview Office projects, see the Workview
Office documentation available from Viewlogic.

Opening a ViewDraw Schematic
After creating a project, you are ready to open a schematic sheet. When
creating a schematic, you should consider the following factors:
How does this part fit into the system hierarchy?
Will this schematic be placed in the corporate library?
Should this schematic adhere to any defined naming structure?
The answers to these questions are usually project-dependent. A carefully
thought out design structure will make it easier to maintain and reuse the
design.
See the following topics for procedures for opening a ViewDraw schematic:
Opening a ViewDraw Schematic in Powerview (UNIX)
Opening a ViewDraw Schematic in Workview Office (Windows NT)
Opening a ViewDraw Schematic in Powerview (UNIX)
To open a Schematic sheet from the Powerview cockpit, perform the following
steps:
1. Open a ViewDraw window by double-clicking on the ViewDraw button in
the Powerview cockpit.
2. Enter the name of a new or existing schematic file in the Enter name
field.
3. Click on the OK button to execute the dialog box.
This action creates a ViewDraw schematic window. In following sections, you
will add parts to the schematic, modify part attributes, draw nets and then
check/save the schematic.
To open a ViewDraw schematic sheet in Workview Office follows:

1. Start up the Project Manager.
2. In the Project Manager, select the file File > Open menu item.
3. In the File Open dialog box, navigate to the project directory and open
the project file (project_name.vpj).
4. Click on the ViewDraw icon in the Workview Office task bar (or select
Workview Office > ViewDraw from the Start menu). The ViewDraw
session window appears.
5. Select the File > Open menu item in the ViewDraw session window.
6. In the File Open dialog box, double-click on the schematic name (or click
on the name then the Open button). The schematic appears in
ViewDraw.
Choosing Models
When creating a Saber design, you must choose what kind of models to use as
your parts:
Components
The characterized components in the Component Libraries of Characterized
Parts have been designed to perform like specific commercially available parts
and are often named with commercial part numbers.
Templates
The templates in the Analogy Template Library of Generic Models allow you
flexibility in customizing a parts behavior.
You control a template by defining parameter values used in the templates
underlying mathematical equations. These values correspond to a parts
device values, descriptive characteristics, operating conditions, and sometimes
the equation variables themselves. "Applying Values to Characterize a
Template in ViewDraw" summarizes the process of determining these values.
Methods for creating your own models:

Write templates using the MAST language.
Use graphical models in a design.
Use the nspitos Spice-to-MAST Translator tool for converting SPICE
models into MAST templates.
The Table Look-up Tool allows you to create MAST templates from a set
of device input and output requirements.
Analog Model Synthesis is a top-down design tool for creating the
functional blocks of a design before beginning the more detailed design
procedure within each block.
Choosing and Placing Parts on a ViewDraw Sheet
The following topics provide information on adding and modifying the

supplied symbols to a ViewDraw schematic sheet:
Using the Saber Part Form to Place Analogy-supplied Parts
Using the Parts Gallery to Place Analogy-supplied Parts
Using the Add Component Dialog Box to Place Analogy-supplied Parts
Adding Power and Simulation Stimulus Parts
Including Digital Parts in Designs
Adding Hypermodels
Connecting a Part to a Node of the Proper Connection Type
Within a schematic that will be simulated in Saber, you can include any
component that has an associated Saber MAST models. For supplied symbols,
the Prefix attribute on the symbol informs the netlister which MAST
template name to add to the netlist for a specific symbol. The netlister also
adds any non-default attribute values to the netlist.
ViewDraw contains additions to access all supplied symbols including a
comprehensive set of generic templates and fully characterized components.
These parts contain the necessary attributes for Saber simulation.
You can perform any of the following procedures to choose and place supplied
symbols on a schematic sheet. After you place a part on the schematic, you can
modify the part parameters as described in the next major section.
Using the Saber Part Form to Place Supplied Parts
Using the Saber Part Form to Place Supplied Parts
You can perform this procedure if you want to instantiate and place a symbol
that resides in a Saber library. To place supplied parts on the schematic, use
the following procedure:
1. Activate the Saber Part Form by selecting the Add > Saber Parts Gallery
pulldown menu item in ViewDraw.
2. Locate the necessary part by navigating through the menus in the
Saber parts form.
If you know the name of the parts that you are looking for, you can use
the symbol list generated by Info > Symbol menu item to help you in the
search.
3. Place the symbol
a. Select the part in the parts dialog box
b. Move the mouse cursor to the location on the schematic where you
want place the part.
You can toggle between a symbol outline and detail view of the
symbol by single-clicking the left mouse button.
c. Press the middle mouse button to place the symbol in the schematic
After you place the part, you can modify the instance attributes.
Parts Gallery Overview
The Parts Gallery is an interactive tool that allows you to search and place
Analogy-supplied and custom parts in the schematic. You can search various
parts categories based on a part description, the symbol name or the MAST
template name.
Once you locate a part in the Parts Gallery, you can place the symbol in the
schematic, view the un-encrypted sections of the MAST template or view the
Template Description in SaberBook.
Using the Parts Gallery to Place Supplied Parts
You perform this procedure if you want to find and place a symbol that resides
in a Saber library.
Step 1. Display the Saber Parts Gallery from ViewDraw

In UNIX, select the Add > Saber Parts Gallery pulldown menu item.
In Windows NT, select Saber > Start Parts Gallery.
Step 2. Locate a part or component

You can use any of the following methods to locate a part or component
in the Parts Gallery:
If you want to locate a specific manufacturers component, use the
Parametric Search Wizard in the Parts Gallery by choosing the Tools
> Parametric Search menu item.
One way to search for a part in the Parts Gallery is to navigate the
Model Tree using the Available Categories listbox
The MAST Parts Library is categorized using an inverted tree
structure similar to an organizational chart. You can navigate down
the hierarchy until you find the category you want and the
corresponding list of components.
Another way to search for a part is by using the search capability
within the Parts Gallery. You can search the entire MAST Parts
Library for a part description, template name or symbol name by
following these steps:
a. You provide a string of characters in the Search String field.
b. You must specify how the search will use the provided string of
characters by doing the following:
c. Choose the Options > Preferences menu item. The Parts Gallery
Preferences form appears.
d. Click the Search tab and select the appropriate choices as
follows:
Search part by: Search match:
Part Name Containing
Symbol Name Beginning with
Template Name Equal to
Using the Parts Gallery to Place Supplied Parts
Any Field
Ignore case when doing search
For example, a generic transistor in the library has a template

name of q_3p, a symbol name of npn and has a part name of
BJT, NPN 3 pin.
Parts without underlying MAST templates include connector
symbols, schematic borders, and the Saber Include File symbol.
e. When you have finished selecting the search parameters, click
the OK button in the Gallery Preferences form.
f. Once you have entered the string of characters you are going to
use for the search, either click on the Search button or press the
Return key.
The Parts Gallery performs the search starting at the top level of
the model tree.
g. Refine the search control described in the previous steps until
you locate the correct part.
The Parts Search Wizard is a data base tool that searches for
components by looking for specific parameters, such as manufacturer or
package type. For more details on the Parts Search Wizard operation,
refer to SaberBook online documentation.
Step 3. Optionally view information about the part

Once you locate the part using one of the previous methods, the Parts
Gallery allows you do the following tasks with the part:
View the MAST template of the selected part by choosing the Tools >
View Template menu choice (In Powerview on UNIX) or Saber > Show
Template (In Workview Office on Windows NT). This action displays
the source MAST template.
View the template description by choosing the Tools > Help on Part
menu choice. The template description is displayed in the online
documentation.
Step 4. Place the Selected Part

Once you have located the desired part in the Parts Gallery, click the
Place button.
For more information on the Parts Gallery, refer to SaberBook.
Using the Add Component Dialog Box to Place Supplied Parts
You can also place supplied parts using the Add Component dialog as
described in the following process:
1. Display the Add Component dialog box (Select Component from the Add
pulldown menu or select Component from the popup menu in free area
of the schematic.)
This displays the Add Component dialog box.
2. Select a Saber Library category from the lower list box (in Powerview
on UNIX) or right list box (Workview Office on Windows NT).
3. Select a Part either by selecting it from the upper listbox (in Powerview
on UNIX) or left list box (Workview Office on Windows NT). You can
also enter the symbol name.
4. Move the mouse cursor into the schematic and press the middle mouse
button to place the symbol (on UNIX) or drag the symbol to the
schematic after pressing the left mouse button (on Windows NT).
After you place the part, you can modify the instance attributes.
Adding Power and Simulation Stimulus Parts
Because there is no method to provide stimulus within Saber, you must add
power and simulation stimulus parts to the design.
Power. If you use a global net (e.g. vcc or vdd) to connect power to parts
in the design, you must attach a supplied source to one instance of the
global net. If you do not attach the source, the global net will be floating
during simulation. You can use the Parts Gallery to search for the
appropriate global net, such as symbol name vcc.
Ground. You must include a Saber node 0 component in your
schematic. If you do not include this Saber ground, then your Saber
simulation results may not be correct. You can use the Parts Gallery to
search for the parts containing ground in their description to find the
Ground, (Saber Node 0) part.
Simulation Stimulus. These parts (e.g. sine wave voltage sources or
control system sources) allow you to stimulate the design during a
simulation in Saber. If you plan on using the schematic within
hierarchy or in multiple designs, you may want to create a symbol for
the schematic and then create a separate test schematic which
includes the symbol of the schematic and the simulation stimulus
source(s).
For example, if you had a schematic called filter that is used in a

larger system design and you wanted to simulate the filter design
separately, you could create a symbol for the filter schematic, and
instantiate the symbol in both the system design and in a filter_test
schematic. This way you would maintain one copy of the filter
schematic, yet still use it in multiple designs.
To include digital parts in your design for a Saber mixed-signal simulation,

perform the following steps,
1. Place the generic digital part on the schematic.
From the MAST Parts Library, you can place generic digital parts in
your schematic. For example, if you want to use a 74LS10 in your
design, you should place a 2-input NAND gate on your schematic.
2. You have the option to specify propagation delays and inertial delay.
Using the pre-defined tplh and tphl attributes on the digital gate, you
can specify propagation delays through the part.
You can specify inertial delay (smallest pulse to travel through the gate)
using the tilh and tihl attributes.
By default, these four attributes are undefined.
3. Determine the type of Hypermodel to use.
Your options for specifying Hypermodels are listed in the section,
"Adding Hypermodels".
Adding Hypermodels
If your design contains both analog and digital parts and you want to run a
Saber native mixed-signal simulation, Saber must map signal values between
them using Hypermodels.
There are several ways you can use Hypermodels:
Let Saber automatically specify a Hypermodel for you.
If you do not specify a Hypermodel in the Hypermodel field of the
netlisting options form, the netlister automatically inserts a default
Hypermodel.
Select an ideal Hypermodel from the Saber Hypermodel library.

Ideal Hypermodels provide quick, approximate simulations and are
available for several logic families.
Select a technology-specific Hypermodel from the Saber Hypermodel
library.
These Hypermodels provide greater accuracy at the cost of slower
simulation times.
Create a part number-specific Hypermodel as a way to include a
particular digital part number in the design.
This method requires you to search the Hypermodel text files for the
specific part name you would like to include in your design.
Create and use your own Hypermodel.
If existing Hypermodels are not adequate for simulating your circuit,
you can create your own Hypermodels using the MAST language. For
information on making custom Hypermodels, refer to the Guide to
Writing MAST Templates manual, the topic titled Modeling Mixed
Analog-Digital Systems with MAST and the Model Fundamentals
manual chapter, Hypermodel Analog/Digital Interface Templates.
Appendix K: Simulating Digital Parts in Saber provides a discussion of
Hypermodels and how to specify them.
Connecting a Part to a Node of the Proper Connection Type
If your design contains parts of more than one kind of technology (e.g., both
electrical and mechanical), you need to consider connection types when
connecting templates of different technologies together.
Each connection point on a template has a type, and the node in the design
that the connection point is attached to must be of the same type.
If you want to connect nodes of different connection types, you must do so
through an interface template.
SaberBook provides a summary of connection point types recognized by
Saber.
Detailed descriptions of each templates connection points, including
type, function, and location on the symbol, are located in the template
description in SaberBook.
Annotating Attributes
Annotating Attributes
Attributes add design information to both schematics and symbols. An

attribute is an informational tag that you can either attach to an object, which
includes instances, nets, pins, and symbol bodies, or place on a schematic
sheet.
Attributes allow you to customize generic models to meet the specific needs of
your design. Examples of design characteristics that attributes define are pin
rise and fall times, the initialization state of a pin or net, and the logic
function associated with a symbol body.
The following topics provide information on working with attributes:
Modifying Attributes
Specifying Attribute Values Globally
Attributes on Analogy-supplied Symbols - ViewDraw
Applying Values to Characterize a Template in ViewDraw
Defining and Passing Parameters
Parameter Passing Example
Modifying Attributes
Most supplied parts will function using default part parameters. However, you
must specify the parameters for the generic parts listed in the following table:
Part Symbol Name Required Parameter

resistor r resistance value (rnom)
capacitor c capacitance value (c)
Inductor l Inductance (l)
BJT q type of transistor (saber_model):
Transistor NPN (_n) or PNP (_p)
To modify attributes on an instance, follow these steps:

1. Select the Object that you want to add the attribute to.
2. If the attribute is not on the instance, you can add it. (Select Add > Attr
in Powerview on UNIX or activate the Properties dialog box by selecting
Properties from the Component popup menu in Workview Office on

Windows NT.)
3. Modify the attribute value (Select Change > Attr > Dialog > all in
Powerview or use the Properties dialog box in Workview Office)
In addition to modifying attributes in the schematic, you can also modify
attributes during a Saber simulation session by altering the attribute value in
Saber. This method changes the attribute value in Saber but does not affect
the schematic.
After you add the necessary parameters to the parts in the schematic, you can
connect the parts with wires and buses as described in "Drawing a Net". The
following topics describe how to globally set attributes and attributes added to
Analogy-supplied symbols for the ViewLogic Frameway integration.
Specifying Attribute Values Globally
You can globally specify attributes in the saber symbol (the part name is
Saber Include File), which is located in the Support Library. Global
attributes used by supplied components are present on the saber symbol. You
can add custom global attributes to the saber symbol by selecting the saber
symbol and using the Change > attr > dialog > all ViewDraw pulldown menu.
Attributes defined on an instance override the value defined by the saber
symbol.
Attributes on Supplied Symbols
A complete description of the attributes used on supplied parts is located in

the template library manuals, which can be viewed online using the online
documentation, SaberBook.
Because the model attribute has special meaning within the toolset, the
model attribute listed in the template description is implemented using the
saber_model attribute on the instance in ViewDraw.
You can display brief help on the symbol attributes and the associated MAST
template by selecting the symbol and using the right mouse button SaberHelp
menu item in ViewDraw (Powerview) or by selecting Saber > Show Help
(Workview Office). In addition to the attributes defined in the template
description, the ViewLogic Frameway integration adds the following
attributes to each supplied symbol:
Prefix: The netlister uses this attribute value to map the symbol to its
associated MAST template.
Attributes on Supplied Symbols
RefDes: The netlister uses this optional attribute value as the instance
name in the Saber netlist.
Applying Values to Characterize a Template
A templates behavior is controlled by its parameter values. From a schematic,

you pass parameter values to a template from the attributes of a symbol
instance.
Some templates take as their parameter values only attributes named
for the parameters they describe.
For example, the v_dc template has attributes called dc_value,
ac_mag and ac_phase (used for performing ac analysis),
white_noise and flicker_noise (used for performing noise
analysis). You select values for these parameters and enter them
directly into the Property Editor window.
Most templates take as their parameter values a combination of
attributes named for the parameters they describe and a special
attribute, called either saber_model or model.
The saber_model or model attribute takes multiple values, called
model arguments. In templates of relative complexity, such as for a
bipolar junction transistor, the model arguments completely
characterize the models behavior.
Step 1. Characterize the template.

In order to make a template behave like the part you want to model, you must
select values for the templates parameters. The process of selecting these
values is called characterization.
You can find detailed descriptions of each templates parameters, along with
their default values, in the template description in the online documentation.
That information will let you characterize the template.
Step 2. Apply parameter values to the templates symbol instance.

Once defined, you enter the parameter values as attributes on the instance of
the template on your schematic.
"Modifying Attributes" describes how to modify attribute values on a symbol
instance. Note that the model arguments of the saber_model and model
attributes are structured.
A parameter is a variable property value. You can use parameters to create

generic parts consisting of:
A top-level symbol used to define the parameter values
An underlying schematic of a general topology with component values
specified in terms of the parameters defined on the symbol.
If you include parameters in your designs, the netlister evaluates the
parameter values for simulation. The netlister uses the following search path
to resolve parameter values:
1. Search the schematic that contains the parameter-ized instance
2. Search the symbol of the schematic that contains the parameter-ized
instance
3. Search the schematic that contains the symbol of the parameter-ized
instance.
This process is repeated (ascending through hierarchy) until the netlister
finds the parameters it needs or it reaches the top-level schematic.
Parameters that are not found are declared external and can be defined in
an included file. An included file is a file that is included in a netlist by using a
SaberInclude property on a symbol.
During netlisting, the Saber netlist contains a set of one or more templates.
One template is generated for each level of hierarchy. When the netlister
locates the resolving parameter value, the netlist declares the parameter
value in the templates that correspond to the schematics through which the
parameters were passed.
In addition to knowing where to define the resolved parameter, the method of
specifying the parameter values differs depending on the expected property
type.
If the attribute value is an identifier rather than a number or a string and it
is not part of an expression, define the value of the identifier in the
parameter value search path, described above.
For example, in the following schematic block, the c attribute of the c2
capacitor is defined with the c_val identifier, which is therefore
interpreted to be a parameter. The value of this parameter is defined as
an attribute on the notch_filter symbol in the top-level schematic.
is part of an expression, enclose the identifier in curly braces. For an

example, see how curly braces are used with fn in the following
schematic. The parameter value would need to be defined in the
parameter value search path, described above.
For more information on Passing Parameters through hierarchy, refer to
Appendix G of this manual.
Parameter Passing Example
The following list shows an example for implementing a generic active filter
block using parameters.
1. Create a schematic using the necessary parts, power sources, and
hierarchical connectors to implement the topology of an active filter.
r4 r5
vn
rnom rnom
r3
rnom
vcc
in u1a
r1 c1 vp op42fz_1
balb out
bala
rnom c_val
c2 vee
r2
c_val rnom
rnom=1/(2*3.14159*{fn}*{c_val})
2. Modify the attributes of the passive elements in terms of the

parameters to be passed to the schematic. In the case of the active filter
example, all component values are defined in terms of the break
frequency (fn) and a set capacitor value (c_val).
3. Create a symbol of the schematic.
4. Create a symbol property for each parameter that should be passed to
the underlying schematic. In this example, you would add two symbol
attributes for the fn and c_val parameters (as shown on the
notch_fltr symbol in the following schematic).
5. On a higher level schematic, place the symbol and modify the fn and
c_val attributes to define the parameters to pass to the underlying
schematic by following the procedure in "Modifying Attributes". The
following figure shows a design that uses the generic active filter.
in out60
in out
notch_fltr
vcc fn:60
c_val:0.1u 10k
v out200
v in out
15
15 notch_fltr
v fn:200
initial: 0 c_val:1.0u 10k
pulse: 1
tr:10n
vee tf:10n
delay: 1m
width: 5m
period: 10m
ac_mag: 1
Drawing a Net
After you place the parts on the schematic, you can connect the pins on the
parts by drawing nets. To draw a net, perform the following steps:
1. Select the Add > Net pulldown menu in ViewDraw.
2. Position the mouse pointer where you want the net to begin (usually,
this is at an instance pin) and click the middle mouse button.
The initial point of the net becomes fixed and a ghost net image
rubberbands as you move your mouse.
3. Move the end of the net segment to the location that you desire and
click the middle mouse button.
ViewDraw instantiates the net segment between the initial and final
points that you specified.
Naming Nets
4. To continue adding segments to the net, move the mouse pointer to the
next position and click the middle mouse button.
5. To complete the net, click the right mouse button.
Naming Nets
After you draw the net, you may want to name the net. If you do not name the
net, the netlister uses a system generated name (e.g. N183). To name a net in
the schematic under Powerview:
1. Select Net
2. Label the net (Add > label)
Under Workview Office, press the right mouse button over the net and select
the Properties item from the Properties menu to activate the Net Properties
dialog box. Enter the name in the Label field under the Name tab.
You can not use Saber commands or MAST reserved words (listed in the
online documentation).
Checking and Saving the Design
Schematics must be checked for design rule violations prior to saving.

ViewDraw contains a design checker to verify that the resultant schematic
meets design rules such as connectivity and unconnected pins. If your design
violates a required design rule, a downstream tool may issue a warning upon
invocation; therefore, it is important that you first execute the design checks
to ensure that the results of analysis and simulation are both valid and
accurate.Your schematic must conform to this rules in order to be utilized by
downstream tools. To check it in Powerview, choose the Utils > Check pulldown
menu item from the menu bar. In Workview Office, choose the Design Rule
Checker from the Tools menu.
You must fix all errors and understand all warnings produced by the design
rule checker. After you checked the design, you can save it. To save the
schematic in Powerview, choose the File > Write pulldown menu item. To save a
schematic in Workview Office, select File > Save; to both check the schematic
and save it, select File > Save + Check).
After you save the design, you can simulate it in Saber by following the
procedures in the next chapter.
chapter 2
Running SaberDesigner in ViewLogic Frameway
After you have checked and saved your schematic, the next step in the design
process is to analyze the design using the various analyses within Saber.
The design analysis process can be divided into the following major steps:
1. Preparing to Simulate the Design
2. Simulating a ViewLogic Design in SaberDesigner
3. Viewing Analysis Waveforms
4. Making Design Changes to a ViewLogic Design
5. Releasing the ViewLogic Frameway License
6. Exiting Saber
7. Opening a New Netlist
ViewLogic Frameway Simulation Concepts
A communication channel is provided between the schematic-capture tool and

Saber; this channel is called a Frameway. The frameway controls the
interaction between the schematic creation tool and Saber.
Because Saber can not read the schematic directly, Saber simulates an
intermediate netlist generated by the supplied netlister. The resultant netlist
is an ASCII file containing the instance names, connection points and all
non-default part parameters. Prior to running any analysis, and if the Netlist
As Needed option is selected, Saber determines whether to automatically
generate a new netlist based on the timestamp of the schematic and netlist.
This method insures that the netlist will never be out-of-date with the design.
Chapter 2: Running SaberDesigner in ViewLogic Frameway
Preparing to Simulate the Design
If you do not explicitly start the Saber netlister from the frameway, the
frameway controls when either a netlist is generated or Saber is invoked.
You should verify the netlister options prior to either doing the manual
netlisting from the frameway (Saber > Saber/Netlister Settings) or prior to
running an analysis in SaberGuide. You should also define Saber invocation
options prior to running an analysis in Saber.
To prepare to simulate with Saber, use the following procedure:
Step 1. Start ViewDraw.

From the Powerview cockpit (UNIX):
a. Enter powerview on the UNIX command line
b. Set the project to the one containing your Saber design
c. Display the schematic by double-clicking on the ViewDraw icon.
d. Select the schematic to open in the File Open dialog box. The
schematic appears in the ViewDraw window.
From Workview Office (Windows NT):
a. Invoke the Project Manager. (You can click on the Project Manager
icon in the Workview Office task bar or use either the Workview
office popup menu or the Windows NT Start menu.)
b. In the Project Manager dialog box, select the file File > Open menu
item.
c. In the File Open dialog box, navigate to the project directory
containing your Saber design, select the project file
(project_name.vpj) and open it.
d. Click on the ViewDraw icon in the Workview Office task bar (or select
Workview Office > ViewDraw from the Start menu). The ViewDraw
session window appears.
e. In the ViewDraw session window, select the File > Open menu item.
f. In the File Open dialog box, double-click on the schematic name. The
schematic appears in ViewDraw.
Preparing to Simulate the Design
Step 2. Invoke SaberGuide.

From the Powerview cockpit (UNIX):
Select the Saber > Start SaberGuide menu item.
If a Saber netlist does not exist, this menu item invokes the SaberGuide
and SaberScope User Interface but does not invoke the Saber simulator.
SaberGuide is the User Interface to the Saber simulator. SaberScope is
the Waveform Analysis tool for waveforms generated by Saber.
SaberGuide does not invoke the simulator until you perform the first
analysis.
The Frameway will connect to an existing SaberGuide only if that
SaberGuide was originally opened by the frameway.
For an overview of the major sections of the SaberGuide user interface,
refer to "Examining the SaberDesigner Environment". For complete
reference information on SaberScope functionality, refer to the online
documentation. For complete reference information on Saber and
SaberGuide functionality, refer to the online documentation.
From Workview Office (Windows NT):
a. Pull down the ViewDraw Tools menu and check to see if a menu item
containing the word Saber is present. This item will have several
Saber-related items below it, beginning with Start SaberGuide. If a
Saber menu item exists in the ViewDraw Tools menu, skip to Step b;
otherwise set up the Tools menu as follows:
Select the Tools > Customize menu item.
Click on the User Menu selector button.
Type a name such as Saber in the Menu Text entry box. (The
name Saber will be used for this menu item in all subsequent
instructions.)
Click on the Browse button next to the Command entry box and
navigate to the bin directory under your Saber installation
directory (typically C:\install_home\bin). Under the bin
directory, select the file named menu.exe, then Click on the Open
button.
Click on the Add button, then the OK button. The Saber Menu
item should now appear when the Tools menu is selected.
b. From the ViewDraw session window, choose the Tools > Saber menu
item. This brings up the Saber Menu window, which contains a
single menu, the Saber menu.
c. Invoke SaberGuide by selecting the Saber > Start SaberGuide menu
item. After starting up, SaberGuide automatically loads the design
that you opened in ViewDraw.
Step 3. Verify the Netlister Options

You can set the netlister options either in SaberGuide (Edit > Netlister
preferences) or in ViewDraw (Saber > Saber/Netlister Settings). The
netlister uses these options to create a file called a netlist that
completely characterizes the circuit. These options include:
Hypermodel files map signals between analog (continuous time)
and digital signal representations. If you do not specify a
Hypermodel file, the netlister uses a default ideal Hypermodel
which is characterized to act similar to a CMOS technology. The
output of the default ideal Hypermodel acts like an ideal voltage
source with voltage references defined by the Power Net Name and
Ground Net Name fields in the Control tab. "Selecting Hypermodels
from the Saber/Netlister Settings Form" K-7 provides a procedure
for selecting Hypermodels.
Mapping Files map symbols to their appropriate MAST template.
MAST is the modeling language used by all models (including
netlists) that are read by the Saber simulator. Mapping files for
supplied parts are automatically loaded by the netlister. Supplied
mapping files must reside in the directory install_home/bin.
Mapping files specified in the Saber/Netlister Settings form must
reside in a directory that is referenced by the SABER_DATA_PATH
environment variable. For information on why/how to create
mapping files, refer to the Managing Symbols and Models manual.
"Simulator/Netlister Settings Form" has detailed information on the
fields in this form. The current netlisting invocation options are saved
in a file called design.ai_prj file.
Simulating a ViewLogic Design in SaberDesigner
Step 4. Verify the Saber Invocation Options in SaberGuide (Edit > Saber
Preferences)
Because SaberGuide does not invoke the simulator until you execute
the first analysis in Saber, you can verify the Saber invocation options
within SaberGuide. If you do not edit the invocation options, Saber uses
the default values in design.ai_prj.
If you want to use the Saber-Verilog Co-simulator, you examine the
fields in the Co-Simulation tab of the Saber/Netlister Settings form.
After you complete these steps, you are ready to simulate the design in
SaberDesigner, as described in the next section.
Simulating a ViewLogic Design in SaberDesigner
After you invoke the SaberGuide User Interface and verify the netlister and
Saber invocation options, you are ready to simulate the design using the Saber
simulator.
Because Saber contains numerous types of analyses, you can select the
appropriate analysis depending on the type of specification that you are trying
to verify. You can access these analyses using the Analyses pulldown menu in
SaberGuide.
Prior to running any analysis, the frameway verifies that Saber is ready and
the netlist is up to date. The frameway completes these tasks using the
process outlined in "Frameway Process Executed prior to Running the
Analysis".
The following topics describe the analyses available within Saber:
Verifying Design Functionality
Tuning Design Parameters
After you run the analysis, you can view the waveforms generated by the
analysis in SaberScope, as described in the next major section.
Verifying Design Functionality
Saber provides the following analyses to verify the functionality of your design
in the time and frequency domains. Procedures for executing these analyses,
viewing the resulting waveforms, and analyzing the results are described in
chapters 3-5 of this manual.
Transient analysis determines the system response over time. Fourier
and FFT analyses transform time-domain waveforms in to the
frequency spectrum (Chapter 3).
AC analysis determines the frequency response of the system. iFFT
analysis transforms frequency domain waveforms into the time domain
(Chapter 4).
Two-port analysis determines various parameters defining the relation
ship between specific input and output ports. DC Transfer analysis
sweeps an independent source and calculates the operating point at
each swept value (Chapter 5).
Tuning Design Parameters
Saber provides the following analyses to tune the design parameters, such as
part values and tolerances, of your design. Procedures for executing these
analyses, viewing the resulting waveforms, and analyzing the results are
described in chapters 6-10 of this manual.
Vary allows you to sweep design/part parameters (at user-defined
values) and execute a set of analyses at each parameter value.
Monte Carlo allows you to randomly vary design/part parameters and
run various analyses to evaluate a simulated manufacturing run.
Sensitivity analysis determines the sensitivity of a performance
measurement to a variance of a design/part parameter.
Stress analysis determines whether a part is overstressed during a
particular DC, DC transfer or Transient analysis run.
Frameway Process Executed prior to Running the Analysis
Frameway Process Executed prior to Running the Analysis
The following list describes the process the frameway integration uses prior to
Saber running an analysis. These steps insure that the Saber netlist reflects
the latest version of the schematic.
1. Check status of design
Prior to each analysis run, the frameway will inquire the schematic
capture tool about the current design version and whether the Saber
netlist is current.
2. Netlist Design, if necessary
If the frameway determined that the Saber netlist was out of date with
the schematic and if the As Needed option is selected, the frameway
will re-netlist the design and re-load the netlist. No user intervention is
necessary.
This action invokes the netlister (vwltosv) to read the design and
create a Saber Netlist in the project directory. This directory also holds
the files created as Saber runs. For these netlisters, the netlist will have
a .sin extension (for Saber Input Netlist). Saber uses the information
from the netlist file (.sin) to perform its analyses.
If the netlister encounters any errors, it will report the error and halt
the analysis process. If this occurs, you should examine the transcript of
the netlister (vwltosv.out) and resolve the error messages. You can
also view the Saber netlist (model names, instance names, connection
points, and non-default parameter values) within the SaberDesigner
user interface by executing the Edit > List/Alter Parameters menu item.
3. Check status of Saber simulator
After the frameway verifies the netlist is up to date, it checks the status
of the Saber simulator. When used with the frameway, the simulator
will be in one of the following states:
Saber Busy. If Saber is currently running an analysis, SaberGuide
will display a message informing you of the current status of the
simulator.
Perform the analysis. If Saber is invoked and not running another
analysis, it will perform the specified analysis.
Invoke Saber. If Saber was not invoked (e.g. this is the first analysis
run of the simulation session), SaberGuide invokes the Saber
simulator. The following list outlines the process that Saber uses to
invoke on a netlist:
a. Display copyright and version information
b. Acquire licenses. You only get the licenses you need unless you
specifically define which licenses to acquire and which licenses to
ignore in Saber > Saber/Netlister Settings, Simulation tab, Licensing
sub-tab.
c. Load all supplied templates. By default, Saber loads the
analogy.sld file which is a compiled version of the
install_home/template/support/analogy.sin file. This file
contains the default simulation setups and template loading. You
can override this default by using one of Sabers load options (-l,
-ls, or -ln) during invocation.
d. Load design-specific templates (e.g. the netlist of the design)
e. Display system information (e.g. OS version, time, and date)
You can view the Saber invocation messages by viewing the
design.out file, located in the working directory.
Viewing Analysis Waveforms
Viewing Analysis Waveforms
SaberScope is the viewing and analysis tool. All waveforms created by the
various analyses can be viewed in SaberScope. SaberScope is normally used in
this environment after running a Saber simulation. SaberScope is a powerful
and flexible tool allowing you to probe (simply by pointing and clicking) any
node to view its waveform. The Frameway adds two key features to improve
working with SaberScope:
Specifying ViewDraw Nets or Pins to Create Waveforms
Viewing Signals Internal to a Template
Cross-Probing ViewDraw Nets or Pins
Specifying ViewDraw Nets or Pins to Create Waveforms
Saber uses a Signal List to determine which signals are added to a Plot File.
You can create the Signal List from selected nets or pins within ViewDraw by
using the following procedure:
1. Make sure that you have an .ai_grm file for the design. If there is not
one, you can make it by netlisting the design.
2. Select the nets or pins in ViewDraw.
3. Display the analysis from SaberGuide for the analysis that you want to
run.
4. Go to the Input/Output tab.
5. Create the Signal List by selecting one of the following items from the
Signal List field:
Get Selected - replaces the existing Signal List with the selected
signals
Append Selected - appends the selected signals to the current Signal
List
6. In the Waveforms at Pins field, choose one of the following items:
Across Variables Only
Through Variables Only
All Variables
7. Verify the other field values in the analysis form and run the analysis
by clicking the OK button.
Viewing Signals Internal to a Template
Some templates have internal signalssignals not attached to symbol

connection pointsthat you can view in SaberScope after running a
simulation. The internal variables available for viewing are listed in the Post
Processing Information table of the templates template description in the
online documentation.
To view these signals in SaberScope, you must include them in the plot file of
the analysis. You can do this one of two ways:
Include them in the signal list of the analysis
Use them as arguments for the extract command.
Cross-Probing ViewDraw Nets or Pins
SaberScope can be used to cross-probe signals directly in ViewDraw. However,

only signals which have been included in the signal list at the time of analysis
can be cross-probed. Cross-probing allows you to easily plot a signal from a set
of nets selected in a schematic in ViewDraw.
To cross-probe, use the following procedure:
1. Run desired analysis in Saber.
2. Specify the Plot File.
By default, the last plot file created is used for cross-probing. You can
change the target plot file by selecting Saber > Cross Probe > Set options
from the ViewDraw menu bar. The Scope Probe Options form will
appear. You can select Newest, causing the most recent plot file to be
used, or you can type in a plot file name, or use the browser to select a
plot file. The default is Newest.
3. Display the signal
To cross-probe from a ViewDraw schematic in Powerview (UNIX),
select wires or pins in the ViewDraw schematic and select the Saber
> Cross Probe > Plot selected signals menu item.
The waveform of the selected wire or pin will be plotted in the
current Graph window.
To cross-probe from a ViewDraw schematic in Workview Office
(Windows NT), either
select wires in the ViewDraw schematic and select the Saber >
Cross Probe > Plot selected signals menu item.
Making Design Changes to a ViewLogic Design
select a component in the ViewDraw schematic and choose the

Saber > CrossProbe Pin menu choice from the Component popup
to invoke the Crossprobe Pin dialog box. In the dialog box, select
the pin you want to cross-probe and click OK to invoke
SaberScope.
The waveform of the selected wire or pin will be plotted in the
current Graph window.
To cross-probe from SaberScope, select the signal in the Plot File
window and press the X-Probe icon in the SaberScope icon bar.
ViewNav will display the appropriate schematic with the selected
signal (wire or pin) selected.
Making Design Changes to a ViewLogic Design
Based on the analysis results, if you determine that you need to make changes
in the design, the following topics describe functionality added to the
ViewLogic Frameway that aid in that process:
Changing Property/Parameter Values in Saber
Back Annotating DC Values in ViewDraw
Changing Property/Parameter Values in Saber
You can change the property value of an instance without propagating the
change back into the design by using the Alter Design form.
1. Select the Edit > Alter... menu choice, or click on the Alter button in the
menu bar, to open the Alter Design form.
2. Select the Netlist tab.
3. Select an instance in the Hierarchical Instance List. If there is a + next to
the instance name, double click to display the lower level hierarchy of
this instance. Editable parameters do not have a + next to them.
4. Highlight the parameter you want to change by clicking on it with the
mouse cursor.
5. Display the Edit Values form by clicking the Edit... button in the Alter
Design form.
6. Change the value in the Value field.
7. Make the changes to the in-memory design by clicking the OK button.

This step does not affect the schematic or the netlist file.
8. Close the Alter Design form.
Now you are ready to re-run your simulation with the new parameter value.
Optionally, you can use a wildcard expression in the Filter field to return only
matching elements in the Hierarchical Instance List and Instance Arguments
and Parameter Values fields. The Filter dropdown list has the selections
container names and leaf names; in MAST designs, a container name is an
instance and a leaf name is a parameter values or an instance argument.
Back Annotating DC Values in ViewDraw
If you want to view DC values from an initial point file, do the following:
1. Display the Back Annotation form (Results > Back Annotation)
2. Enter the name of the initial point file into the Initial Point File field
3. Set the Place on Schematic field to yes
4. Click the OK button.
If the DC values change (e.g. by re-running DC analysis or editing the initial
point file), ViewDraw does not update the values on the design until you
repeat the previous steps.
The previous steps cause the DC values to be placed on the nets in the design
according to the siglist specified in the Results > Back Annotation dialog box.
Releasing the ViewLogic Frameway License
Releasing the ViewLogic Frameway License
To release the Frameway license from ViewDraw, select the Saber > Release
frameway license menu item. This displays a form in which you can select
whether to exit SaberGuide/SaberScope if they were connected to the
frameway.
Exiting Saber
After you completed your Saber session, you can close the design by selecting
the File > Close > Active menu item from the Saber pulldown menu bar. This
action will exit the Saber simulator but will not exit the SaberGuide User
Interface nor release the Frameway license.
Upon exiting, if you specify Yes in the Save Before Closing dialog box, Saber
saves the simulation state to the design.tbl file. Saving this file enables you
to start your next simulation session with this design to continue as if you
never ended the session. For example, all alters will be saved in memory.
The following table shows the various ways to exit the Saber simulator:
Menu Item Exit Saber Exit Release Prompt for

Simulator SaberGuide Frameway Restart
License
(ViewDraw) Saber Yes Yes Yes No
Release Frameway
Optional Optional
license
(SaberGuide) Yes No No Yes
File > Close > Design
(SaberGuide) Yes Yes No No
File > Exit
All commands sent to Saber and any messages reported in the Transcript
window are saved to the design.out file.
Opening a New Netlist
You can open a new design (netlist) in SaberGuide without the Frameway
interaction if the following conditions are met:
The Saber netlist is already generated.
SaberGuide is not connected to the Frameway. (If the frameway is
connected, it will always provide the design name.)
If you meet these criteria, you can open a design without exiting the tool by
selecting the File > Open Design menu item in the SaberGuide Transcript
window. Once the Open Design dialog box is displayed, you can specify the
following information:
Specify the design (netlist) name
You can specify the name of the netlist by either entering the pathname
to the netlist in the Design Name field or clicking on the Browse...
button to reveal the File Selection dialog box. You can use this dialog
box to navigate through the file system to the netlist.
Specify Saber invocation options
You can specify the Saber invocation options by clicking on the Edit
Saber Settings... button in the Open Design form and using the
Saber/Netlister Settings form. For information of each of the Saber
invocation options, click on the Help button within the form.
After you complete the necessary information in the Open Design form, you
can inform Saber to read in the netlist by clicking on the OK button. After the
tool invokes, the Saber Status field would change to design.sin - Saber
Ready which specifies the name of the current design and the status of the
Saber simulator.
Examining the SaberDesigner Environment - Frameways

Integration
This section describes the key user interface features, mouse usage and form
usage in SaberDesigner. After you examine the user interface, you can run an
analysis in SaberDesigner as described in the next major section.
Examining the User Interface
Examining the User Interface
If you invoke SaberGuide and SaberScope together either by using the saber
command or by invoking Saber from within the design capture tool, the
following user interface appears:
Saber Transcript Button Saber
Saber Status Line Activity
Pulldown Icon
Menu Bar
SaberGuide
Icon Bar
SaberScope
Icon Bar
Active
Graph
Tool Bar
Help Field
The following list briefly explains the major elements in the SaberDesigner
user interface:
Pulldown Menu Bar contains the menu items for the commands within
SaberGuide and SaberScope. The Analyses, Extract and Results menu
items contain SaberGuide commands. The Graph menu item contain
only SaberScope commands. The remaining menu items contain a
composite of SaberGuide and SaberScope commands.
SaberGuide Icon Bar contains icons that you can click to execute
commonly used SaberGuide commands.
SaberScope Icon Bar contains icons that you can click to execute
commonly used SaberScope commands.
Graph Window displays waveforms and measurements.
Tool Bar displays icons for each of the tools available within the
application. You can display each tool by either clicking on the icon or
selecting the tool from the Tools pulldown menu.
Help Field displays an one line help message for the object under the
cursor (if a help message is available).
Saber Status Line displays information about current design name or
whether the Saber simulator is running.
Saber Activity Icon informs you when Saber is running by rotating in a
circular motion.
Saber Transcript Button allows you to open a separate window
containing the SaberGuide-specific menus, the Saber transcript
window, and the Saber command line.
For information on any element (e.g. menu, icon, or dialog box) within
SaberScope or SaberGuide, refer to SaberBook.
Using the Mouse within Graph Windows
You can use the mouse to manipulate the objects in the graph. The following
list shows some of the mouse actions that you use within SaberScope:
To select an object, position the cursor over the object and left click the
left button. Most selected objects are displayed in reverse video.
To move an object, position the cursor over the object and then press
and hold the left mouse button while dragging the object.
To display the attributes form of the object, position the cursor over the
object and press the right mouse button.
To paste an object, select the object and click the middle mouse button
in the destination location (e.g. calculator)
To pan an axis, press and hold the middle mouse button while moving
the cursor in the direction that you want to pan.
Using Forms and Dialog Boxes
The following list describes the action of the common buttons on forms and
dialog boxes within SaberGuide:
OK button executes the command and dismisses the form.
Apply button executes the command and leaves the form up
Cancel button dismisses the form without executing the command
Defaults button allows you to save the settings of the form using a
unique name.
appendix A
Files Used by Designer Tools
The Designer environment uses and produces several different types of files.
Preference Files
Startup Files
Log Files
Project Files
Report Files
Preference Files
This section describes the files associated with saving application preferences
and configurations for SaberDesigner.
These files control three different types of application settings:
Site-specific preference files (for example, guide.site) and
user-specific preference files (for example .guide_user) set the
application preferences selected from the Edit menu. The .site file is
read first. If it exists, the _user file is then read and overrides the
.site file where they contradict each other.
Session-specific configuration files (for example .guidecfg) set the
configuration parameters selected from the File menu choice.
Site-specific startup files (for example guideRc.site) and
user-specific startup files (for example .guideRc_user) contain AIM
scripts that you can run in conjunction with Saber applications. The
.site file is read first. If it exists, the _user file is then read and
overrides the .site file where they contradict each other.
These three types of application settings are independent of one another.
Saber Frameway for Mentor Graphics ePD User Guide (Sept. 2004) A-1
Appendix A: Files Used by Designer Tools
The following table shows the preference file used by SaberDesigner

applications. To make the preference file site-specific, rename it as shown in
the table and include the site file in the AI_SITE_PATH environment
variable. Files listed in the SaberGuide column assume that you invoke
SaberGuide standalone (without SaberScope).
AIM SaberGuide SaberScope SaberSketch

Site- aim.site guide.site scope. sketch.site
specific site
preference
User- .aim_user .guide_user .scope_ .sketch_user
specific user .aimpart_user
preference
N/A .guidecfg .scopecfg .sketchcfg
Session-
specific
preference
Preference Application Simulator Graph SaberSketch
Dialog Box Preference Preference Preference Preferences
Startup File N/A .guideRc_ .scopeRc_ .sketchRc_user
user user sketchRc.site
guideRc. scopeRc.
site site
Log File N/A guide.log scope.log sketch.log
Site-specific Preferences
Site files allow a system or site administrator to configure the environmental

preferences of a given application for a large number of SaberDesigner users.
These files can be located anywhere on the network, but each user must have
this directory location included as part of the AI_SITE_PATH environment
variable.
During invocation, each application searches directories listed in the
AI_SITE_PATH variable for aim.site, aimpart.site, sketch.site,
guide.site, scope.site, harnessRc.site, or project.site, depending
on which application you invoke. If the application finds the appropriate file, it
loads it. The application continues searching in your home directory for the
equivalent _user file. If an equivalent _user file is found, then it merges the
contents with any previously found information, which will cause duplicate
settings to be overwritten.
A-2 Saber Frameway for Mentor Graphics ePD User Guide (Sept. 2004)
Preference Files
Site files are created from _user files using the procedure Setting
Environmental Preferences in the Installation Manual.
Site File Name Equivalent _user Menu Pick Description

File Name
aim.site .aim_user Edit > Application Contains AIM
Preferences scripts.
aimpart.site .aimpart_user From the Parts Defines the
Gallery, select database of user
Edit>New Part or parts added
New Category through the Parts
Gallery.
guide.site .guide_user Edit > Preferences Defines a global
set of parameters
for SaberGuide.
scope.site .scope_user Edit>Graph Defines a global
Preferences set of parameters
for SaberScope or
the combination
of SaberScope
and SaberGuide.
sketch.site .sketch_user Edit>Schematic Defines a global
Preferences set of parameters
for SaberSketch.
project.site .ai_prj Edit>Simulator/Ne Defines a global
(.project_user tlister Settings... set of parameters
does not exist) for the
See the topic Saber/Netlister
titled Project Settings... dialog
Files. box.
If you want to change the contents of any of these files, you can either delete
the file to return to default preferences or you can reconfigure the application
preferences and overwrite the old .site file.
User-specific Preferences
Users can have a local equivalent of site files in their home directory. The local
files begin with a period (.) and have an _user suffix such as .aim_user. The
preferences contained in the _user files, if present, override the preferences
in the corresponding .site file. When a user saves application preferences,
Saber preferences, or graph preferences, they are saved in a local _user file.
Changing user-specific preferences

To generate these files, choose the menu item shown in the file descriptions
below and save the results of your edits.
To use the site-specific file (if present) or return to the original default
preferences, delete the _user file and shut down the associated aimserver
session by entering the following:
aimserver sessionshutdown qaz,joe
where qaz is a display name and joe is a userid.
Available user-specific preference files

The following list describes the user-specific preference files used with
SaberDesigner:
_user File Name Menu Pick Description

.aim_user Edit > Application Contains AIM scripts.
Preferences
.aimpart_user From the Parts Defines the database of user

Gallery, select parts added through the Parts
Edit>New Part or Gallery.
New Category
.guide_user Edit > Preferences Defines SaberGuide environment

preferences such as simulator
settings and the Report Tool
setting.
.scope_user Edit>Graph Defines a global set of
Preferences parameters, such as graph colors
and graph settings, for
SaberScope or the combination of
SaberScope and SaberGuide.
.sketch_user Edit>Schematic Defines a global set of
Preferences parameters for SaberSketch.
.project_user Edit>Simulator/Netl Defines a global set of
ister Settings... parameters for the Saber/Netlister
Settings... dialog box.
Preference Files
Session-specific Configuration Parameters
This section describes the directories and files located in your home directory
that contain SaberDesigner session configuration parameters. Session
configuration parameters consist of things such as window location and sizes,
a list of available colors, and pathnames to various data sources.
The following subsections describe each of these files in more detail.
.guidecfg File
The .guidecfg file is read from your home directory when you invoke
SaberGuide in a stand-alone mode (no SaberScope). This file holds the
SaberGuide session configuration parameters when you choose the File >
Configuration > Save or Save on Exit menu item.
To change the settings in this file, reconfigure the settings within SaberGuide
and save them (overwriting the old data).
To ignore the settings in this file for a given session, use the -noconfig
argument to bypass the .guidecfg file when you invoke SaberGuide.
To clear the settings in this file, choose the File > Configuration > Clear menu
item.
.sketchcfg File
The .sketchcfg file is read from your home directory when you invoke
SaberSketch. This file holds the SaberSketch session configuration
parameters when you choose the File > Configuration > Save or Save on Exit
menu item.
To change the settings in this file, reconfigure the settings within SaberSketch
and save them (overwriting the old data).
To ignore the settings in this file for a given session, use the -noconfig
argument to bypass the .sketchcfg file when you invoke SaberSketch.
To clear the settings in this file, choose the File > Configuration > Clear menu
item.
.scopecfg File
The .scopecfg file is read from your home directory when you invoke
SaberScope or the combination of SaberScope and SaberGuide. This file holds
the session configuration parameters when you choose the File > Configuration
> Save or Save on Exit menu item.
If you want to change the settings in this file, reconfigure the settings within
SaberGuide/SaberScope and save them (overwriting the old data).
If you want to ignore the settings in this file for a given session, use the
-noconfig argument to bypass the .scopecfg file when you invoke
SaberGuide/SaberScope.
If you want to clear the settings in this file, choose the File > Configuration >
Clear menu item.
.scopecfg_data Directory
This directory is located in your home directory. This directory contains a
separate directory for each graph from a SaberScope session when you choose
the File > Configuration > Save or Save on Exit menu item. The graph directories
contain files that store the graph configuration from a SaberScope session.
The directory has the following structure:
.scopecfg_data
Graph0 Graph1 Graph2
graph.def graph.def graph.def
Graph0, Graph1, Graph... represent subdirectories associated with each

open graph in the SaberScope session. Under each subdirectory is a file called
graph.def that contains the data required to restore the contents of each
graph.
Startup Files
applicationRc_user and applicationRc.site files force code to executed by

the application at startup.
During invocation, each application searches directories listed in the
AI_SITE_PATH variable for the guideRc.site, the scopeRc.site, and the
sketchRc.site, depending on which application you invoke. If the
application finds the appropriate file, it loads it. The application continues
searching in your home directory for the equivalent _user file. If an
equivalent _user file is found, then it merges the contents with any
previously found information, which will cause duplicate settings to be
overwritten.
Log Files
The following files reside in your home directory and contain AIM commands
controlling the application as listed below:
guideRc.site - controls SaberGuide, during SaberGuide-only
invocation (no SaberScope), on a site wide basis.
.guideRc_user - controls SaberGuide, during SaberGuide-only
invocation (no SaberScope), on your local machine.
scopeRc.site - controls SaberScope and SaberGuide (if SaberGuide is
invoked with SaberScope) on a site wide basis.
.scopeRc_user - controls SaberScope and SaberGuide (if SaberGuide
is invoked with SaberScope) on your local machine.
sketchRc.site - controls SaberSketch, during SaberSketch
invocation, on a site wide basis.
.sketchRc_user - controls SaberSketch, during SaberSketch
invocation, on your local machine.
There is a similar pair of files for .aimRc_user and aimRc.site which are
loaded before the files that all applications get. Unlike the applicationRc files,
which are read only by the applications they are named for, the aimRc files
are global files.
Log Files
A log file is created in the directory where the application was invoked and
contains a log of the activities performed during a session. The contents of
these files can be used to create Aim scripts to control the application.
guide.log - created during a SaberGuide-only (no SaberScope)
session.
scope.log - created during a SaberScope and SaberGuide session (if
SaberGuide is invoked with SaberScope).
sketch.log - created during a SaberSketch session.
harness.log - created during a iQBus session.
Project Files
Edit > Simulator/Netlister Settings (SaberSketch) and Edit > Simulator Settings
(Guide and SaberScope) are saved for each individual design. The settings are
saved in a design.ai_prj file in the current directory of the design. Every
time you open a design, the settings in the design.ai_prj file are applied to
the Designer application.
In order to create a project.site file, follow this procedure:
1. Specify the options on the Simulator/Netlister Settings form.
2. Click the Save button.
3. This creates a designname.ai_prj file in your working directory.
4. Rename designname.ai_prj to project.site.
5. Place the path to project.site in $AI_SITE_PATH.
Report Files
There are two kinds of report files.

.rpt files are ASCII files generated by the Report Tool using output from
simulation analyses.
.r1 files are the raw results produced by the analyses and used by the Report
Tool to generate .rpt files. .r1 files can be configured as three different file
formats by using the Saber config command. The formats are as follows:
design.name.r1
design.r1.name
design/name.r1
where design is the name of the design file and name is user selectable (with a
default to the analysis abbreviation).
appendix B
Netlister Command Reference
This topic describes the Saber netlister for ViewLogic. The Viewlogic netlister
command is vwltosv. This netlister is available from within the Frameway
Integration and as a command to the UNIX shell.
The input to this netlister is the circuit interconnections produced from a
ViewDraw schematic, and component descriptions (from various libraries).
The output of a netlister is a file (called a netlist) that completely
characterizes the circuit. For these netlisters, this output file will have a .sin
extension (for Saber Input). This netlist is used by the Saber Simulator
whenever any of the analysis tools are invoked.
This discussion is in the context of running the netlister from the command
line. However, many of these options are also available from within the
Frameway Integration user interface.
For example, you can set the Netlist state file option (refer to the -ns command
line option) in the Saber/Netlister Settings form to Default or Specified.
NOTE
Designs created with previous versions of supplied
symbols must be saved before netlisting and simulating.
If not, some of the SaberDesigner symbols, such as
supplies, may not netlist correctly.
Saber Frameway for Mentor Graphics ePD User Guide (Sept. 2004) B-1
Appendix B: Netlister Command Reference
vwltosv Command
The vwltosv command invokes the VWLTOSV netlister to create a netlist for
the Saber simulator and, optionally, to create a netlist for the Verilog
simulator. The format of the vwltosv command is shown below. Files
referenced in command line options must be in the data search path. The
directory (sch) containing the Viewlogic schematic, from which the netlist
extracts information, must be in the current (working) directory.
vwltosv [-a] [-ae] [-dgne] [-e]
[-fault option] [-g ground_net_name]
[-h hypermodel_lib] [-header] [-help]
[-hetprc on|off] [-l level_name]
[-m user_map_file] [-n netlist_template_file]
[-nochecktime] [-ns filename] [-o netlist_name]
[-p power_net_name] [-pcif] [-q] [-repdollar]
[-refdes] [-norefdes] [-s simulator] [-tdb option]
[-tI] [-tW] [-v] [-vhdl] project_name
The command line options can be included in any order. The following list
briefly describes each option:
-a causes the netlister to generate only a Saber simulator

netlist. When you specify this option, the netlister
automatically reads the vwltos.map file. If you omit
this option, the netlister reads the vwltosv.map file
and creates Saber simulator and Verilog netlists as
appropriate.
-ae causes the netlister to assume that templates will be
provided so it does not search for them. When you use
this option with the catosv netlister, or when using the
-vhdl option for VHDL netlisting, it places symbols
not specifically assigned to the Verilog netlist, either by
a mapping file entry or by the Target_Simulator
property, into the Saber simulator netlist rather than
the Verilog simulator netlist.
You can use this command line option with the
SaberPrepend property to allow the inclusion of
templates at the beginning of the netlist so that they
can be referenced later in the netlist.
-dgne declares global nets external electrical. This prevents
the automatic connection of global nets as ports
throughout the hierarchy.
-e disables expansion of the Workview database
B-2 Saber Frameway for Mentor Graphics ePD User Guide (Sept. 2004)
vwltosv Command
-fault option turns on fault wrapper generation for the Testify Test
Manager. The following sub-options control whether
fault wrapper files are written for primitive templates:
yes - always generate wrapper files
no - dont generate wrapper files
as_needed - search for the wrapper file, write one if
its not found.
If -fault is specified without one of these arguments,

yes is the default.
The primitive fault wrappers are the separate .sin

files that are created in the working directory, like
r_f.sin or nand_l4_f.sin. Hierarchical wrappers
go inside the main netlist are generated regardless of
the value of the -fault sub-option.
-g ground_ name of the top-level-symbol, zero-reference or ground
net_name net to which TTL, ECL, and MOS Hypermodel
interfaces are to be connected. Use this option if your
schematic contains symbols that are not connected to a
ground net.
Node 0 has been made the default ground or reference
node for Hypermodel interface connection. This means
that the command line option -g is not needed when
Hypermodel interfaces are to be connected to node 0.
-h hypermodel_ name of the Hypermodel library to be used for
library mixed-mode support. If you do not include an
extension, the netlister uses the extension .shm. If
more than one Hypermodel library is required, a
separate -h option clause is required for each one. The
order in which you specify the libraries is important
only if one library contains Hypermodel interface
definitions that are dependent on definitions in
another Hypermodel library. In this case you should
specify the dependent library after the one it is
dependent on.
-header creates a template header for the design being
netlisted. The netlister places the template header at
the beginning of the top-level netlist.
-help displays brief command-line usage information.
-hetprc on enables (off disables) heterogeneous device
on|off processing. The default is on
-l level_name specifies the hierarchical level at which the netlister is

to stop descending. Up to 10 levels are allowed. You use
this option in conjunction with the LEVEL attribute on
individual symbol instances. For example,
LEVEL=level_name. When you specify this option on
the command line (-l level_name), the netlister will
not descend the hierarchy past any symbol instances
containing the LEVEL attribute with the value
level_name. You can specify ten different values of the
LEVEL attribute attached to ten or more symbols
throughout any number of levels of hierarchy. Then,
you specify the -l option on the command line for each
LEVEL attribute value. For example:
vwltosv -l level_x -l level_y -l level_z ... my_design
-m user_map_file filename of the users custom mapping file, if one is to
be used. Entries in this mapping file are merged with
those in the standard mapping files. If you enter a
filename without an extension, or a filename with the
extension .map, the netlister uses a mapping file with
the filename and the extension .map. If you enter a
filename with a different extension, the netlister issues
a warning message and uses the mapping file with the
name and extension you have specified.
The mapping file must reside in a directory that is

referenced by the SABER_DATA_PATH environment
variable.
vwltosv Command
-n netlist_ name of the netlist template file that the Verilog netlist
template_file writer is to use. The netlist template file contains
structure and formatting information used by the
Verilog writer to create a Verilog .v netlist file. The
filename must have the extension .ntf. If you do not
specify this option, the netlister uses the netlist
template file provided with the VWLTOSV netlister
(verilog.ntf).
You must make a special netlist template file

(file_name.ntf) to create netlists for Verilog only. This
file should not contain the Verimix commands that are
in the verilog.ntf file distributed with the
netlisters. Furthermore, if your Verilog input files do
not contain timescale directives, you cannot have one
in the Verilog netlist produced by the VWLTOSV
netlister. Therefore, there should be no timescale
directive in the .ntf file either. To switch between
netlisting for Verilog only and netlisting for Saber
simulator/Verilog, the .ntf file should have a name
other than verilog.ntf and you must specify this
name with the -n command line option.
Netlisting without the -n option gives you the Saber

simulator and Verilog netlists. Netlisting with the -n
option gives you the Verilog netlist only
-nochecktime disables timestamp checking.
-ns filename save a state file to improve netlister performance. The
state file contains a compiled version of all of the data
in the mapping and Hypermodel files. The netlister can
read the state file much faster than it can parse the
mapping and Hypermodel files, so the total time
required to create a netlist is reduced.
The netlist state file will be used as long as the names

and time stamps of the mapping and Hypermodel files
do not change. If they change (for example, if a
mapping file is edited, or a new Hypermodel file is
specified, all of the files will be re-read, and the state
file will be rewritten. Therefore, if there are frequent
changes made to mapping files or Hypermodel files,
turn this option off to prevent performance
degradation.
-o netlist_name filename to be used for the Saber simulator and (if

specified) partner simulator netlists. The netlister adds
the appropriate extension. For example, the netlister
adds the extension .sin to a Saber simulator netlist
file; it adds the extension .v to a Verilog netlist. By
default, if you do not specify this option, the netlister
names the netlist file the same as the name of the
design with the appropriate extension added.
-p power_net_ name of the top-level power net to which the TTL,
name ECL, and MOS Hypermodel interfaces are to be
connected.
-pcif preserves the case of included file names. Allows file
names to be saved using upper case and/or lower case
ASCII characters. Normally, file names are converted
to lower case characters.
-q cancels the display of informative and warning
messages turned on by either of the -tI or -tW
options. This option cannot turn off any messages that
the netlister displays by default.
-repdollar replaces leading $ characters in instance and net
names
-refdes use the Label/Refdes/Prefix/System naming order
(default)
-norefdes use only the Label/System names. Compatible with old
names.
-s simulator specifies the simulator for all components in the
design. You can use this option to create either a Saber
simulator-only or a Verilog-only netlist. The valid
values are saber (Saber simulator netlist) and
partner (Verilog netlist). This option overrides the
Target_Simulator attribute on each instance. If you
do not specify this option, the netlister splits the netlist
into both Saber simulator and Verilog netlists
corresponding to the mapping file and/or the
Target_Simulator attribute.
vwltosv Command
-tdb option controls the use of the Template Database (TDB) by

the netlister, using the on, off, nogen or warn options.
Only one option, on, off, or nogen, may be used at a

time. However, warn may be used in combination with
the other options.
onFull Template Database support, including user
templates.
This is the default. With this option, it is not necessary
to have mapping files that include basic information
about templates, such as the names, order, and types of
arguments and connection points. In addition, some
netlisting features, such as type checking, are available
only when the template database is used. For
information on the files used by the template database,
see The Template Information System.
offUser templates are ignored; use the supplied
database only. Since this option avoids searching for
templates on disk, it provides the best performance.
However, due to the reduced functionality, this
option is recommended only when no custom
templates are used.
NOTE
If you have custom templates
with the same names as
supplied templates, you
should not use this option, as
it may lead to netlisting
errors or incorrect netlists.
nogenDo not generate user template information
(.ai_tdb files), but use such information if it is
already available.
For information on the template database files, refer
to The Template Information System.
NOTE
Use of this option may cause
netlisting errors if the
template database files are
not up to date.
warnErrors coming from the TDB are treated as

warnings by the netlister, not as errors. The TDB flags
errors for problems such as invalid templates and
failure to write database files. Typically, these are
errors because Saber can be expected to run into the
same problem that the TDB did.
-tI turns on any remaining informative or warning
messages that the netlister does not display by default
or that have not been turned on by the -tW option.
-tW turns on warning messages that the netlister does not
display by default, and performs the following checks
on the design as it is netlisted:
verification of valid connections between templates.
For example, an electrical pin connected directly to a
mechanical pin will cause a warning.
verification that template parameters without
default values have a value provided in the symbol.
issue warnings if the templates connection point list
does not match the port list of the symbol.
These three checks are performed only for MAST
templates, not for partner models
-v generate a Saber/Viewsim netlist
-vhdl specifies that all instances targeted to the
Saber/ModelSim Co-Simulator Interface (via a
mapping file or the target_simulator property) are
to be written to a VHDL structural netlist for
Saber/ModelSim. When the -vhdl option is specified,
the string vhd is added to the end of the netlister
name. What this means is that the netlister will then
use the VHDL mapping file (for example,
vwltosvvhd.map instead of vwltosv.map) and
produce a vhd transcript file (for example,
vwltosvvhd.out instead of vwltosv.out).
project_name indicates the top-level project name. This entry is
required.
The VWLTOSV netlister produces either two or three of the following
readable output files, depending on the options you specify:
A Saber simulator netlist file
An output message file
vwltosv Command
A Verilog netlist file (when neither the -a nor the -s saber options are
specified, and there are Verilog parts in the design)
If you specify the -o option, the filename of the Saber simulator netlist file
will be the name you specified in the -o option followed by the extension .sin.
If you do not specify the -o option, the Saber simulator netlist filename is
taken from the name of the design followed by the extension .sin. If you do
not specify the -a option, the netlister also creates a Verilog netlist file. The
Verilog netlist file will have the same name as the Saber simulator netlist file
but with the extension .v. The VWLTOSV netlister also produces an output
file containing the messages that are written to the screen during program
execution. This file is named vwltosv.out.
For example:
vwltosv -tW -h ti.shm -m user1 -o netlist
-p VCC -g GND my_design
In this example, the ti.shm Hypermodel library will be used. The netlister
searches for a users mapping file named user1.map. The netlister produces a
Saber simulator netlist in a file named netlist.sin and a Verilog netlist in
a file named netlist.v. VCC is identified as the top-level power net and GND
as the top-level ground net. Warning messages are turned on. The design to be
processed is named my_design. Finally, the netlister also produces the output
file vwltosv.out containing the messages that are written to the screen
during program execution.
Refer to the Users Guide for the Saber-Verilog Co-Simulation Interface for
information regarding how to use the Saber simulator and Verilog netlists in a
Saber simulator/Verilog mixed-mode simulation.
appendix C
Simulating Digital Parts in Saber
The following topics describe how to simulate digital parts in Saber:

Hypermodels - Overview
Using Default Hypermodels
Using Ideal Hypermodels
Using Technology-Specific Hypermodels
Hypermodel Filenames and Logic Families
Creating Part Number-Specific Hypermodels
Using Multiple Hypermodel Families in a Design
Selecting Hypermodels from the Saber/Netlister Settings Form
Net Re-naming Due to Hypermodel Insertion
Hypermodels - Overview
In the simulator, the behavior of digital signals are represented as discrete

states (e.g. 0,1,Z,X), and analog signals are represented as continuous curves.
If your design contains both analog and digital parts, Saber must map signal
values between analog and digital waveforms.
Saber accomplishes this mapping using Hypermodels. Hypermodels emulate
input and output terminal characteristics, such as delays attributable to rise
and fall times, and can include the loading effects of a given digital technology.
The Hypermodel does not determine the values within the digital model, such
as propagation delays. The netlister automatically inserts Hypermodels at all
analog-digital boundaries. Because Hypermodels are not physical
components, they are added only to the netlist, not the schematic, for the
purpose of simulation.
Saber Frameway for Mentor Graphics ePD User Guide (Sept. 2004) C-1
Appendix C: Simulating Digital Parts in Saber
Although the Component Library lists over 2000 logic devices having
characterized Hypermodels, they are not directly supported with schematic
symbols or menu items in the Parts Gallery. In order to implement these
parts, you will place the generic digital part in the schematic, specify
propagation delay properties, and assign the appropriate Hypermodel
depending on your requirements for accuracy and simulation speed.
For more information on Hypermodel properties and their effect on simulation
results, see SaberBook.
This procedure discusses using Hypermodels to map between analog and
digital signals for Saber native mixed-signal simulation. It does not include
digital to digital Hypermodels (used for co-simulation) or mixed-technology
Hypermodels (for mapping analog to mechanical signals).
Using Default Hypermodels
Default Hypermodels use the 5V CMOS technology ideal Hypermodel. They

are designed to get fast, approximate results in the simulation. They have the
following restrictions:
The ground net name to which digital parts are referenced in your
design must be named 0. The netlister automatically connects these
types of Hypermodels to the 0 net in the Saber netlist.
Default values are to be used for properties such as propagation times
and inertial delays of digital parts in your design for which you have
not specified values.
Digital parts from the Saber library are to be simulated by the Saber
simulator, not a partner simulator.
If default Hypermodels meet your simulation requirements, no further action
is required from you. The netlister automatically adds default Hypermodels.
C-2 Saber Frameway for Mentor Graphics ePD User Guide (Sept. 2004)
These Hypermodels provide an approximate translation between analog

signals and digital logic states for different technologies. These Hypermodels
model some digital parameters, such as voltage levels and rise/fall times, and
they behave as ideal voltage sources and ideal impedances on the analog side.
Less time is needed to simulate a design containing these Hypermodels.
However, the results are not as realistic as they are if you use a
fully-characterized technology-specific Hypermodel because ideal
Hypermodels do not model all of the behavior of the actual devices.
These Hypermodels may be useful when you first start developing a design
and want to get a quick, approximate idea of how your design will perform.
They are available for a number of logic families including TTL, CMOS, and
ECL.
If you want to use these Hypermodels in you design, you must specify the
appropriate Hypermodel file in the netlister options form as described in the
topic titled "Selecting Hypermodels from the Saber/Netlister Settings Form".
No other action is necessary to use these types of Hypermodels.
The topic titled "Hypermodel Filenames and Logic Families" gives a table
comparing each logic family to the filenames used for both ideal Hypermodels
and technology-specific Hypermodels.
Using Technology-Specific Hypermodels
Compared to the ideal Hypermodels, these Hypermodels model additional

characteristics (such as current levels, output capacitance and leakage
currents) and improve the accuracy of the characteristics modeled by the ideal
Hypermodels. The analog input and output characteristics are non-linear and
reflect the digital input state, power supply levels and external load. Because
these Hypermodels model a number of different effects, more simulation time
is required to simulate your design, but the results will be more precise.
You may want to use this type of Hypermodel once you have established the
basic configuration of your design and are ready to fine-tune the
performance of the design. To use these Hypermodels in your design, you must
specify the appropriate Hypermodel file in the netlister options form as
described in the topic titled "Selecting Hypermodels from the Saber/Netlister
Settings Form". No other action is necessary to use these types of
Hypermodels.
The topic titled "Hypermodel Filenames and Logic Families" gives a table
comparing each logic family to the filenames used for both ideal Hypermodels
and technology-specific Hypermodels.
Hypermodel Filenames and Logic Families
The following table compares logic family to the filenames used for both ideal
Hypermodels and technology-specific Hypermodels.
Logic Family Ideal Technology-Specific

Name in Form Name in Form
(filename) (filename)
5 volt CMOS Ideal CD RCA CD 5V (cd5.shm)
(cd_ide.shm)
15 volt CMOS Ideal CD RCA CD 15V
(cd_ide.shm) (cd15.shm)
ECL MC1600 series Ideal ECL ECL (ecl.shm)
(ecl_ide.shm)
Military High Speed Ideal MHC Military HC (mhc.shm)
CMOS (mhc_ide.shm)
High Speed CMOS Ideal HC Motorola HC (mt.shm)
(hc_ide.shm)
Ideal HCT
(hct_ide.shm)
Fast TTL Ideal Fast National Fast TTL
(f_ide.shm) (ns.shm)
Advanced TTL Ideal ALS TI ALS/AS (ti.shm)
(AS/ALS) (als_ide.shm)
Standard/LS TTL Ideal LS TI LS (ti2.shm)
(ls_ide.shm)
All supplied Hypermodel files are located in the

install_home/template/hypermod directory and have a .shm
extension.
If you only define a technology-specific Hypermodel file in the Netlister

options form, the netlister will add a generic Hypermodel for that specific
family at the analog-digital boundary. If you want a part to be characterized
like an actual component, you must define a specific Hypermodel name on
each digital pin on the part.
For example, rather than specifying technology-specific Hypermodels that
model generic TTL low-power Schottky digital inputs and outputs for the
inverters a design, you can specify Hypermodels that have been characterized
to model the specific input and output behavior of a 74LS04 inverter.
The following procedure shows how to define a Hypermodel to a digital pin
using a 74LS04 inverter as an example.
1. Specify the TI LS Hypermodel file on the Saber/Netlister Settings form.
The procedure for specifying Hypermodel files is described in the topic
titled "Selecting Hypermodels from the Saber/Netlister Settings Form".
2. The Hypermodel files are located in the template/hypermod
directory.
Do a text search on the file ti2.shm for 74LS04.
The search returns the following:
74LS04:adadadg dadadap:: ti74ls_15
The a,d,g, and p characters indicate inputs (a), outputs(d), ground (g)
and power (p) net on the 74LS04. ti74ls_15 is the model designation.
3. Add a SaberModelName property to each port of the digital part.
a. Open the Property Editor on all of the ports.
b. Add a SaberModelName property to all ports. Add the model
designation to the Value field.
In this example, on the inverter, you would add one property to all of
the ports:
Name Value
SaberModelName ti74ls_15
c. Click Apply.
Note that in the general case, some ports might behave like one kind of part,
and other ports might behave like a different part, as in the next example.
1. Do a text search on the file ns.shm for 74F74. The search will return
74F74:aaaaddg ddaaaap:: ns74f_7k
([2,3,11,12]=ns74f_8u)
2. Like the other example, the a,d,g, and p characters indicate inputs (a),
outputs(d), ground (g) and power (p). Pins can also be bidirectional (b),
though none are on this device. The line also states that the ns74f_7k
model, also defined in ns.shm, will be applied to all pins except 2, 3, 11,
and 12 (the CLK and D inputs for each flip flop). An ns74f_8u model
will be applied to these pins.
Using Multiple Hypermodel Families in a Design
The procedure to include more than one logic family in a designfor example,
to have both TTL and CMOS parts in a circuitis the same as that for the
topic titled "Creating Part Number-Specific Hypermodels", except that you
must specify, in the Saber/Netlister Settings form, the multiple Hypermodels
corresponding to the logic families in your design, rather than only one
Hypermodel.
You then assign a SaberModelName property with the value of the model
designation to each pin on the digital parts in the design.
If you want to assign unique power and ground connections to each
Hypermodel in your design, use the symbol port properties,
SaberModelPowerPin and SaberModelGroundPin, as follows:
Note that these properties must be assigned to the symbols ports, not to the
instances ports.
Invoke the Symbol Editor on the symbol and assign these properties to the
port you want attached to a Hypermodel:
SaberModelName = model designation of the Hypermodel
SaberModelPowerPin = name of that symbols port that you want the
Hypermodels power pin attached to
SaberModelGroundPin = name of that symbols port that you want
the Hypermodels ground pin attached to
The following example illustrates how to use these properties. A symbol sym
has three ports: VCC, attached to power, VEE, attached to ground, and A,
attached to an idp Hypermodel. You will assign the following properties to
port A:
SaberModelName = idp
SaberModelPowerPin = VCC
SaberModelGroundPin = VEE
Step 1. Open the Saber/Netlister Settings form. (Edit>Saber/Netlister

Settings... ).
Step 2. Select the Netlister tab, and then the Hypermodels tab.
The Available listbox displays the pre-defined Hypermodels you can use
during simulation.
Step 3. Specify the Hypermodel.

Click on the Hypermodel you want in the Available listbox.
Add the Hypermodel to the Selected listbox by clicking the <<>>
button between listboxes.
Save the setting by clicking the Apply button, then the Save button
on the bottom of the Saber/Netlister Settings form.
Step 4. Optionspecifying power references.

If you used technology-specific Hypermodels (these are listed in the
table in the topic titled "Hypermodel Filenames and Logic Families"),
you can specify the name of the power node that should be used for the
upper limit (rail) for the analog signal in the Power net name field on
the Basic tab. By default, the Hypermodel is connected to VCC. You can
only define one power net for a design.
Step 5. Optionspecifying ground references.

If you used any Hypermodel other than default ideal, you can specify
the name of the ground node that should be used for the lower limit
(rail) for the analog signal in the Ground net name field on the Basic tab.
By default, the Hypermodel is connected to the node called 0.
Step 6. Close the Saber/Netlister Settings form by clicking on the Close

button.
Net Re-naming Due to Hypermodel Insertion
If a net connects an analog part to a digital part, then the netlister inserts a
Hypermodel on the connecting net. The insertion of this non-physical part
requires the creation of a new net. The net on the analog side retains the
existing net name while the net on the digital side is re-named
<netname>_<digital_part_inst>_<pinname> as illustrated in the
following figure:
U1
R13
/net1
Hypermodel
Digital Part Analog Part
U1
/net1_U1_out /net1 R13
H
The Hypermodel is inserted after the schematic capture process by the

netlister and is not visible in the schematic. The bottom part of the previous
figure uses the schematic representation to demonstrate the concept of net
re-naming due to Hypermodel insertion.
If the netlister reported any errors, then you should examine the transcript of
the netlister (netlister_name.out) and resolve the error messages.
Index
Symbols creating part number-specific C-5

filenames and logic families C-4
.guidecfg file A-5 net re-naming due to Hypermodel
.guideRc_user file A-7 insertion C-8
.scopecfg file A-5 overview C-1
.scopecfg_data directory A-6 selecting from the Saber/Netlister
.scopeRc_user file A-7 Settings Form C-7
.sketchcfg file A-5 using default C-2
.sketchRc_user file A-7 using ideal C-3
using multiple Hypermodel
A families in a design C-6
using technology-specific
aim.site file A-3
Hypermodels C-3
altering parameters 2-11
Apply button 2-16
L
C Log files A-7
Cancel button 2-16
configuration parameters, setting A-5 M
models, choosing 1-5
D
Defaults button 2-16 N
net name restrictions 1-19
F netlist, altering
parameter, altering 2-11
finding parts 1-9
netlist, listing 2-11
netlist, loading 2-14
G
Ground Symbol 1-10 O
guide.log file A-7
OK button 2-16
guide.site file A-3
Overview of the ViewLogic
guideRc.site file A-7
Frameway Integration v
H P
harness.log file A-7
Parts Gallery 1-7
Hypermodels
Saber Frameway for Mentor Graphics ePD User Guide (Sept. 2004) Index-1
Index
passing parameters 1-16 Symbols, placing on sheet 1-7

Preference files A-1 vwltosv command B-2
Project files A-8
project.site file A-3 W
Properties, required 1-13
Properties, saber_model 1-13 What This Manual is About vi
Properties,rnom 1-13 What You Need to Know to Use This
Manual v
R Wires, drawing and naming 1-18
Related Documents viii

Report files A-8
restrictions, net names 1-19
rnom property 1-13
S
Saber Node 0 1-10
Saber Parts
Accessing 1-7
Saber parts
accessing 1-8
Saber, exiting 2-13
Saber, invocation options 2-14
saber_model property 1-13
SaberGuide Icon Bar 2-15
SaberScope Icon Bar 2-15
SaberScope, using mouse 2-16
scope.log file A-7
scope.site file A-3
scopeRc.site file A-7
searching for parts 1-9
sketch.log file A-7
sketch.site file A-3
sketchRc.site file A-7
Startup files A-6
Symbols, placing on schematic 1-7
T
Transcript, displaying 2-16
V
ViewDraw
Nets, drawing 1-18
Schematics, saving 1-19
Index-2 Saber Frameway for Mentor Graphics ePD User Guide (Sept. 2004)
BOOKSHELF
CosmosScope Calculator Reference Manual

CosmosScope MATLAB Interface User Guide
CosmosScope Reference Manual
Saber and CosmosScope AIM User Guide
Saber and CosmosScope Command Line Tool
User Guide
Saber and CosmosScope Draw Tool User Guide
Saber and CosmosScope Macro Recorder User
Guide
Saber and CosmosScope Report Tool Refer-
ence Manual
Saber and CosmosScope StateAMS Reference
Manual
Saber AIM Reference Manual
Saber Design Browser Tool Reference Manual
Saber Examples User Guide
Saber Frameway for Cadence Design Framework
II User Guide
Saber Frameway for Mentor Graphics ePD User
Guide
Saber Frameway for Mentor Graphics Falcon
Framework User Guide
Synopsys Online Documentation V-2004.06-SP1

Saber Frameway Integrations Quick Start
Saber Harness Quick Start
Saber Harness User Guide
Saber Library and Model User Guide
Saber Managing Symbols and Models User Guide
Saber MAST Language Reference Manual
Saber MAST Language, Book 1, User Guide
Saber MAST Language, Book 2, User Guide
Saber Model Architect Tool User Guide
Saber Netlist Options Reference Manual
Saber Parts Gallery Reference Manual
Saber Property Editor Reference Manual
Saber Quick Start
Saber Simulator Co-Simulation With ModelSim
Quick Start
Saber Simulator Co-Simulation With ModelSim
User Guide
Saber Simulator Co-Simulation With Verilog User
Guide
Saber Simulator Command Reference Manual
Saber Simulator Guide Reference Manual
Saber Simulator Real Time (RT) Interface User
Guide

Saber Simulator Testify Quick Start
Saber Simulator Testify User Guide
Saber Simulink Co-simulation Interface User
Guide
Saber Sketch iQBus User Guide
Saber Sketch User Guide
Saber User Guide

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What You Need to Know to Use This Manual

Overview of the ViewLogic Frameway Integration

Analyzing Designs Using SaberDesigner (July 2002) v

These netlisters can be invoked from PowerView Cockpit to produce a Saber

What This Manual is About

A netlist is an ASCII representation containing the instance

A Saber-compatible netlist is written in the MAST analog

Chapter 2 also discusses the basic elements of the SaberDesigner

vi Analyzing Designs Using SaberDesigner (July 2002)

Appendix B: Netlister Reference describes the netlisters used to convert the

Appendix C: Simulating Digital Parts in Saber describes how Saber maps

Analyzing Designs Using SaberDesigner (July 2002) vii

The SaberDesigner Reference describes the features of the

viii Analyzing Designs Using SaberDesigner (July 2002)

Chapter 1. Capturing the Design with ViewDraw ......................................1-1

Applying Values to Characterize a Template................................ 1-15

Chapter 2. Running SaberDesigner in ViewLogic Frameway .................... 2-1

Appendix A. Files Used by Designer Tools .................................................... A-1

Appendix B. Netlister Command Reference ................................................. B-1

Appendix C. Simulating Digital Parts in Saber ............................................ C-1

Index ......................................................................................................... Index-1

Invoking Powerview and Creating a Project

The Powerview cockpit session window appears.

After you create a project, you can create a schematic in ViewDraw as

Invoking Workview Office and Creating a Project

In the Windows NT environment, Workview Office manages the Viewlogic

2. Create a project as follows:

After you create a project, you can create a schematic in ViewDraw as

Opening a ViewDraw Schematic

Opening a ViewDraw Schematic in Powerview (UNIX)

Opening a ViewDraw Schematic in Workview Office (Windows NT)

To open a ViewDraw schematic sheet in Workview Office follows:

Methods for creating your own models:

Choosing and Placing Parts on a ViewDraw Sheet

The following topics provide information on adding and modifying the

Using the Saber Part Form to Place Supplied Parts

Parts Gallery Overview

Using the Parts Gallery to Place Supplied Parts

Step 1. Display the Saber Parts Gallery from ViewDraw

Step 2. Locate a part or component

For example, a generic transistor in the library has a template

Step 3. Optionally view information about the part

Step 4. Place the Selected Part

Using the Add Component Dialog Box to Place Supplied Parts

Adding Power and Simulation Stimulus Parts

For example, if you had a schematic called filter that is used in a

Including Digital Parts in Designs

To include digital parts in your design for a Saber mixed-signal simulation,

Select an ideal Hypermodel from the Saber Hypermodel library.

Connecting a Part to a Node of the Proper Connection Type

Attributes add design information to both schematics and symbols. An

Part Symbol Name Required Parameter

To modify attributes on an instance, follow these steps:

Properties from the Component popup menu in Workview Office on

Specifying Attribute Values Globally

Attributes on Supplied Symbols

A complete description of the attributes used on supplied parts is located in

Applying Values to Characterize a Template