Mentor Graphics Veloce Delivers 400X Acceleration for OVM Driven Verification

WILSONVILLE, Ore., May 6, 2010—Mentor Graphics Corp. (NASDAQ: MENT), a leader in high-performance system verification solutions, today announced that the Veloce® emulation platform fully supports the Open Verification Methodology (OVM). The primary advantage to companies using both the OVM and the Veloce platform is the ability to use a single transaction-based testbench for both simulation and emulation—two technologies that are critical to the functional verification of large, complex system-on-chip (SoCs) designs.

Mentor pioneered transaction-based acceleration in 2001 to maximize user throughput on hardware emulators. The fundamental structure of the then popular time-based testbenches limited emulation acceleration to a mere 10X over logic simulation. The TestBench XPress™ tool, the culmination of over 100 staff-years of development, speeds transaction-based testbenches up to 400X.

Testbench development consumes up to 80 percent of the SoC verification effort, making testbench reuse a mandatory practice. With the TestBench XPress tool, engineers can accelerate their OVM simulation testbenches on the Veloce emulator without modification and speed execution by two orders of magnitude, transforming a five hour video frame simulation into a 30 second run on the Veloce platform.

“The widespread adoption of OVM validates our direction over the past decade that an untimed, transaction-based testbench is the most effective path to functional verification,” said Eric Selosse, vice president and general manager of the Mentor Graphics Emulation Division. “With the entire EDA industry now promoting transaction-based methodology, the Veloce platform, combined with the TestBench Xpress tool, is uniquely positioned to accelerate the verification process.”

The Veloce and TestBench XPress tools consistently outperform other emulators on OVM-based customer evaluations, including those claiming higher raw emulation speed. The Veloce emulator high-performance implementation of the Accellera standard SCE-MI 2.0 (Standard Co-Emulation Model Interface) and extended synthesizable RTL subset accelerates more of the testbench in emulation hardware, including interface elements critical to high-bandwidth communication. Testbenches adhering to OVM guidelines are accelerated on the Veloce platform without modification, delivering effortless testbench reuse between simulation and emulation.

About the Veloce Platform
The Veloce platform is the industry’s first dual-mode accelerator/emulator, providing MHz performance for both transaction-based verification and traditional in-circuit emulation (ICE). The Veloce platform has a full-custom IC architecture that enables fast, reliable design compilation and uncompromised, at-speed full nodal visibility to minimize time to insight. With an extensive portfolio of vertical market solutions, the Veloce platform is the solution of choice for multimedia, networking, wireless, and embedded systems applications.

About OVM
The Open Verification Methodology, based on IEEE Std. 1800™-2005 SystemVerilog standard, is the first open, language-interoperable SystemVerilog verification methodology in the industry. It provides a methodology and accompanying library that allows users to create modular, reusable verification environments in which components communicate with each other via standard transaction-level modeling interfaces. It also enables intra- and inter-company reuse through a common methodology and classes for sequential stimulus and block-to-system reuse.

About Mentor Graphics
Mentor Graphics Corporation (NASDAQ: MENT) is a world leader in electronic hardware and software design solutions, providing products, consulting services and award-winning support for the world’s most successful electronics and semiconductor companies. Established in 1981, the company reported revenues over the last 12 months of about $800 million and employs approximately 4,425 people worldwide. Corporate headquarters are located at 8005 S.W. Boeckman Road, Wilsonville, Oregon 97070-7777. World Wide Web site: http://www.mentor.com/.

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(Mentor Graphics and Veloce are registered trademarks and TestBench XPress is a trademark of Mentor Graphics Corporation. All other company or product names are the registered trademarks or trademarks of their respective owners).