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<HTML><HEAD><TITLE>Using Electric 11-3: The TCL Interface</TITLE></HEAD>
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<!-- PAGE BREAK --><A NAME="chap11-03"></A>
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<BR><CENTER><FONT SIZE=6><B>Chapter 11: INTERPRETERS</B></FONT></CENTER><BR>
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<CENTER><TABLE WIDTH="90%" BORDER=0><TR>
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<TD><CENTER><A HREF="chap11-02.html#chap11-02"><IMG SRC="../images/iconplug.png" ALT="plug" BORDER=0></A></CENTER></TD>
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<TD><CENTER><H2>11-3: The TCL Interface</H2></CENTER></TD>
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<TD><CENTER><A HREF="chap11-04.html#chap11-04"><IMG SRC="../images/iconplug.png" ALT="plug" BORDER=0></A></CENTER></TD></TR></TABLE></CENTER>
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This section explains the TCL interpretive language interface in the Electric VLSI design system.
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Throughout this section, examples of TCL code will appear <U>underlined</U>.
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For example, the "getarcproto" function takes the name of an arc prototype and returns a pointer to that object.
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This is coded as <U>getarcproto Metal-1</U> which evaluates to the pointer of the form <U>#arcproto15391808</U>.
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This section assumes that the reader is very familiar with the use of Electric,
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and somewhat familiar with the internals of the system.
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(a document that is available from <A HREF="http://www.staticfreesoft.com">Static Free Software</A>)
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provides a broad, C-oriented view of the information described here.
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For users of TCL, however, this section summarizes the relevant aspects of the Internals Manual.
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In general, the best way to understand this section is to try each command as it is explained.
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<H3>Session Control</H3>
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To invoke the TCL interpreter, use the <B>TCL...</B> subcommand of the <B>Language Interpreter</B>
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command of the <B>Tools</B> menu.
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On some systems it may be necessary to move the cursor into the messages window
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(the text window) in order for the interpreter to "hear" you.
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If you have a disk file with TCL code in it, you can read it into the interpreter by typing:
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<BR> <U>load FILENAME</U><BR>
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To get back to Electric from TCL, type ^D (hold the Control key and type a "D").
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On Windows, you must type the ESC key instead.
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<H3>Database Structure</H3>
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The entire Electric database is a collection of objects, each of which has an arbitrary number of attributes.
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This section briefly outlines the object types and shows how they are related.
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Further detail can be found in the Internals Manual.
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See <A HREF="chap11-05.html#chap11-05">Section 11-5</A> for a list of attributes on these objects.
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Individual components inside of circuits are described with <U>nodeinst</U> objects
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and individual wires are described with <U>arcinst</U> objects (instances of arcs).
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Connections between components and wires are described with <U>portarcinst</U> objects
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(instances of ports that connect to arcs).
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Because both components and wires have geometry,
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each one also has an associated <U>geom</U> object,
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and all of the <U>geom</U> objects in a facet are organized spatially into an R-tree with a collection of
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<U>rtnode</U> objects.
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Class objects also exist to describe all individuals of a given type.
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The <U>nodeproto</U> object describes the prototypical component,
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which may have many individual <U>nodeinst</U> objects associated with it.
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For example, the CMOS P-Transistor is described with a single <U>nodeproto</U> object,
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and many <U>nodeinst</U> objects for each instance of such a transistor in any circuit.
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Hierarchy is implemented by having complex components, better known as facets,
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represented in the same way as the primitive components such as transistors.
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For example, the ALU circuit is described with a single <U>nodeproto</U> object,
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and each instance of that circuit higher up the hierarchy is described with a <U>nodeinst</U> object.
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The <U>cell</U> object aggregates different views and versions of a circuit.
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Each of these is called a "facet" (represented with a <U>nodeproto</U> object)
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and a facet has both a <U>view</U> pointer and a version number.
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In addition to component prototypes,
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the <U>arcproto</U> describes classes of wires and the <U>portproto</U> describes classes of component-wire connections.
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An additional object, the <U>portexpinst</U>, exists for exports.
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The <U>network</U> object describes electrically connected <U>arcinst</U> and <U>portproto</U> objects
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As a further aggregation of objects, the <U>library</U> is a collection of cells and facets.
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The <U>technology</U> is a collection of primitive components (<U>nodeproto</U>s)
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and all wire classes (<U>arcproto</U>s).
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In addition to the above object pointers,
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there are some standard types of values that can be accessed through <U>getval</U>:
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<CENTER><TABLE BORDER=1>
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<TR><TD><U>integer</U></TD><TD>32-bit integer</TD></TR>
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<TR><TD><U>string</U></TD><TD>null-terminated string of bytes</TD></TR>
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<TR><TD><U>float</U></TD><TD>32-bit floating point number</TD></TR>
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<TR><TD><U>window</U></TD><TD>window partition object</TD></TR>
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<TR><TD><U>windowframe</U></TD><TD>display window object</TD></TR>
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<TR><TD><U>constraint</U></TD><TD>constraint system object</TD></TR>
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<TR><TD><U>graphics</U></TD><TD>graphical attributes object</TD></TR>
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Also, there is the ability to have displayable variables
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(those whose values appear on the object) with the keyword: <U>displayable</U>.
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<H3>Database Examination</H3>
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To begin a search through the database, it is important to know the current library.
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<BR> <U>curlib</U><BR>
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which returns a pointer to a <U>library</U> object (for example <U>#library15464800</U>).
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From here, the current facet can be obtained with:
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<BR> <U>getval [curlib] firstnodeproto</U><BR>
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Essentially, any attribute can be examined with <U>getval</U>,
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and new attributes can be created with <U>setval</U>.
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<U>Getval</U> has the following format:
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<BR> <U>getval Object Attribute</U><BR>
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where <U>Object</U> is the object being accessed and <U>Attribute</U> is the attribute being requested.
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A list of all existing attributes on the Electric objects is given at the end of this document.
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New attributes can be created on any object with <U>setval</U>.
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many of the existing attributes that are described at the end of this document cannot be set with <U>setval</U>,
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but rather are controlled with special database modification predicates.
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The format for <U>setval</U> is:
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<BR> <U>setval Object Attribute Value Options</U><BR>
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Where the <U>Options</U> are either <U>0</U> or <U>displayable</U> to show this attribute when displaying the object.
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For example, to add a new attribute called "power-consumption" to the transistor component "t1",
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and give it the value 75, use:
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<BR> <U>setval $t1 power-consumption 75</U><BR>
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To add a displayed name to node "t1", use:
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<BR> <U>setval $t1 NODE_name Q1 displayable</U><BR>
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To set an array of values, use <U>lists</U>.
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For example, to set the shape of pure-layer node "metal" to be a diamond, use:
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<BR> <U>setval $metal trace {-1000 0 0 1000 1000 0 0 -1000}</U><BR>
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Single entries in array attributes can be set, with:
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<BR> <U>setind Object Attribute Index Value</U><BR>
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where <U>Index</U> is the 0-based entry in the array.
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Finally, attributes can be deleted with:
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<BR> <U>delval Object Attribute</U><BR>
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However, only those attributes that have been created with <U>setval</U> can be deleted in this way.
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The other attributes are protected.
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<H3>Basic Synthesis</H3>
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To create a new facet in the current library, use:
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<BR> <U>newnodeproto FacetName [curlib]</U><BR>
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which returns a <U>nodeproto</U> pointer that can be used in subsequent calls which place components and wires in that facet.
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To get the address of an existing <U>nodeproto</U>, use:
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<BR> <U>getnodeproto FacetName</U><BR>
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which returns the same type of value as <U>newnodeproto</U>.
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<BR> <U>set myfacet [newnodeproto "adder{lay}" [curlib]]</U><BR>
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is the same as the code:
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<BR> <U>newnodeproto "adder{lay}" [curlib]</U><BR>
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<U>set myfacet [getnodeproto "adder{lay}"]</U><BR>
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and both deal with the "layout" view of the cell called "adder".
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As an aside, the predicate <U>getcell</U> can be used to get a <U>cell</U> object, such that:
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<BR> <U>getcell adder</U><BR>
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returns the same thing as:
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<BR> <U>getval $myfacet cell</U><BR>
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To create a component in a facet, use:
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<BR> <U>newnodeinst Proto LowX HighX LowY HighY Transpose Angle Facet</U><BR>
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where <U>Proto</U> is a <U>nodeproto</U> of the component that is to be created,
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<U>LowX</U>, <U>HighX</U>, <U>LowY</U>, and <U>HighY</U> are the bounds of the component,
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<U>Angle</U> is the number of tenth-degrees of rotation for the component,
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<U>Transpose</U> is nonzero to transpose the component's orientation (after rotation),
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and <U>Facet</U> is the <U>nodeproto</U> in which to place the component.
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The four bounds values are somewhat confusing to compute.
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For primitive components (such as Transistors), any value is acceptable and the component will scale.
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However, it is still nice to know the default value,
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which can be obtained from the <U>nodeproto</U> with <U>getval</U> as follows:
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<BR> <U>set tran [getnodeproto P-Transistor]</U><BR>
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<U>set lowx [getval $tran lowx]</U><BR>
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<U>set highx [getval $tran highx]</U><BR>
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<U>set lowy [getval $tran lowy]</U><BR>
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<U>set highy [getval $tran highy]</U><BR>
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When complex components (facets) are placed,
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the bounds MUST be exactly the same as the bounding box of the facet's contents.
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This information is available in the above manner.
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As an example of <U>newnodeinst</U>, and given the above bounds calculations,
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a default size P-Transistor is created in facet "adder" with:
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<BR> <U>set t1 [newnodeinst $tran $lowx $highx $lowy $highy 0 0 $myfacet]</U><BR>
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The returned pointer to the transistor component will be used later when wiring.
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To wire two components, it is necessary to know these four things:
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<LI>The component objects on the two ends, returned by <U>newnodeinst</U>
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<LI>The <U>portproto</U> values of the connection sites on the components
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<LI>The X and Y coordinates of the connection sites
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<LI>The type, width, and other characteristics of the wire being created
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Connection sites are called <U>portproto</U>s and are associated with <U>nodeproto</U>s.
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To get the address, use:
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<BR> <U>getportproto NodeProto PortName</U><BR>
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For example, to get the polysilicon port on the left side of the MOSIS CMOS P-Transistor, use:
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<BR> <U>set polyleft [getportproto $tran p-trans-poly-left]</U><BR>
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Unfortunately, there is no good way to get a list of port names on the primitive components.
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There are, however, some simplifications.
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For example, if there is only one port (as is the case with most contacts and pins)
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then its name is not necessary:
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<BR> <U>set port [getval $tran firstportproto]</U><BR>
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This will obtain the first port on the P-Transistor component.
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To obtain the coordinates of a port for wiring, use
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<BR> <U>portposition Node Port</U><BR>
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This returns a list with the coordinates.
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<BR> <U>set portpos [portposition $t1 $polyleft]</U><BR>
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will obtain the coordinate of the "p-trans-poly-left" port on the newly created P-Transistor, t1.
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The X value will be <U>lindex $portpos 0</U> and the Y value will be <U>lindex $portpos 1</U>.
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The final piece of information necessary is the type of arc and the width of the arc.
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Given an arc name, the type can be obtained with:
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<BR> <U>getarcproto ArcName</U><BR>
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Given an <U>arcproto</U>, its default width can be obtained with:
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<BR> <U>getval Arc nominalwidth</U><BR>
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When all of the information is ready, the call:
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<BR> <U>newarcinst ArcType Width Bits NodeA PortA XA YA NodeB PortB XB YB Facet</U><BR>
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You can ignore the value of <U>Bits</U> and set it to zero.
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Here is a complete example of placing a transistor, a contact, and running a wire between them
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(the result is shown here).
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<U># create a facet called "tran-contact" in the current library</U><BR>
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<U>set myfacet [newnodeproto tran-contact [curlib]]</U><BR>
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<U># get pointers to primitives</U><BR>
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<U>set tran [getnodeproto P-Transistor]</U><BR>
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<U>set contact [getnodeproto Metal-1-Polysilicon-1-Con]</U><BR>
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<U># get default sizes of these primitives</U><BR>
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<U>set tlowx [getval $tran lowx]</U><BR>
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<U>set thighx [getval $tran highx]</U><BR>
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<U>set tlowy [getval $tran lowy]</U><BR>
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<U>set thighy [getval $tran highy]</U><BR>
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<U>set clowx [getval $contact lowx]</U><BR>
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<U>set chighx [getval $contact highx]</U><BR>
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<U>set clowy [getval $contact lowy]</U><BR>
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<U>set chighy [getval $contact highy]</U><BR>
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<U># get pointer to Polysilicon arc and its default width</U><BR>
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<U>set arctype [getarcproto Polysilicon]</U><BR>
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<U>set width [getval $arctype nominalwidth]</U><BR>
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<U># create the transistor and the contact to its left</U><BR>
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<U>set c1 [newnodeinst $contact $clowx $chighx</U><BR>
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<U>$clowy $chighy 0 0 $myfacet]</U><BR>
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<U>set t1 [newnodeinst $tran [expr $tlowx+8000]</U><BR>
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<U>[expr $thighx+8000] $tlowy $thighy 0 0 $myfacet]</U><BR>
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<U># get the transistor's left port coordinates</U><BR>
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<U>set tport [getportproto $tran p-trans-poly-left]</U><BR>
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<U>set tpos [portposition $t1 $tport]</U><BR>
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<U># get the contacts's only port coordinates</U><BR>
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<U>set cport [getval $contact firstportproto]</U><BR>
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<U>set cpos [portposition $c1 $cport]</U><BR>
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<U># run a wire between the primitives</U><BR>
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<U>newarcinst $arctype $width 0</U><BR>
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<U>$t1 $tport [lindex $tpos 0] [lindex $tpos 1]</U><BR>
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<U>$c1 $cport [lindex $cpos 0] [lindex $cpos 1] $myfacet</U><BR>
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</TD><TD VALIGN=TOP><CENTER><IMG SRC="../images/chap11-01.png" ALT="Figure 11.1"></CENTER></TD></TR></TABLE>
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Facets, as created by <U>newnodeproto</U>, can be placed in other facets with <U>newnodeinst</U>.
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The instances simply use complex <U>nodeproto</U> fields rather than primitive <U>nodeproto</U>s as in the above example.
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For example, the following code creates a new facet called "two-trans"
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and places two instances of the above "tran-contact" facet, one above the other.
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<U># create a facet called "two-trans"</U><BR>
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<U>set higherfacet [newnodeproto two-trans [curlib]]</U><BR>
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<U># get pointer to the "tran-contact" facet</U><BR>
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<U>set tc [getnodeproto tran-contact]</U><BR>
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<U># get size of this facet</U><BR>
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<U>set lowx [getval $tc lowx]</U><BR>
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<U>set highx [getval $tc highx]</U><BR>
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<U>set lowy [getval $tc lowy]</U><BR>
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<U>set highy [getval $tc highy]</U><BR>
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<U># create the two facet instances, one above the other</U><BR>
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<U>set o1 [newnodeinst $tc $lowx $highx $lowy $highy</U><BR>
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<U>0 0 $higherfacet]</U><BR>
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<U>set o2 [newnodeinst $tc $lowx $highx</U><BR>
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<U>[expr $lowy+10000] [expr $highy+10000]</U><BR>
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<U>0 0 $higherfacet]</U><BR>
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</TD><TD><CENTER><IMG SRC="../images/chap11-02.png" ALT="Figure 11.2"></CENTER></TD></TR></TABLE>
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Another necessary feature, when making hierarchy,
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is the ability to place wires between connection sites on facet instances.
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To do this, it is necessary to create exports.
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This takes a port on a primitive component (for example,
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the transistor or contact in the "tran-contact" facet) and makes it into an export on the current facet.
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<BR> <U>newportproto Facet NodeInFacet PortOnNode PortName</U><BR>
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where <U>Facet</U> is the facet containing the component whose port is being exported,
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<U>NodeInFacet</U> is that component,
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and <U>PortOnNode</U> is the particular port on that node being exported.
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For example, to export the top and bottom diffusion ports in the "tran-contact" facet
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(as shown here), the following code can be added:
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<BR> <U>newportproto $myfacet $t1<BR>
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<U>[getportproto $tran p-trans-diff-top] topdiff<BR>
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<U>newportproto $myfacet $t1<BR>
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<U>[getportproto $tran p-trans-diff-bottom] botdiff</U><BR>
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</TD><TD><CENTER><IMG SRC="../images/chap11-03.png" ALT="Figure 11.3"></CENTER></TD></TR></TABLE>
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And then, the components "o1" and "o2" in the facet "two-trans" can be wired,
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using the ports called "topdiff" and "botdiff":
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<U># get pointer to P-Active arc and its default width</U><BR>
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<U>set darctype [getarcproto P-Active]</U><BR>
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<U>set dwidth [getval $darctype nominalwidth]</U><BR>
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<U># get the bottom facet's top port</U><BR>
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<U>set lowport [getportproto $myfacet topdiff]</U><BR>
327
<U>set lowpos [portposition $o1 $lowport]</U><BR>
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<U># get the top facet's bottom port</U><BR>
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<U>set highport [getportproto $myfacet botdiff]</U><BR>
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<U>set highpos [portposition $o2 $highport]</U><BR>
333
<U># run a wire between the primitives</U><BR>
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<U>newarcinst $darctype $dwidth 0</U><BR>
335
<U>$o1 $lowport [lindex $lowpos 0] [lindex $lowpos 1]</U><BR>
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<U>$o2 $highport [lindex $highpos 0]</U><BR>
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<U>[lindex $highpos 1] $higherfacet</U><BR>
338
</TD><TD><CENTER><IMG SRC="../images/chap11-04.png" ALT="Figure 11.4"></CENTER></TD></TR></TABLE>
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<H3>Modification</H3>
344
Two types of modification can be done to existing objects: deletion and change.
345
To delete a facet, use:
346
<BR> <U>killnodeproto Facet</U><BR>
348
To make a copy of a facet (within the same library or from one library to another), use:
349
<BR> <U>copynodeproto FromFacet ToLibrary ToFacetName</U><BR>
350
where <U>FromFacet</U> is the original facet (<U>nodeproto</U>)
351
and <U>ToLibrary</U> is the destination library.
352
Use <U>curlib</U> to copy to the same library.
353
The new facet name is the last parameter.
354
The predicate returns the address of the new facet (<U>nodeproto</U>).
356
To delete a component, use:
357
<BR> <U>killnodeinst Node</U><BR>
358
Before a component can be deleted, all wires and exports must be removed.
360
To change the size or orientation of a component, use:
361
<BR> <U>modifynodeinst Node DLowX DLowY DHighX DHighY DRotation DTrans</U><BR>
362
where <U>DLowX</U>, <U>DLowY</U>, <U>DHighX</U>, and <U>DHighY</U> are the changes to position and size.
363
<U>DRotation</U> and <U>DTrans</U> are changes to the orientation.
365
To change the prototype of a component, use:
366
<BR> <U>replacenodeinst OldNode NewPrototype</U><BR>
367
where the old component is <U>OldNode</U>,
368
and the new <U>nodeproto</U> that should be in its place is <U>NewPrototype</U>.
369
This new prototype must be able to connect to all existing arcs.
370
The predicate returns the address of the new component.
372
To delete a wire, use:
373
<BR> <U>killarcinst Arc</U><BR>
375
To change the width or position of a wire, use:
376
<BR> <U>modifyarcinst Arc DWidth DX1 DY1 DX2 DY2</U><BR>
377
where <U>DWidth</U>, <U>DX1</U>, <U>DY1</U>, <U>DX2</U>, and <U>DY2</U> are the changes to the width,
378
X/Y position of end 1, and X/Y position of end 2.
379
Note that position changes cannot cause the connecting nodes to move,
380
so the changes may only be small ones that work within the ports.
382
To change the prototype of a wire, use:
383
<BR> <U>replacearcinst OldArc NewPrototype</U><BR>
384
where <U>OldArc</U> is the former wire and <U>NewPrototype</U> is the new <U>arcproto</U> to use.
385
The nodes on either end must be able to accept this new type of wire.
386
The predicate returns the address of the new wire.
388
To delete an export, use:
389
<BR> <U>killportproto Facet Port</U><BR>
390
which will remove port <U>Port</U> on facet <U>Facet</U>.
392
To move an export from one component to another (keeping connected wires), use:
393
<BR> <U>moveportproto Facet OldPort NewNode PortOnNewNode</U><BR>
394
where the old port is <U>OldPort</U> in facet <U>Facet</U>,
395
and it is now moved to component <U>NewNode</U> (which is also in facet <U>Facet</U>),
396
port <U>PortOnNewNode</U> of that component.
401
A common operation is a search of all components in a facet.
402
The following code prints the name of all components in the facet "myfacet":
404
<U>for { set node [getval $myfacet firstnodeinst] }</U><BR>
405
<U>{ [string c $node #nodeinst-1] != 0 }</U><BR>
406
<U>{ set node [getval $node nextnodeinst] }</U><BR>
407
<U>{</U><BR>
408
<U>puts stdout [format "Found %s node" [describenode $node]]</U><BR>
409
<U>}</U><BR>
411
Where <U>describenode</U> is defined as follows
412
(the name of a node is found in different places depending on whether it is a primitive or complex <U>nodeproto</U>):
414
<U>proc describenode node</U><BR>
415
<U>{</U><BR>
416
<U>set proto [getval $node proto]</U><BR>
417
<U>if { [getval $proto primindex] == 0}</U><BR>
418
<U>{ return [getval [getval $proto cell] cellname] }</U><BR>
419
<U>return [getval $proto primname]</U><BR>
420
<U>}</U><BR>
422
And the following code prints the name of all wires in the facet "myfacet":
424
<U>for { set arc [getval $myfacet firstarcinst] }</U><BR>
425
<U>{ [string c $arc #arcinst-1] != 0 }</U><BR>
426
<U>{ set arc [getval $arc nextarcinst] }</U><BR>
427
<U>{</U><BR>
428
<U>puts stdout [format "Found %s arc"</U><BR>
429
<U>[getval [getval $arc proto] protoname]]</U><BR>
430
<U>}</U><BR>
432
To do a search of all nodes and arcs in a rectangular area of a facet, first call:
433
<BR> <U>initsearch LowX HighX LowY HighY Facet</U><BR>
434
where <U>LowX</U>, <U>HighX</U>, <U>LowY</U>,
435
and <U>HighY</U> are the coordinates to search in facet <U>Facet</U> (a <U>nodeproto</U>).
436
This predicate will return a search key that can then be passed repeatedly to:
437
<BR> <U>nextobject SearchKey</U><BR>
438
which will return <U>geom</U> objects of each node and arc in the search area.
439
When this predicate returns <U>#geom-1</U>, the search is complete.
440
<U>geom</U> objects can point to either nodes or arcs, depending on their "entrytype" attribute:
441
1 for nodes and 2 for arcs.
442
Then, the "entryaddr" attribute will point to the actual <U>nodeinst</U> or <U>arcinst</U>.
443
Here is an example of code that prints the names of all nodes and arcs in the area
444
(2000 <= X <= 10000, -3000 <= Y <= 3000).
445
The selected area is shown as a black box here.
448
<U>set key [initsearch 2000 10000 -3000 3000 $myfacet]</U><BR>
449
<U>for { set object [nextobject $key] }</U><BR>
450
<U>{ [string c $object #geom-1] != 0 }</U><BR>
451
<U>{ set object [nextobject $key] }</U><BR>
452
<U>{</U><BR>
453
<U>set type [getval $object entrytype]</U><BR>
454
<U>if { $type == 1 }</U><BR>
455
<U>{ puts stdout [format "Found %s node"</U><BR>
456
<U>[describenode [getval $object entryaddr]]] }</U><BR>
457
<U>else</U><BR>
458
<U>{ puts stdout [format "Found %s arc" [getval [getval [</U><BR>
459
<U>getval $object entryaddr] proto] protoname]] }</U><BR>
460
<U>}</U><BR>
461
</TD><TD><CENTER><IMG SRC="../images/chap11-05.png" ALT="Figure 11.5"></CENTER></TD></TR></TABLE>
466
A view is an object that describes a cell.
467
There are many standard views: Layout, Schematic, Icon, Simulation-snapshot,
468
Skeleton, VHDL, Verilog, Document, Unknown, and many flavors of Netlist.
469
In addition, new views can be created with "newview":
470
<BR> <U>newview ViewName Abbreviation</U><BR>
471
and views can be deleted with <U>killview</U> (the standard views cannot be deleted):
472
<BR> <U>killview View</U><BR>
473
To get a view object, use <U>getview</U> on its name.
475
To associate different views of a cell,
476
the predicates <U>iconview</U> and <U>contentsview</U> obtain different facets.
478
<BR> <U>iconview Myfacet</U><BR>
479
finds the associated icon facet of the cell in which "Myfacet" resides.
484
In the above examples, the current library was always used.
485
This is determined by calling:
486
<BR> <U>curlib</U><BR>
487
However, there can be other libraries.
488
To get a specific named library, use:
489
<BR> <U>getlibrary LibName</U><BR>
491
To create a new library, use:
492
<BR> <U>newlibrary LibraryName LibraryFile</U><BR>
493
where <U>LibraryName</U> is the name to use, and <U>LibraryFile</U> is the path name where this library will be saved.
494
This predicate returns the address of a new library object that can then be used when creating facets.
496
Only one library is the current one, and to switch, you must use:
497
<BR> <U>selectlibrary Lib</U><BR>
499
A library can be deleted with:
500
<BR> <U>killlibrary Lib</U><BR>
502
A library can be erased (its facets deleted, but not the library) with:
503
<BR> <U>eraselibrary Lib</U><BR>
505
<H3>Technologies</H3>
508
A technology is an environment of design that includes primitive components and wire prototypes.
509
The current technology can be obtained with:
510
<BR> <U>curtech</U><BR>
512
A specific technology can be obtained from its name with:
513
<BR> <U>gettechnology TechName</U><BR>
515
All technologies can be found by traversing a linked list,
516
the head of which is a technology named "Generic".
521
A tool is a piece of synthesis or analysis code that can operate upon the database.
522
A particular tool object can be obtained with:
523
<BR> <U>getaid ToolName</U><BR>
524
where the possible names of tools are:
525
<CENTER><TABLE BORDER=1>
526
<TR><TD><U>compaction</U></TD><TD>circuit compaction</TD></TR>
527
<TR><TD><U>compensation</U></TD><TD>geometry compensation</TD></TR>
528
<TR><TD><U>drc</U></TD><TD>design-rule checking</TD></TR>
529
<TR><TD><U>erc</U></TD><TD>electrical-rule checking</TD></TR>
530
<TR><TD><U>io</U></TD><TD>input/output control</TD></TR>
531
<TR><TD><U>logeffort</U></TD><TD>logical effort analysis</TD></TR>
532
<TR><TD><U>network</U></TD><TD>network maintenance</TD></TR>
533
<TR><TD><U>pla</U></TD><TD>programmable logic array generator</TD></TR>
534
<TR><TD><U>project</U></TD><TD>project management</TD></TR>
535
<TR><TD><U>routing</U></TD><TD>automatic wire routing</TD></TR>
536
<TR><TD><U>silicon-compiler</U></TD><TD>netlist-to-layout silicon assembler</TD></TR>
537
<TR><TD><U>simulation</U></TD><TD>simulation</TD></TR>
538
<TR><TD><U>user</U></TD><TD>the user interface</TD></TR>
539
<TR><TD><U>vhdl-compiler</U></TD><TD>VHDL-to-netlist compiler</TD></TR>
541
The number of tools is available with:
542
<BR> <U>maxaid</U><BR>
543
And a particular tool, indexed from 0 to (<U>maxaid</U>)-1 can be obtained with:
544
<BR> <U>indexaid Index</U><BR>
546
A tool can be switched on with:
547
<BR> <U>aidturnon Tool NoCatchUp</U><BR>
548
where <U>Tool</U> is a tool object,
549
and <U>NoCatchUp</U> is nonzero to suppress the catch-up activity normally provided when a tool has been off.
551
A tool can be turned off with:
552
<BR> <U>aidturnoff Tool</U><BR>
554
A tool can be given a specific instruction with:
555
<BR> <U>tellaid Tool PARAMETERS</U><BR>
556
For example, to list all technologies, use this code:
557
<BR> <U>tellaid [GetAid user] {show technologies}</U><BR>
558
These commands are from the low-level command interpreter,
559
which is documented fully in the Internals Manual.
561
<H3>Miscellaneous</H3>
564
Every change to the database is queued internally in a "batch" which includes the change and any constrained side-effects of that change.
565
A new batch is created for each TCL session with the interpreter
566
(also for each Electric command that is issued from the keyboard/mouse).
567
To reverse the last batch of changes, use:
568
<BR> <U>undoabatch</U><BR>
570
Multiple calls to this predicate in a single batch will undo multiple batches.
571
To erase the list of change batches, use:
572
<BR> <U>noundoallowed</U><BR>
574
If you are creating a wire that makes many bends,
575
it is necessary to create special nodes called "pins" at each bend.
576
To find out what kind of pin to use for a given wire type, use:
577
<BR> <U>getpinproto Arc</U><BR>
578
where <U>Arc</U> is the wire type, and the predicate returns the component type (<U>nodeproto</U>) of the pin.
580
Network objects can be obtained by name with the predicate <U>getnetwork</U>
581
which takes a name and a facet in which to search.
582
For example, the code:
583
<BR> <U>getnetwork insig Myfacet</U><BR>
584
obtains the address of the network called "insig" in facet <U>Myfacet</U>.
586
The generic function of a node instance can be determined with:
587
<BR> <U>nodefunction Node</U><BR>
588
which returns a value from the list of constants in the C header file "efunction.h".
589
This value is essentially the same one as would be obtained by looking at the "userbits" field of the node's prototype.
590
However, certain components that have generic prototypes will be made more specific by this predicate.
592
To get an attribute value from an instance above this in the hierarchy, use:
593
<BR> <U>getparentval Name Default Height</U><BR>
594
where <U>Name</U> is the attribute name, <U>Default</U> is the default value to return if the attribute is not found,
595
and <U>Height</U> is the number of levels of hierarchy to climb when looking for the attribute (0 for infinite).
596
As a shortcut for finding parameter values, there are four macros which use this routine:
598
<LI><U>P xx</U> obtains the value of parameter <U>xx</U> from the parent instance in the hierarchy.
599
<LI><U>PD xx</U> def obtains the value of parameter <U>xx</U> from the parent instance in the hierarchy and uses the value <U>def</U>
600
if the parameter cannot be found.
601
<LI><U>PAR xx</U> obtains the value of parameter <U>xx</U> from any higher instance, anywhere in the hierarchy.
602
<LI><U>PARD xx</U> def obtains the value of parameter <U>xx</U> from any higher instance,
603
anywhere in the hierarchy and uses the value <U>def</U> if the parameter cannot be found.
608
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610
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611
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612
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613
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614
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615
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