GoldMine: Automatic assertion generation using data mining and static analysis

We present GOLDMINE, a methodology for generating assertions automatically. Our method involves a combination of data mining and static analysis of the Register Transfer Level (RTL) design. We present results of using GoldMine for assertion generation of the RTL of a 1000-core processor design that is still in an evolving stage. Our results show that GoldMine can generate complex, high coverage assertions in RTL, thereby minimizing human effort in this process.