Accelerate your MIPI CSI-2 Verification with a Divide and Conquer Approach

MIPI Alliance’s CSI-2 (Camera Serial Interface) has achieved widespread adoption in the smartphone industry for its ease-of-use and ability to support a broad range of imaging solutions. MIPI CSI-2 v1.3, which was announced in February 2015, also offers users the opportunity to operate CSI-2 on either of two physical layer specifications: MIPI D-PHY, which CSI-2 has used traditionally, as well as MIPI C-PHY, a new PHY that MIPI first released in September 2014. Products may implement CSI-2 solutions using either or both PHYs in the same design. MIPI CSI-2 v1.3 with C-PHY provides performance gains and increased bandwidth delivery for realizing higher resolution, better color depth, and higher frame rates on image sensors while providing pin compatibility with MIPI D-PHY.

MIPI CSI-2 poses unique verification and debugging challenges: multiple images formats, several different image resolutions, multiple virtual channels, different types of long packets and short packets, error injection scenarios, ultra-low power mode, and support for MIPI C-PHY and D-PHY. Since MIPI CSI-2 is considered a mature technology – it has been around for a decade – it also demands a short time to market cycle. So how should you as a developer meet the challenges of increasing complexity along with shortening schedules?

Your verification schedule can be significantly cut down when you use Synopsys’ built-in MIPI CSI-2 test suites, monitors and coverage models along with our CSI-2 VIP. Test sequences and scoreboard are customizable. Coupled with the protocol analyzer, it further enables you to cut down the debug cycles, which is another big bottleneck in achieving functional closure.

You can learn more about how Synopsys’ MIPI CSI-2 customizable test suite with the coverage model can accelerate your CSI-2 verification by downloading one of our customer case studies here. This article describes a divide-and-conquer approach that enabled them to verify the MIPI PHY and the MIPI MAC separately. They also discuss how the scoreboard and IDI monitor provided good compatibility to work with their design’s custom interface on the application side. Also, the highly configurable architecture of the VIP and test suites will enable them to reuse their entire testbench for future updates of the design as well as updates to MIPI specifications.

Here’s where you can learn more about Synopsys’ VC Verification IP for MIPI CSI-2 and CSI-2 Test Suites,  for using a divide-and-conquer approach.

Authored by Anand Shirahatti