SEACAS Chipathon 2023
Registration
Participants (students and officers) can now register for this event using this link: https://forms.gle/brGQxkzHWpon7pZx8
About
The IEEE Republic of Philippines Section Solid-State Circuits Society (SSCS) Chapter and CAS/SP Joint Chapter are happy to announce the SEACAS and Student Chipathon 2023, which will be held in Quezon City, Philippines on 18-19 September 2023. This year it will be a Chapthon instead of a Hackathon where students will be able to experience the whole integrated circuit (IC) design flow using open-source tools. Details of the event, the tools and mechanics of the Chipathon will be available in this website.
NOTE: The winning team in the Chipathon will be given the chance to have their chip fabricated!
Tentative Schedule
Sept 18, 2023 (Day 1) - SEACAS & Student Chipathon
10:00-12:00 - A discussion on Open-source tools and IC design that will be used in the Chipathon
- Student Chipathon starts
12:00-14:00 - Lunch SEACAS participants (officers and students)
14:00-16:00 - Research presentations by Chapter Officers
18:00-20:00 - Dinner of CAS Officers and Local Organizers
Sept 19, 2023 (Day 2) - Student Chipathon
10:00-12:00 - Chipathon continues
12:00-14:00 - Lunch SEACAS participants (officers and students)
14:00-15:30 - Chipathon design presentation/judging
15:30-16:00 - Chipathon Award Ceremony
18:00-20:00 - Dinner with students and CAS Officers
Chipathon Mechanics
Scope
Students from each chapter will be formed into groups of two (2) students at most and they will be asked to design and implement a certain algorithm (e.g. FFT, LMS filtering, Reed-Solomon's coding, etc), the exact algorithm will be announced on the day of the event, but the necessary software and tools will be given at least a week before the event. In addition to the algorithm, an example or baseline design in RTL will be given as a demonstration.
Expectations to the students
- Digital Design. Students will use the digital (not analog) IC design flow.
- Minimum requirements. Each team needs to produce a GDS layout of the baseline design, the design has to be functionally correct, clear DR and LVS.
- Additional design credit. Each team is free to implement any modifications / optimizaation to the baseline to improve the design, and the team will be given credits for any improvement (power, performance, area, etc).
- Reports. Each team is also expected to be able to generate the following reports: Utilization ratio, Critical path, Area, DRC, violations, etc
Participant Requirements
- Basic knowledge of electronics and digital circuits.
- Basic knowledge on digital design flow.
SEACAS 2023 Baseline: FFT
Linked below is a notebook running the OpenLane flow with a baseline implementation of the fast fourier transform algorithm.
Submission Form
Please upload your project files and presentation below.
Software tools and how to set-up
The tools needed for the Chipathon can be found in the Colab Notebook below. We strongly recommend familiarizing yourself with the tool flow and also setting the notebook up to run offline before you fly to the Philippines.
- SEACAS 2023 Hackathon Colab Notebook (Online Toolset & Tutorial)
- Using Icarus Verilog and GTKWave for behavioral simulation
- How to operate the notebook offline
Local Arrangements
The main venue of the SEACAS 2023 will be at the Electrical and Electronics Engineering (EEE) Institute, University of the Philippines Diliman. The complete address of the EEE Institute, UP Diliman is:
EEE building, Velasquez St.
UP Campus, Diliman
Quezon City, Philippines 1101
Google Map address: J3X9+W9 Quezon City, Metro Manila
Hotel Recommendations.
- SEDA Vertis North Hotels (https://vertisnorth.sedahotels.com)
- Novotel Manila Araneta City (https://www.novotelmanilaaranetacity.com)
- Microtel Wnydham UP Technohub (https://www.microtel-uptechnohub.com)
- Richmond Hotel (Eastwood Area) (https://www.eastwoodrichmondehotel.com.ph)
- Sheraton Manila Bay Hotel (formerly Pan-Pacific Hotel) (https://pan-pacific-hotel-manila.at-hotels.com/en/)
- Diamond Hotel Manila (https://www.diamondhotel.com)
- Shangri-la Hotel Makati (https://www.shangri-la.com/manila/makatishangrila/about/)
- Shangri-la The Fort Manila (https://www.shangri-la.com/en/manila/shangrilaatthefort/)
Accommodations inside the University for students
The information below were taken from Accommodations in UP.
- UP NISMED Hostel (for sharing) (https://nismed.upd.edu.ph/hostel-rooms/)
- University Hotel (formerly PCED) (https://www.facebook.com/universityhotel.ph)
- Kapit-Balay (beside Balay Kalinaw) Email: upbalayinternasyonal@up.edu.ph
Entry requirements to the Philippines and VISA
- For quick reference on the general requirements on the entry of foreigners to the Philippines, you can refer to this link from the Philippine Embassy in Singapore (https://www.philippine-embassy.org.sg/consular/visa/general-information/).
- All travelers are expected to use the e-travel system (https://etravel.gov.ph), more information can be found here: https://www.philippineairlines.com/en/newsevent-listingpage/travel-advisory/alert-full-scale-implementation-of-the-e-travel-system
- For VISA Application in the Philippines (https://www.visa.gov.ph/)
- Information on VISA Application (https://www.philippine-embassy.org.sg/consular/visa/important-visa-information/)
Airport Transfer
From any airport terminal there is a regular taxi that can take you to the venue or to your hotels.
You can also use the Grab mobile app to book a Grab Taxi or Grab car from any airport terminal provided you have data connectivity available.