Error Correction Coding (ECC) in Platform Designer Interconnect

Error Correction Coding (ECC) logic allows the Platform Designer interconnect to detect and correct errors. Enabling ECC improves data integrity in memory blocks. Platform Designer supports ECC protection for Read Data FIFO (rdata_FIFO) instances only.

As transistors become smaller, computer hardware is more susceptible to data corruption. Data corruption causes Single Event Upsets (SEUs), and increases the probability of Failures in Time (FIT) rates in computer systems. SEU events without error notification can cause the system to be stuck in an unknown response status, and increase the FIT rate.

Before writing data to the memory device, the ECC logic encodes the data bus with a Hamming code. Then, the ECC logic decodes and performs error checking on the data output.

When you enable ECC, Platform Designer interconnect sends uncorrectable errors arising from memory as DECODEERROR (DECERR) on the Avalon^® response bus.

Figure 1. High-Level Implementation of rdata_FIFO with ECC Enabled

Note: Enabling ECC logic may increase logic utilization and cause lower f_MAX.