用大模型自动分析硬件验证失败原因,省去工程师数小时排查时间
FVDebug: An LLM-Driven Debugging Assistant for Automated Root Cause Analysis of Formal Verification Failures
- 构建失败轨迹的因果图,用大模型批量分析可疑节点
- 在公开和工业级案例上实现高准确率的根因定位与修复建议
- 适合芯片设计工程师快速定位复杂验证失败问题
形式化验证(FV)失败的调试是现代硬件设计中最耗时的瓶颈之一。当属性验证失败时,工程师需手动追踪跨多个周期的反例、分析波形并对照设计规范寻找根本原因,这一过程可能耗时数小时甚至数天。现有方法多依赖手动波形查看或简单自动化工具,无法理解设计意图与实现逻辑间的复杂关系。我们提出FVDebug,一个智能系统,通过整合波形、RTL代码和设计规范等多种数据源,将失败轨迹转化为可操作的洞察。其创新流程包括:(1) 因果图生成,将失败轨迹结构化为有向无环图;(2) 图扫描器,使用批处理的大语言模型(LLM)结合正反推理提示识别可疑节点;(3) 智能探索器,通过代理式叙事探索生成高层次因果解释。FVDebug还提供具体的RTL修复建议。在公开基准测试中,系统展现出高假设质量与强的Pass@k修复成功率。我们在两个私有的生产级FV反例上也取得有效结果,证明其从学术基准到工业设计的适用性。
原文摘要 · Abstract (English)
Debugging formal verification (FV) failures represents one of the most time-consuming bottlenecks in modern hardware design workflows. When properties fail, engineers must manually trace through complex counter-examples spanning multiple cycles, analyze waveforms, and cross-reference design specifications to identify root causes - a process that can consume hours or days per bug. Existing solutions are largely limited to manual waveform viewers or simple automated tools that cannot reason about the complex interplay between design intent and implementation logic. We present FVDebug, an intelligent system that automates root-cause analysis by combining multiple data sources - waveforms, RTL code, design specifications - to transform failure traces into actionable insights. Our approach features a novel pipeline: (1) Causal Graph Synthesis that structures failure traces into directed acyclic graphs, (2) Graph Scanner using batched Large Language Model (LLM) analysis with for-and-against prompting to identify suspicious nodes, and (3) Insight Rover leveraging agentic narrative exploration to generate high-level causal explanations. FVDebug further provides concrete RTL fixes through its Fix Generator. Evaluated on open benchmarks, FVDebug attains high hypothesis quality and strong Pass@k fix rates. We further report results on two proprietary, production-scale FV counterexamples. These results demonstrate FVDebug's applicability from academic benchmarks to industrial designs.
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