http://standards.ieee.org/news/2013/ieee_1076_vhdl.html

MODIFICATION TO IEEE 1076™ LICENSING TERMS ALLOWS FOR OPEN USE OF VHDL STANDARD’S SUPPLEMENTAL MATERIAL

IEEE 1076 working group assists with creation of additional packages for developers to cultivate new hardware-designer tools to expand VHDL systems

Shuang Yu, Senior Manager, Solutions Marketing
+1 732 981 3424; shuang.yu@ieee.org

PISCATAWAY, N.J., USA, 16 July 2013 - IEEE, the world's largest professional organization advancing technology for humanity, today announced a licensing term modification to the supplemental materials for IEEE 1076™ “Standard VHDL Language Reference Manual.” The licensing change allows the standard’s supplemental materials or “packages” to be made available to the public without prior authorization from the IEEE Standards Association (IEEE-SA). The supplemental packages provide developers with the necessary machine-readable code to build hardware-designer tools that help create systems using Very High Speed Integrated Circuits (VHSIC) Hardware Description Language (VHDL), which is then used to design electronic systems at the component and board levels.

By allowing free use of the standard’s VHDL packages each time a new VHDL design is implemented, the new license terms are intended to save developers the time required to request authorization for their legal use in real-world applications. Under the previous terms, users of the IEEE 1076 standard’s packages were required to request permission from the IEEE-SA. The various packages include the definition of standard types, subtypes, natures and constants for hardware modeling.

“This licensing change is very important to vendors and users of VHDL,” said Stan Krolikoski, chair of the IEEE Computer Society's Design Automation Standards Committee (DASC), which supported the modification to the license for the supplemental materials. “We worked closely with the IEEE 1076 VHDL Analysis and Standardization Working Group to allow anyone to use these files, within the guidelines of the IEEE 1076-2008 standard, of course. The previous header to the standard’s supplemental packages instructed users to request permission from the IEEE-SA for all uses, which is no longer required.”

The collaboration between the DASC and the IEEE 1076 Working Group to modify the licensing of the supplemental materials to IEEE 1076 was conducted in the spirit of the OpenStand paradigm for global, open standards. Globally adopted design automation standards, such as IEEE 1076, have paved the way for a giant leap forward in industry's ability to define complex electronic solutions and are examples of standards developed under the market-driven OpenStand principles.

For more information about the IEEE 1076 VHDL Analysis and Standardization Working Group, please visit the Working Group web page.

Download IEEE 1076’s supplemental materials at the working group web page. IEEE 1076 is available for purchase at the IEEE Standards Store.

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About the IEEE Standards Association 
The IEEE Standards Association, a globally recognized standards-setting body within IEEE, develops consensus standards through an open process that engages industry and brings together a broad stakeholder community. IEEE standards set specifications and best practices based on current scientific and technological knowledge. The IEEE-SA has a portfolio of over 900 active standards and more than 500 standards under development. For more information visit the IEEE-SA Web site.

About IEEE 
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