IN EXAMINING VARIOUS aspects of EDA standards, I will focus here on standards sponsored by the IEEE Design Automation Standards Committee (DASC; http://www.dasc.org/), but I will also take a look at developments in the EDA standards world at large. Let's start with an introduction to the DASC and the original DASC standard, VHDL. The DASC was originally formed in 1985 as the Design Automation Standards Subcommittee (DASS). Its charter (taken from the DASC's policies and procedures document) is to "promote the development of standards in the Electronic Design Automation industry". This "promotion" of EDA standards takes multiple forms. First, the DASC helps study groups develop a Project Authorization Request (PAR) that precisely specifies the scope, purpose, and need for the proposed standards activity The DASC members then vote on whether to sponsor the proposed PAR. Once approved, the DASC chair submits the PAR to the IEEE's New Standards Committee (NesCom), and works with the head of the study group to clear any issues that may arise while obtaining Nes-Com's approval. Later in the process, as a working group finishes developing its new standard, the DASC chair forms a Sponsor Balloting Group and conducts the actual sponsor ballot that approves the new standard. After obtaining that level of approval, the DASC chair works to assure that the standard gains final approval by various higher-level IEEE Standards Associations committees, such as the Review Committee and the Patent Committee. The DASC is currently sponsoring several active standards, as follows (numbers indicate the IEEE standards number).
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