We propose a fault tolerance method for torus NoCs capable of increase the yield with minimal performance overhead. The proposed approach consists in detecting and diagnosing interconnect faults using BIST structures and activating alternative paths for the faulty links. Experimental results show that alternative fault-free paths are found by the dynamic routing for 95% of the diagnosed faults (stuck-at and pairwise shorts within a single link or between any two links).

We propose a method to diagnose interconnect short-circuit faults in mesh 7oCs. The fault model comprises all shorts between any two wires of a defined 7oC neighborhood. Test sequences are applied in 7oC functional mode. Experimental results show that 93% of the interconnect shorts can be diagnosed.

A novel strategy to detect interconnect faults between distinct channels in networks-on-chip is proposed. Short faults between distinct channels in the data, control and communication handshake lines are considered in a cost-effective test sequence for Mesh NoC topologies based on XY routing.