Real Time Embedded Systems Modeling, Performances Estimation, Formal Verification and Synthesis
The design of real-time embedded systems (RTES) is a current topic that requires collaboration between several fields such as computer science, electronics, physics, mechanics, and even biology. Therefore, it is a multidisciplinary field.
RTES is characterized as a heterogeneous complex system in the sense that it encompasses both hardware and software. It may contain a digital and/or analog component and is subject to hard or soft real-time constraints, as well as strict spatial and energy constraints.
The usual approach for designing such systems is Co-design, in which both hardware and software teams work synergistically from the early stages of the lifecycle by establishing an abstract model. Through successive refinements, they proceed towards physical implementation, involving activities such as simulation, performance estimation, formal verification, and prototyping, which are typically carried out on reconfigurable FPGA architectures.
Objectives
Our goal is to develop an environment for the design of real-time embedded systems. This environment integrates a collection of tools that collaborate to perform the following tasks:
- Modeling of structural, dynamic, and temporal aspects, with a focus on the MARTE UML profile.
- Design space exploration, performance estimation, and optimization.
- Simulation and formal verification, with a focus on the RT-Maude language.
- Prototyping, targeting reconfigurable FPGA architectures and synthesis.
Scientific Foundations
In the context of RTES engineering, research revolves around several complementary and current themes:
- Modeling of real-time embedded systems, with a focus on the MARTE UML profile.
- Performance estimation and optimization.
- Simulation, with a focus on SystemC.
- Formal verification, with a focus on RT-Maude.
- Prototyping on FPGAs.
- Synthesis, with a focus on VHDL for the hardware part and C for the software part.