Award Abstract #0410662
Synthesis of Embedded Software from Hybrid Models

NSF Org:	CNS Division of Computer and Network Systems
Initial Amendment Date:	September 2, 2004
Latest Amendment Date:	June 18, 2006
Award Number:	0410662
Award Instrument:	Continuing grant
Program Manager:	D. Helen Gill CNS Division of Computer and Network Systems CSE Directorate for Computer & Information Science & Engineering
Start Date:	September 1, 2004
Expires:	August 31, 2007 (Estimated)
Awarded Amount to Date:	$399999
Investigator(s):	Rajeev Alur alur@cis.upenn.edu (Principal Investigator) Insup Lee (Co-Principal Investigator) George Pappas (Co-Principal Investigator)
Sponsor:	University of Pennsylvania Research Services Philadelphia, PA 19104 215/898-7293
NSF Program(s):	EMBEDDED & HYBRID SYSTEMS(EHS)
Field Application(s):	0000912 Computer Science
Program Reference Code(s):	HPCC, 9218
Program Element Code(s):	2801

ABSTRACT

From toasters to cell phones and from cars to airplanes, embedded software implements and controls interactions of devices with their environment, and our society is increasingly relying on such devices. Despite the proliferation of embedded devices in almost every engineered product, development of embedded software remains a low level, time consuming and error prone process. This is due to the fact that modern programming languages abstract away from time and platform constraints, while correctness of embedded software relies crucially on hard deadlines.

This NSF-funded research aims at developing novel model-based design and implementation methodology for synthesizing reliable embedded software. Hybrid systems models, which allow mixing state-machine based discrete control with differential equation based continuous dynamics, are used for design and analysis. The research explores ways of mapping such models to code guided by correctness, modularity and portability issues. Technical challenges include bridging the gap between the platform-independent and timed semantics of the hybrid models and the executable software generated from it. This includes integrating generation of control tasks with scheduling to ensure optimal performance. The component technologies in the project are being implemented and integrated within a toolkit for experimentation. A computer-aided infusion pump control system, and an unmanned aerial vehicle using Piccolo avionics board, are chosen as target platforms for demonstration of the feasibility and benefits of the approach.

PUBLICATIONS PRODUCED AS A RESULT OF THIS RESEARCH

A. Easwaran, I. Shin, O. Sokolsky, and I. Lee. "Incremental schedulability analysis of hierarchical real-time components," Proc. 6th ACM Conf. on Embedded Software, 2006, p. 272.

A. Julius, G.E. Fainekos, M. Anand, I. Lee, and G.J. Pappas. "Robust test generation and covergae for hybrid systems," Proc. 10th Intl. Conf. Hybrid Systems: Computation and Control, v.LNCS 44, 2007.

G. Weiss and R. Alur. "Automata based interfaces for control and scheduling," Proc. 10th Intl. Conf. on Hybrid Systems: Computation and Control, v.LNCS 44, 2007, p. 601.

H. Yazarel, A. Girard, G. Pappas and R. Alur. "Quantifying the gap between embedded control models and time-triggered implementations," Proc. 26th IEEE Real-Time Systems Symposium, 2005, p. 111.

M. Anand, I. Lee, O. Sokolsky, and G.J. Pappas. "Unit and dynamic typing in hybrid systems modeling with CHARON," Proc. IEEE Symp. on Computer-Aided Control Systems Design, 2006.

M. Anand, J. Kim and I. Lee. "Code generation from hybrid systems models for distributed and embedded systems," Eighth IEEE Intl. Symp. on Object-Oriented Real-time Distributed Computing, 2005, p. 166.

M. Anand, S. Fischmeister, and I. Lee. "An analysis framework for network-code programs," Proc. 6th ACM Conf. on Embedded Software, 2006.

M. Anand, S. Fischmeister, J. Kim, and I. Lee. "Distributed code generation from hybrid systems models for time-delayed multi-rate systems," Proc. 5th ACM Conf. on Embedded Software (EMSOFT), 2005, p. 210.

R. Alur and A. Chandrashekharapuram. "Dispatch sequences for embedded control models," Proc. 11th IEEE Real-Time and Embedded Technology and Applications Symp, 2005, p. 508.

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