A codesign virtual machine for hierarchical, balanced hardware/software system modeling

ABSTRACT

The Codesign Virtual Machine (CVM) is introduced as a next generation system modeling semantic. The CVM permits unrestricted system-wide software and hardware behaviors to be designed to a single scheduling semantic by resolving time-based (resource) and time-independent (state-interleaved) models of computation. CVM hierarchical relationships of bus and clock state domains provide a means of exploring hardware/software scheduling trade-offs to a consistent semantic model using top-down, bottom-up and iterative design approaches from a high system level to the machine implementation. State domain partitionings permit run-time software schedulers to be resolved with design time physical scheduling as peer- and hierarchically-related architectural abstractions which cut across functional boundaries. The resultant abstraction provides “component-less” paths to physical design with greater accommodation of shared resource modeling. A simulation example is included.

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INDEX TERMS

Primary Classification:
  J. Computer Applications

Additional Classification:
  C. Computer Systems Organization
  C.0 GENERAL
      Subjects: System architectures
  C.4 PERFORMANCE OF SYSTEMS
      Subjects: Modeling techniques

General Terms:
Design, Measurement, Performance, Theory