SystemC: a modeling platform supporting multiple design abstractions

ABSTRACT

SystemC is a C++ based modeling platform supporting design abstractions at the register-transfer, behavioral, and system levels. Consisting of a class library and a simulation kernel, the language is an attempt at standardization of a C/C++ design methodology, and is supported by the Open SystemC Initiative (OSCI), a consortium of a wide range of system houses, semiconductor companies, Intellectual property (IP) providers, embedded software developers, and design automation tool vendors. The advantages of SystemC include the establishment of a common design environment consisting of C++ libraries, models and tools, thereby setting up a foundation for hardware-software co-design; the ability to exchange IP easily and efficiently; and the ability to reuse test benches across different levels of modeling abstraction. We outline the features of SystemC that make it an attractive language for design specification, verification, and synthesis at different levels of abstraction, with particular emphasis on the new features included in SystemC 2.0 that support system-level design.

REFERENCES

• 1: The Open SystemC Initiative. http://www.systemc.org.
• 2: SystemC 1.0 user's guide. http://www.systemc.org, 2000.
• 3: Functional specification for SystemC 2.0. http://www.systemc.org, Jan. 2001.
• 4: D. Gajski, J. Zhu, R. Domer, A. Gerstlauer, and S. Zhao. SpecC: Specification Language and Methodology. Kluwer Academic Publishers, Norwell, U.S.A, 2000.
• 5: J. Gerlach and W. Rosenstiel. System level design using the SystemC modeling platform. In Workshop on System Design Automation, pages 185-189, Rathen, Germany, Mar. 2000.
• 6: Rajesh Kumar Gupta , Giovanni De Micheli, Co-Synthesis of Hardware and Software for Digital Embedded Systems, Kluwer Academic Publishers, Norwell, MA, 1995
• 7: Stan Liao , Steve Tjiang , Rajesh Gupta, An efficient implementation of reactivity for modeling hardware in the scenic design environment, Proceedings of the 34th annual conference on Design automation, p.70-75, June 09-13, 1997, Anaheim, California, United States [doi>10.1145/266021.266037]
• 8: S. Swan. An introduction to system level modeling in SystemC 2.0. http://www.systemc.org, May 2001.
• 9: Synopsys Inc., Mountain View, CA. Describing Synthesizable RTL in SystemC, May 2001.

INDEX TERMS

Primary Classification:
  B. Hardware
  B.5 REGISTER-TRANSFER-LEVEL IMPLEMENTATION
      B.5.2 Design Aids

Additional Classification:
  B. Hardware
  B.6 LOGIC DESIGN
      B.6.3 Design Aids
          Subjects: Hardware description languages
  B.7 INTEGRATED CIRCUITS
      B.7.2 Design Aids
          Subjects: Simulation; Verification

  C. Computer Systems Organization
  C.0 GENERAL
      Subjects: Systems specification methodology
  C.3 SPECIAL-PURPOSE AND APPLICATION-BASED SYSTEMS
      Subjects: Real-time and embedded systems; Signal processing systems

  I. Computing Methodologies
  I.6 SIMULATION AND MODELING
      I.6.5 Model Development
          Subjects: Modeling methodologies

General Terms:
Design, Languages, Performance, Standardization, Verification

Keywords:
C/C++ based design, SystemC, hardware description language, system level design