RdP to VHDL tool

Participants : Gregory Angles, David Andreu, Thierry Gil, Robin Passama.

Our SENIS (Stimulation Electrique Neurale dIStribuee) based FES architecture relies on distributed stimulation units (DSU) which are interconnected by means of a 2-wire based network. A DSU is a complex digital system since its embeds among others a dedicated processor (micro-machine with a specific reduced instruction set), a monitoring module and a 3-layer protocol stack. To face the complexity of the unit’s digital part and to ease its prototyping on programmable digital devices (e.g. FPGA), we developed an approach for high level hardware component programming (HILECOP). To support the modularity and the reusability of sub-parts of complex hardware systems, the HILECOP methodology is based on components. An HILECOP component has: a Petri Net (PN) based behavior, a set of functions whose execution is controlled by the PN, and a set of variables and signals. Its interface contains places and transitions from which its PN model can be inter-connected as well as signals it exports or imports. The interconnection of those components, from a behavioral point out view, consists in the interconnection of places and/or transitions according to well-defined mechanisms: interconnection by means of oriented arcs or by means of the "merging" operator (existing for both places and transitions).

GALS (Globally Asynchronous Locally Synchronous) systems can be specified, connecting different clocks to HILECOP components, and interconnecting them by means of asynchronous signals.

Undergoing work includes the modification of the formalism in order to allow behavior agregation as well as exception handling, both for analysis and implementation sides.

SENISManager

Participants : Robin Passama, David Andreu.

We developed a specific software environment called SENISManager allowing to remotely manage and control a network of DSUs, i.e. the distributed FES architecture. SENISManager performs self-detection of the architecture being deployed. This environment allows the manipulation of micro-programs from their edition to their remote control. It also allows the programming of control sequences executed by an external controller in charge of automatically piloting a stimulator.

SENISManager has been transferred to the industrial partner and a new version is under development according to an Eclipse-based design. This new version should be available by the end of 2014.