Section: Research Program

Code generation and optimization

A significant part CPS design happens at model level, through activities such as model construction, analysis, or verification. However, in most cases the objective of the design process is implementation. We mostly consider the implementation problem in the context of embedded, real-time, or edge computing applications, which are subject to stringent performance, embedding, and safety non-functional requirements.

The implementation of such systems usually involves a mix of synthesis—(real-time) scheduling, code generation, compilation—and performance (e.g. timing) analysis. One key difficulty here is that synthesis and performance analysis depend on each other. As enumerating the various solutions is not possible for complexity reasons, heuristic implementation methods are needed in all cases. One popular solution here is to build the system first using unsafe performance estimations for its components, and then check system schedulability through a global analysis. Another solution is to use safe, over-approximated performance estimations and perform their mapping in a way that ensures by construction the schedulability of the system.

In both cases, the specification of the design space—functional specification, execution platform model, non-functional requirements, implementation model—is a key problem. Another problem is the definition of scalable and efficient mapping methods based on both "exact" approaches (ILP/SMT/CP solving) and compilation-like heuristics.