Annual Report Heterogeneous Modeling and Design Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (darpa) Composite Cad Program

The Heterogeneous Modeling and Design (HMAD) project is a 2 phase, 36 month, Defense Advanced Research Project Agency (DARPA) sponsored program to develop a design methodology, and associated modeling software, for composite, heterogeneous systems. Such systems combine diverse implementation technologies, including microelectromechanical systems (MEMS), microwave circuits, analog circuits, digital circuits, and embedded software. They also combine modeling and design paradigms, including physical modeling using differential equations, continuous-time signal processing, discrete-time signal processing, and discrete-event controllers. They are invariably concurrent , involving diverse modules that operate at the same time and interact through continuous signals or discrete messages. The focus of the project is on the theory and technology of heterogeneous mod-eling of heterogeneous concurrent systems. Formerly entitled Distributed Adaptive Signal Processing (DASP), this project focuses on fundamental modeling and design techniques that are not specific to signal processing. Phase 1 is an 18 month effort to develop the supporting infrastructure. The infrastructure consists of modular design tools, domain-specific design techniques, and models for the interaction of dynamic, discrete controllers with static digital and analog subsystems. Phase 2 is an 18 month effort to develop a process level type system theory capturing different kinds of interaction of concurrent modules, and concurrency semantics for regulation of heterogeneous combinations of such interaction semantics. Phase 2 will also focus on formal analysis, debugging, and system level visualization for heterogeneous concurrent systems. This project is part of a long term effort at Berkeley called the Ptolemy project that has been studying various aspects of design methodology. The Ptolemy project has an established track record of high-impact contributions in methodology, theory, and software, with demonstrable transfer of the resulting technology to industry. The underlying principle of the project, which we expand on below, is to embrace heterogeneity. The Composite CAD program at DARPA appears to be an excellent candidate for targeted heterogeneous methodologies. This project is about heterogeneous system-level and implementation-level descriptions of systems and the relationships between these two levels. This relationship is generally a combination of modeling and specification. That is, components at the implementation level may be modeled or specified at the system level. Most interesting designs will have some of both. The heterogeneity at the two levels and the multi-way relationships between levels augment the complexity of the design process and the difficulty that designers have with such designs. A major part of our approach to managing this design complexity is by …