A proposed design environment for dependable embedded systems

Proposals for an integrated design environment to ease the design of complex embedded systems are presented. Embedded systems are computer-based systems which must respond to external stimuli within time scales determined by the external environment. Such systems are required to achieve ever more demanding behavioural, performance and safety requirements. Considerable effort is required to select optimal design solutions and ensure adherence to specified requirements. The proposed environment seeks to combine iterative and search/optimisation approaches to the design problem. Graphical modelling techniques are used for detailed analysis and to establish feasible design solutions. Integration of disparate detailed models, through co-simulation, is desirable to enable the resolution of conflicting trade-offs.