An Adaptive Design Methodology for Reduction of Product Development Risk

Embedded systems interaction with environment inherently complicates understanding of requirements and their correct implementation. However, product uncertainty is highest during early stages of development. Design verification is an essential step in the development of any system, especially for Embedded System. This paper introduces a novel adaptive design methodology, which incorporates step-wise prototyping and verification. With each adaptive step product-realization level is enhanced while decreasing the level of product uncertainty, thereby reducing the overall costs. The back-bone of this frame-work is the development of Domain Specific Operational (DOP) Model and the associated Verification Instrumentation for Test and Evaluation, developed based on the DOP model. Together they generate functionally valid test-sequence for carrying out prototype evaluation. With the help of a case study 'Multimode Detection Subsystem' the application of this method is sketched. The design methodologies can be compared by defining and computing a generic performance criterion like Average design-cycle Risk. For the case study, by computing Average design-cycle Risk, it is shown that the adaptive method reduces the product development risk for a small increase in the total design cycle time.Comment: 21 pages, 9 figure

FisicaTIC, plataforma hardware-software para aplicaciones en física e ingeniería

One of the main problems facing the teaching methods of basic sciences and engineering is the separation of theoretical knowledge from practical training. In this sense, laboratory experiences become very useful teaching strategies; however, implementing them requires physical infrastructure, equipment and materials that originate large economic investments. In response to this problem, FisicaTIC arises, a hardware-software platform that allows various physics and engineering practices related to the kinematics and dynamics of bodies. This proposal aims to develop learning skills, with the help of the student's own technological tools, (Smartphone, PC or Tablet). For the software development, “SCRUM” was used as a methodological basis, however, this methodology was integrated into a V model, taking into account that this development technique is efficient for the materialization of technological products that require the implementation of hardware and software embedded subsystems, as it allows to specify in greater detail the tools to be used in each of the product development phases. For the validation and verification of the software and hardware built, the IEEE 1012-2016 standard was used as a reference. Finally, it should be mentioned that the results obtained through the use of FisicaTIC, allow to infer that students develop cognitive skills during their interaction with the built system, favoring the approach and understanding of concepts related to kinematics, gravitational forces and movement simple harmonic.Uno de los principales problemas que enfrentan los métodos de enseñanza de las ciencias básicas y las ingenierías, es la separación del conocimiento teórico de la formación práctica.  En este sentido, las experiencias en laboratorio se convierten en estrategias didácticas pedagógicas muy provechosas; sin embargo, implementarlas requiere de infraestructura física, equipos y materiales que originan grandes inversiones económicas. Como respuesta a esta problemática surge FisicaTIC, una plataforma hardware-software, que permite realizar diversas prácticas de física e ingeniería relacionadas con la cinemática y dinámica de los cuerpos. Esta propuesta pretende desarrollar habilidades de aprendizaje, con la ayuda de las propias herramientas tecnológicas del estudiante, (Smartphone, PC o Tablet). Para el desarrollo de software, se empleó como base metodológica “SCRUM”, sin embargo, esta metodología se integró a un modelo en V, teniendo en cuenta que esta técnica de desarrollo es eficiente para la materialización de productos tecnológicos que requieren de la implementación de subsistemas embebidos de hardware y software, ya que permite precisar con mayor nivel de detalle las herramientas a utilizar en cada una de las fases de desarrollo del producto. Para la validación y verificación del software y hardware construido.  Se empleó como referente el estándar IEEE 1012-2016. Finalmente, se debe mencionar que los resultados obtenidos mediante el uso de FisicaTIC, permiten inferir que los estudiantes desarrollan habilidades cognoscitivas durante su interacción con el sistema construido, favoreciendo el abordaje y la comprensión de conceptos relacionados con la cinemática, las fuerzas gravitatorias y el movimiento armónico simple

FisicaTIC, plataforma hardware-software para aplicaciones en física e ingeniería

One of the main problems facing the teaching methods of basic sciences and engineering is the separation of theoretical knowledge from practical training. In this sense, laboratory experiences become very useful teaching strategies; however, implementing them requires physical infrastructure, equipment and materials that originate large economic investments. In response to this problem, FisicaTIC arises, a hardware-software platform that allows various physics and engineering practices related to the kinematics and dynamics of bodies. This proposal aims to develop learning skills, with the help of the student's own technological tools, (Smartphone, PC or Tablet). For the software development, “SCRUM” was used as a methodological basis, however, this methodology was integrated into a V model, taking into account that this development technique is efficient for the materialization of technological products that require the implementation of hardware and software embedded subsystems, as it allows to specify in greater detail the tools to be used in each of the product development phases. For the validation and verification of the software and hardware built, the IEEE 1012-2016 standard was used as a reference. Finally, it should be mentioned that the results obtained through the use of FisicaTIC, allow to infer that students develop cognitive skills during their interaction with the built system, favoring the approach and understanding of concepts related to kinematics, gravitational forces and movement simple harmonic.Uno de los principales problemas que enfrentan los métodos de enseñanza de las ciencias básicas y las ingenierías, es la separación del conocimiento teórico de la formación práctica.  En este sentido, las experiencias en laboratorio se convierten en estrategias didácticas pedagógicas muy provechosas; sin embargo, implementarlas requiere de infraestructura física, equipos y materiales que originan grandes inversiones económicas. Como respuesta a esta problemática surge FisicaTIC, una plataforma hardware-software, que permite realizar diversas prácticas de física e ingeniería relacionadas con la cinemática y dinámica de los cuerpos. Esta propuesta pretende desarrollar habilidades de aprendizaje, con la ayuda de las propias herramientas tecnológicas del estudiante, (Smartphone, PC o Tablet). Para el desarrollo de software, se empleó como base metodológica “SCRUM”, sin embargo, esta metodología se integró a un modelo en V, teniendo en cuenta que esta técnica de desarrollo es eficiente para la materialización de productos tecnológicos que requieren de la implementación de subsistemas embebidos de hardware y software, ya que permite precisar con mayor nivel de detalle las herramientas a utilizar en cada una de las fases de desarrollo del producto. Para la validación y verificación del software y hardware construido.  Se empleó como referente el estándar IEEE 1012-2016. Finalmente, se debe mencionar que los resultados obtenidos mediante el uso de FisicaTIC, permiten inferir que los estudiantes desarrollan habilidades cognoscitivas durante su interacción con el sistema construido, favoreciendo el abordaje y la comprensión de conceptos relacionados con la cinemática, las fuerzas gravitatorias y el movimiento armónico simple

Efficient Modelling and Simulation Methodology for the Design of Heterogeneous Mixed-Signal Systems on Chip

Systems on Chip (SoCs) and Systems in Package (SiPs) are key parts of a continuously broadening range of products, from chip cards and mobile phones to cars. Besides an increasing amount of digital hardware and software for data processing and storage, they integrate more and more analogue/RF circuits, sensors, and actuators to interact with their (analogue) environment. This trend towards more complex and heterogeneous systems with more intertwined functionalities is made possible by the continuous advances in the manufacturing technologies and pushed by market demand for new products and product variants. Therefore, the reuse and retargeting of existing component designs becomes more and more important. However, all these factors make the design process increasingly complex and multidisciplinary. Nowadays, the design of the individual components is usually well understood and optimised through the usage of a diversity of CAD/EDA tools, design languages, and data formats. These are based on applying specific modelling/abstraction concepts, description formalisms (also called Models of Computation (MoCs)) and analysis/simulation methods. The designer has to bridge the gaps between tools and methodologies using manual conversion of models and proprietary tool couplings/integrations, which is error-prone and time-consuming. A common design methodology and platform to manage, exchange, and collaboratively develop models of different formats and of different levels of abstraction is missing. The verification of the overall system is a big problem, as it requires the availability of compatible models for each component at the right level of abstraction to achieve satisfying results with respect to the system functionality and test coverage, but at the same time acceptable simulation performance in terms of accuracy and speed. Thus, the big challenge is the parallel integration of these very different part design processes. Therefore, the designers need a common design and simulation platform to create and refine an executable specification of the overall system (a virtual prototype) on a high level of abstraction, which supports different MoCs. This makes possible the exploration of different architecture options, estimation of the performance, validation of re-used parts, verification of the interfaces between heterogeneous components and interoperability with other systems as well as the assessment of the impacts of the future working environment and the manufacturing technologies used to realise the system. For embedded Analogue and Mixed-Signal (AMS) systems, the C++-based SystemC with its AMS extensions, to which recent standardisation the author contributed, is currently establishing itself as such a platform. This thesis describes the author's contribution to solve the modelling and simulation challenges mentioned above in three thematic phases. In the first phase, the prototype of a web-based platform to collect models from different domains and levels of abstraction together with their associated structural and semantical meta information has been developed and is called ModelLib. This work included the implementation of a hierarchical access control mechanism, which is able to protect the Intellectual Property (IP) constituted by the model at different levels of detail. The use cases developed for this tool show how it can support the AMS SoC design process by fostering the reuse and collaborative development of models for tasks like architecture exploration, system validation, and creation of more and more elaborated models of the system. The experiences from the ModelLib development delivered insight into which aspects need to be especially addressed throughout the development of models to make them reusable: mainly flexibility, documentation, and validation. This was the starting point for the development of an efficient modelling methodology for the top-down design and bottom-up verification of RF Systems based on the systematic usage of behavioural models in the second phase. One outcome is the developed library of well documented, parameterisable, and pin-accurate VHDL-AMS models of typical analogue/digital/RF components of a transceiver. The models offer the designer two sets of parameters: one based on the performance specifications and one based on the device parameters back-annotated from the transistor-level implementation. The abstraction level used for the description of the respective analogue/digital/RF component behaviour has been chosen to achieve a good trade-off between accuracy, fidelity, and simulation performance. The pin-accurate model interfaces facilitate the integration of transistor-level models for the validation of the behavioural models or the verification of a component implementation in the system context. These properties make the models suitable for different design tasks such as architecture exploration or overall system validation. This is demonstrated on a model of a binary Frequency-Shift Keying (FSK) transmitter parameterised to meet very different target specifications. This project showed also the limits in terms of abstraction and simulation performance of the "classical" AMS Hardware Description Languages (HDLs). Therefore, the third and last phase was dedicated to further raise the abstraction level for the description of complex and heterogeneous AMS SoCs and thus enable their efficient simulation using different synchronised MoCs. This work uses the C++-based simulation framework SystemC with its AMS extensions. New modelling capabilities going beyond the standardised SystemC AMS extensions have been introduced to describe energy conserving multi-domain systems in a formal and consistent way at a high level of abstraction. To this end, all constants, variables, and parameters of the system model, which represent a physical quantity, can now declare their dimension and associated system of units as an intrinsic part of their data type. Assignments to them need to contain besides the value also the correct measurement unit. This allows a much more precise but still compact definition of the models' interfaces and equations. Thus, the C++ compiler can check the correct assembly of the components and the coherency of the equations by means of dimensional analysis. The implementation is based on the Boost.Units library, which employs template metaprogramming techniques. A dedicated filter for the measurement units data types has been implemented to simplify the compiler messages and thus facilitate the localisation of unit errors. To ensure the reusability of models despite precisely defined interfaces, their interfaces and behaviours need to be parametrisable in a well-defined manner. The enabling implementation techniques for this have been demonstrated with the developed library of generic block diagram component models for the Timed Data Flow (TDF) MoC of the SystemC AMS extensions. These techniques are also the key to integrate a new MoC based on the bond graph formalism into the SystemC AMS extensions. Bond graphs facilitate the unified description of the energy conserving parts of heterogeneous systems with the help of a small set of modelling primitives parametrisable to the physical domain. The resulting models have a simulation performance comparable to an equivalent signal flow model