The ODYSSEY Tool-Set for System-Level Synthesis of Object-Oriented Models

Abstract. We describe implementation of design automation tools that we have developed to automate system-level design using our ODYSSEY methodology, which advocates object-oriented (OO) modeling of the embedded system and ASIP-based implementation of it. Two flows are automated: one synthesizes an ASIP from a given C++ class library, and the other one compiles a given C++ application to run on the ASIP that corresponds to the class library used in the application. This corresponds, respectively, to hardware-and software-generation for the embedded system while hardware-software interface is also automatically synthesized. This implementation also demonstrates three other advantages: firstly, the tool is capable of synthesizing polymorphism that, to the best of our knowledge, is unique among other C++ synthesizers; secondly, the tools generate an executable co-simulation model for the ASIP hardware and its software, and hence, enable early validation of the hardware-software system before full elaboration; and finally, error-prone language transformations are avoided by choosing C++ for application modeling and SystemC for ASIP implementation.