System-level exploration with SpecSyn
Daniel D. Gajski, Frank Vahid, Sanjiv M. Narayan, Jie Gong · 1998
We present the SpecSyn system-level design environment supporting the specify-explore-re#ne #SER# design paradigm. This three-step approach includes precise speci#cation of system functionality, rapid exploration of numerous systemlevel design options, and re#nement of the speci#cation into one re#ecting the chosen option. A system-level design option consists of an allocation of system components like standard and custom processors, and a partitioning of functionality among those components. Focusing on SpecSyn's exploration techniques, we emphasize its two-phase estimation approach and highlight experiments using SpecSyn. 1 Introduction The focus of design e#ort on higher abstraction levels, driven by increasing system complexity, shorter design times, and migration of entire systems onto a single chip, demands a system-level design methodology and supporting tools. We can isolate three tasks in such a methodology. First, wemust specify the system's functionality and constraints. S...