Current Research

Design Technologies of Embedded Real-Time Systems

OUTLINE

Since embedded computing systems, which are embedded in various machines and equipment to control them, continue to grow larger and more complicated, design/development technologies have become an important issue. We are investigating the design/development technologies of embedded computing systems (both software and hardware) with real-time constraints. Our research projects emphasize industrial practicality. The major application area of our research is automotive control systems.

TOPICS

(1) Real-Time Operating System (RTOS)

We are investigating next-generation RTOS technologies based on the achievements, the development, and the standardization of ITRON Specifications, the de facto industry standard RTOS specification.

Current research topics include RTOS for multiprocessor systems, RTOS with a protection mechanism (memory and temporal protection), and their applications to high reliable systems such as automotive control and spacecraft control. We are also investigating software component technology for embedded systems.

Among them, RTOS for multiprocessor systems is gaining attention from industries due to the emergence of on-chip multiprocessors. We are developing an RTOS for function-distributed multiprocessors, which are useful for embedded systems, as well as an RTOS for symmetric multiprocessors (SMP).

Many RTOSs developed in our laboratory are distributed as open source software through the TOPPERS Project (http://www.toppers.jp/) and are widely adopted in industries.

(2) System-level Design

As behavioral synthesis technology that synthesizes hardware logics from such programming language languages as C language, we are investigating system-level design methodologies and developing a tool called SystemBuilder. It generates software, hardware, and interfaces between them from system description written in C language.

Current research topics include abstract SW/HW interface description from which optimized SW/HW interfaces will be generated. We are also investigating SW/HW co-simulation technologies.

(3) Real-Time Scheduling and Analysis

We are investigating real-time scheduling and analysis targeting for automotive control systems. For example, we proposed a method to analyze the worst-case response time of messages on the Controller Area Network (CAN), a standard in-vehicle network specification.

FUTURE WORK

In addition to continuing the above investigations, we will promote their use in industries. In particular, we plan to propose our RTOS technology for automotive control systems to JasPar (http://www.jaspar.jp/), the standardization organization in the automotive electronics area.

In 2005, we started a new research project on the optimization of energy consumption for embedded systems. Though many basic research results exist on low-energy scheduling for RTOS, they are not widely applied in industries. We will propose a more practical approach for low-energy embedded computing.