Abstract application modeling for system design space exploration

The increasing complexity of System-on-Chip (SoC) requires a complete reexamination of design and validation methods prior to final implementation whereas faster system design space exploration is today's requirement to speed up the design process in order to cope with 'time-to-market' constraint. We have introduced SoC modeling approach which mixes simulation and formal modeling and verification methods for efficient design space exploration phase of SoC design cycle. The applications are described as a network of communicating tasks whose behaviors are abstracted. Because applications are abstract, it is possible to significantly increase the speed of simulation, to perform a quick performance analysis and apply static formal analysis techniques at higher level of abstraction. The proposed methodology has been employed in the design of a telecommunication system. A part of the application is modeled as a set of tasks in a modeling language and their behavior is monitored as a waveform of events in a simulation environment.