In order to cope with time-varying input characteristics and demand for upgradability in new-generation communication systems and multimedia applications, embedded systems are being driven to provide tremendous flexibility through extensive configurations. Hence, along with performance, power, and reliability requirements, embedded systems now require hardware reconfiguration and self-adaptive system methodologies. In order to provide an effective, affordable, and seamless (from the application layer) transition from one configuration to another, system synthesis plays a crucial role. To achieve this, there is a need for the right balance between static compilation and dynamic configuration management. This project develops adaptivity-driven system synthesis tools coupled with a dynamic configuration management layer for adaptive embedded system with hardware configuration support. The research focuses on design of novel algorithms and optimization methods for design tools supporting self-adaptive systems. This project 1) develops holistic task scheduling and resource management methods which are adaptive-aware and consider the reconfiguration overhead, 2)develops system level layout planning for resource upgradability and configuration sequence awareness, and 3)develops efficient dynamic design making methods for configuration management layer which evokes the right configuration based on the current system state. The broader impact of this research is that the developed design tools can be deployed in future self-adaptive systems for software-defined radio and multimedia applications where programmability and flexibility are as crucial as computation power. The PI plans to develop new courses, recruit under-represented groups into her research, and facilitate outreach to other researchers and industry by providing online access to the developed design tools.
