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SystemC-based HW/SW co-simulation platform for system-on-chip (SoC) design space exploration

Published: 01 June 2009 Publication History
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  • Abstract

    The development of digital designs today is much more complex than before, as they now impose more severe demands and require greater number of functionalities to be conceived. The current approach, based on the register transfer level (RTL) design methods, can result in extremely long simulation time compounded with time-consuming verification process. Hence, today digital system design begins with modelling at a higher level of design abstraction, that is, the electronic system level (ESL). This paper presents a hardware-software (HW/SW) co-simulation environment based on SystemC for application in the design of system-on-chip (SoC). We discuss the SystemC modelling of the hardware and the software parts of the system, and the interprocess communication module of the co-simulation platform. Its objective is to help designers obtain an appropriate HW/SW partitioning that satisfy specified area-speed design tradeoffs. Besides, an early system verification can also be carried out with a high simulation speed. A case study of a SoC implementing elliptic curve cryptography (ECC) is presented to validate the co-simulation platform in terms of system functionality verification and design space exploration.

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    Cited By

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    • (2013)HW/SW co-design of reconfigurable hardware-based genetic algorithm in FPGAs applicable to a variety of problemsComputing10.1007/s00607-013-0305-595:9(863-896)Online publication date: 1-Sep-2013

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    Published In

    cover image International Journal of Information and Communication Technology
    International Journal of Information and Communication Technology  Volume 2, Issue 1/2
    June 2009
    162 pages
    ISSN:1466-6642
    EISSN:1741-8070
    Issue’s Table of Contents

    Publisher

    Inderscience Publishers

    Geneva 15, Switzerland

    Publication History

    Published: 01 June 2009

    Author Tags

    1. ECC
    2. ESL
    3. HW-SW co-
    4. IPC
    5. SoC design
    6. SystemC
    7. chip
    8. design space exploration
    9. electronic system level
    10. elliptic curve cryptosystem
    11. interprocess communications
    12. modelling
    13. simulation
    14. system functionality
    15. system-on-

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    • (2013)HW/SW co-design of reconfigurable hardware-based genetic algorithm in FPGAs applicable to a variety of problemsComputing10.1007/s00607-013-0305-595:9(863-896)Online publication date: 1-Sep-2013

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