An Abstract Hardware/Software Model

This chapter presents an abstract hardware/software model [245] that utilizes a unified representation. The unified representation is based on functional abstractions and employs data/control flow concepts. The first section states the requirements and applications of the model. The next section introduces some existing models of hardware/software systems. Several ideas from these models have been incorporated into the abstract hardware/software model. The abstract hardware/software model is then described. This presentation is followed by a discussion of the model’s implementation in ADEPT. An example is provided to illustrate various aspects of the model. The model’s generality is discussed. The last section compares the model with other models that have been developed for hardware/software systems. The utility of the model is further demonstrated in Chapter 8.