WCET Analysis: The Annotation Language Challenge

Worst-case execution time (WCET) analysis is indispensable for the successful design and development of systems, which, in addition to their functional constraints, have to satisfy hard real-time constraints. The expressiveness and usability of annotation languages, which are used by algorithms and tools for WCET analysis in order to separate feasible from infeasible program paths, have a crucial impact on the precision and performance of these algorithms and tools. In this paper, we thus propose to complement the WCET tool challenge, which has recently successfully been launched, by a second closely related challenge: the WCET annotation language challenge. We believe that contributions towards mastering this challenge will be essential for the next major step of advancing the field of WCET analysis.

[1]  Isabelle Puaut,et al.  A modular and retargetable framework for tree-based WCET analysis , 2001, Proceedings 13th Euromicro Conference on Real-Time Systems.

[2]  David B. Whalley,et al.  Bounding Pipeline and Instruction Cache Performance , 1999, IEEE Trans. Computers.

[3]  Jakob Engblom,et al.  Modeling complex flows for worst-case execution time analysis , 2000, Proceedings 21st IEEE Real-Time Systems Symposium.

[4]  Niklas Holsti,et al.  Worst-case execution time analysis for digital signal processors , 2000, 2000 10th European Signal Processing Conference.

[5]  Robert E. Tarjan,et al.  Fast Algorithms for Solving Path Problems , 1981, JACM.

[6]  Friedhelm Stappert,et al.  Complete worst-case execution time analysis of straight-line hard real-time programs , 2000, J. Syst. Archit..

[7]  Aloysius K. Mok,et al.  Evaluating tight execution time bounds of programs by annotations , 1989 .

[8]  Raimund Kirner,et al.  Classification of Code Annotations and Discussion of Compiler-Support for Worst-Case Execution Time Analysis , 2005, WCET.

[9]  Alfred V. Aho,et al.  Compilers: Principles, Techniques, and Tools , 1986, Addison-Wesley series in computer science / World student series edition.

[10]  Alan Burns,et al.  Combining static worst-case timing analysis and program proof , 1996, Real-Time Systems.

[11]  Michael Hucka,et al.  Programmer's Manual , 2004 .

[12]  Henrik Theiling,et al.  Convenient User Annotations for a WCET Tool , 2003, WCET.

[13]  Chang Yun Park Predicting program execution times by analyzing static and dynamic program paths , 2005, Real-Time Systems.

[14]  Alan C. Shaw,et al.  Reasoning About Time in Higher-Level Language Software , 1989, IEEE Trans. Software Eng..

[15]  Jakob Engblom,et al.  The worst-case execution-time problem—overview of methods and survey of tools , 2008, TECS.

[16]  Peter P. Puschner,et al.  Calculating the maximum execution time of real-time programs , 1989, Real-Time Systems.

[17]  Sharad Malik,et al.  Performance analysis of embedded software using implicit path enumeration , 1997, IEEE Trans. Comput. Aided Des. Integr. Circuits Syst..

[18]  Alan Burns,et al.  Static worst-case timing analysis of Ada , 1994, ALET.

[19]  Jan Gustafsson The WCET Tool Challenge 2006 , 2006 .

[20]  Robert McNaughton,et al.  Regular Expressions and State Graphs for Automata , 1960, IRE Trans. Electron. Comput..

[21]  Peter P. Puschner,et al.  Computing Maximum Task Execution Times — A Graph-Based Approach , 2004, Real-Time Systems.

[22]  Johann Blieberger Discrete Loops and Worst Case Performance , 1994, Comput. Lang..

[23]  Chang Yun Park,et al.  Predicting deterministic execution times of real-time programs , 1992 .