Javier Moreno Molina

Power-Aware System Design of Wireless Sensor Networks: Power Estimation and Power Profiling Strategies

Modern design of wireless devices requires the designers to have a special focus on power consumption to prolong the battery life of the final system. The designer therefore needs power consumption information very early in the process to be able to decide on system parameters, design methods, communication protocols, functionality restrictions. Typically, this is done by running simulations of the system to be developed and performing design space exploration. However, there is a tradeoff between speed and accuracy of simulation, therefore the designer has to be aware of available tools and simulation methods he can choose from to achieve the best possible solution for his case.

Model Based Design of Distributed Embedded Cyber Physical Systems

In this chapter, we propose a Model-Based Design (MBD) methodology that aims to deal with complexity due to the convergence of different domains and technologies in distributed embedded systems, enabling early design optimization and reduction of time-to-market. This methodology requires models for very different domains able to work together: Electronic System Level (ESL), network, radio propagation and quantities to be captured by the sensor systems. Using different simulators involves co-simulation and coupling overhead. We introduce a framework based exclusively in SystemC and its extensions for Transaction-Level Modeling (TLM) and Analog Mixed-Signal (AMS), and extensible with additional C/C++ code. The whole approach has been validated in a Cyber-Physical System for demand side energy management in buildings and environments, developed during the SmartCoDe Project.

A framework for model-based design of embedded systems for energy management

Model-Based Design of Cyber-Physical Energy Systems (CPES) is a challenge from a modeling and simulation point of view. Multi-domain and multi-scale modeling and simulation as well as high simulation performance are required in order to model distributed systems, appliances, embedded systems, electric components, and physical systems of different nature at different levels of abstraction. In this paper we describe a framework, based on SystemC, for the model-based design of embedded HW/SW systems for distributed energy management applications in buildings and neighborhoods. These embedded systems are included in smart appliances, that are capable of gather information, control the appliance and communicate with the network. Communication (wireless, PLC) is modeled using TLM extensions, in order to achieve high simulation performance. On the other hand, physical domains are modeled using AMS extensions. For demonstration, we model, simulate and evaluate the performance of an in-house energy management system.

High level energy consumption estimation and profiling for optimizing Wireless Sensor Networks

Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) are being gradually introduced in different application scenarios. One of the main constraints for their deployment is energy consumption, as sensor nodes are usually stand alone battery-powered devices. For this reason, most efforts in research are being focused in energy-aware architectures and protocols.

Modeling and simulation of Cyber-Physical Systems with SICYPHOS

In the design of Cyber-Physical Systems, engineers from different disciplines have to co-operate, using different modeling languages and tools. In this paper we give an overview of a framework and methodology that intends to close the gap between the different disciplines: SICYPHOS. The proposed methodology is based on SysML from which model templates in different domain-specific languages are generated. Compared with state-of-the art, SICYPHOS also targets the generation of the interfaces between different domains and the integration of pre-existing modeling IP block libraries that may be written in different domain-specific languages.

Modeling power consumption at system-level for design of power integrity-aware AMS-circuits

Among many challenges in designing reliable integrated circuits and embedded systems, the power integrity (PI-) issue is a particularly critical one. Researches and CAD tools have been carried out in the last decades. However, all of them address the problem from a circuit-level perspective. Moreover, the PIproblem cannot be completely verified until layout, the final stage of the design phase. In this paper we propose a new approach to model power consumption that allows PI-simulation at the system level of abstraction, by extending the state-machine based power estimation method. For this purpose, we model power consumption in power states which also includes a statistical model, and in state-transitions modeled by transfer function. The proposed approach is implemented as part of a simulation framework, which uses SystemC-AMS, and is applied on a battery management IC design.

A System-Level Power Model for AMS-Circuits

In this chapter we propose a new power model that for the first time allows to estimate instantaneous power consumption of AMS-circuits at the system level of abstraction, by extending the state-machine based power estimation method. For this purpose, we model power consumption in power states by statistical model, and in state-transitions by a transfer function. With the help of the new model, signal-integrity issue from power distribution grid, e.g. potential disturbances due to crosstalk or ground bounce, which in the past can not be completely addressed until layout, can now be verified at the early stage of the design phase. The proposed power model is implemented as part of a simulation framework, which uses SystemC-AMS, and is applied in designing a battery management IC.