The Architecture Synthesis Tool (AST) is software that automatically synthesizes software and hardware architectures of avionic systems. The AST is expected to be most helpful during initial formulation of an avionic-system design, when system requirements change frequently and manual modification of architecture is time-consuming and susceptible to error. The AST comprises two parts: (1) an architecture generator, which utilizes a genetic algorithm to create a multitude of architectures; and (2) a functionality evaluator, which analyzes the architectures for viability, rejecting most of the non-viable ones. The functionality evaluator generates and uses a viability tree — a hierarchy representing functions and components that perform the functions such that the system as a whole performs system-level functions representing the requirements for the system as specified by a user. Architectures that survive the functionality evaluator are further evaluated by the selection process of the genetic algorithm. Architectures found to be most promising to satisfy the user's requirements and to perform optimally are selected as parents to the next generation of architectures. The foregoing process is iterated as many times as the user desires. The final output is one or a few viable architectures that satisfy the user's requirements.

This program was written by Savio Chau, Joseph Xu, Van Dang, and James F. Lu of Caltech for NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory. For further information, access the Technical Support Package (TSP) free online at www.techbriefs.com/tsp under the Software category.

This software is available for commercial licensing. Please contact Karina Edmonds of the California Institute of Technology at (626) 395-2322. Refer to NPO-42607.



This Brief includes a Technical Support Package (TSP).
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Automated Synthesis of Architectures of Avionic Systems

(reference NPO-42607) is currently available for download from the TSP library.

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