An architecture design method for critical embedded systems

Abstract

Critical embedded systems (CES) have become ubiquitous in the modern society, like in cars and energy appliances. However, besides their popularity, engineering of these systems is still particularly challenging. One of the greatest challenges in the development of such systems is their expected high standards of reliability. One of the key solutions to overcome this challenge is to design a sound architecture and validate it against critical quality attributes (CQAs), such as safety, dependability, security and performance. However, currently there are no established architecting processes or methods that are specialized for the domain of CES. Consequently, these systems are sometimes developed without focusing on their architectural design and their level of quality. Thus, the main goal of this PhD project is to develop an architecture design method, specialized in decisions that impacts CQAs. In the context of this project, the proposed method will be evaluated, through an industrial collaborations, with companies of two important application domains: Smart Grid and Ambient Assisted Living.