A Design Method for Optimal Synthesis of Application-Specific Heterogeneous Multiprocessor Systems

Abstract

Heterogeneous systems have the potential to achieve enhanced performance and/or cost-egectiveness over homogeneous systems. This paper describes a formal design method which can be used to synthesize optimal heterogeneous systems for given applications. The method is quite general and we show how to apply it to a specific style of designs. The method involves creation of a Mixed Integer-Linear Programming (MILP) model and solution of the model. Several experiments and tradeon studies were performed using the method. These results indicate that the method can be a useful tool in designing heterogeneous systems.