Rapid Prototyping of Real-Time Information Processing Units for Mechatronic Systems

Abstract

Mechatronics is a rapidly growing field that requires application specific hardware/software solutions for complex information processing at very low power and area consumption, and cost. Rapid prototyping is a proven method to check a design against its requirements during early design phases and thus shorten the overall design cycle. Rapid Prototyping of real-time information processing units in mechatronics applications requires code generation and hardware synthesis tools for a fast and efficient search in the design space. In this paper we present a rapid prototyping environment that supports the designer of application specific embedded controllers during the requirement's validation phase.

State-of-the-art in rapid prototyping

“…In this paper we will only sketch a rapid prototyping environment for real-time processing units for mechatronic systems [10] consisting of an accelerating hardware unit (CAPrTex) and a supporting software toolset (CAPtools).…”

“…CAPtools covers the formal entry of requirements, the mapping of the functional structure and behavioral description onto the execution platform, as well as the interactive simulation and graphical animation of the design. The prototyping system was successfully used in several mechatronic projects like on-line process identification for combustion engines, active pulsation absorbers, self-supervising clutch, tire with integrated sensor for friction monitoring, high precision measurement instrument, and also in microsystems technology [10]. This prototyping approach enabled system engineers to explore the design space already during the requirement's validation phase and thus to shorten the overall development cycle.…”