CSR: Small: Collaborative Research: Generalized Reliability-Aware Power Management for Real-Time Embedded Systems

George Mason University, Fairfax VA

Investigators

Abstract

For decades, computer system design and operation were driven largely by high performance objectives. Yet, as the large scale integration of semi-conductor devices is approaching its physical limits, energy efficiency and robustness have been recently promoted to first-class design constraints. Energy efficiency is mandated by the emergence of small foot-print, portable, and battery-powered computers as well as ever-increasing power density that puts stringent constraints even on computers connected to the power grid. Moreover, recent research has revealed that aggressive power management techniques can significantly increase vulnerabilities of computer systems to transient faults (soft errors) that can cause incorrect operations at run-time. These problems are even more pronounced for real-time embedded systems that must perform correctly at high reliability levels, under strict timing and energy constraints. In recent past, a number of pioneering reliability-aware power management schemes were proposed that aim at mitigating the negative effects of the popular dynamic voltage and frequency scaling. This project is addressing the conservatism of the existing solutions and developing a more general framework. Specifically, the project is devising novel solutions to achieve arbitrary reliability levels through the use of shared recovery tasks. In addition, the research is extending the framework to multiprocessor and emerging multicore platforms. The project has two major broader impact dimensions: First, energy-awareness has a direct impact on environment, economy, and society at large. Second, by promoting reliability to a first-order objective, the project will help to prevent malfunctions in safety-critical computer systems and protect property and human lives.