Applying Aspect-Extended UML Modelling to 'e'

Applying aspect-extended
UML Modelling to e
Darren Galpin

The Problem

We have testbenches which have been developed over many
years, involving many people, much knowledge, and much re-
use.

Re-use typically involves adding new functionalities and
modifying old ones -> many extensions and overrides.

Testbenches are often moved between sites and teams – how to
bring up new teams quickly, especially as documentation on
testbench is often poor.

Knowledge is often lost along the way. Contractors are used,
people leave, knowledge isn’t documented before it is lost. Very
different programming styles can be used.

Testbenches are often very complex…… Might have redundant
code as the RTL changes.

– Need some way of making the knowledge capture and bring up easier…
22.05.2007 For internal use only Copyright © Infineon Technologies 2007. All rights reserved. Page 2

The Solution – UML (?)

“The Unified Modeling Language (UML) is a graphical language for
visualizing, specifying and constructing the artifacts of a
software-intensive system. The Unified Modeling Language offers
a standard way to write a system's blueprints, including
conceptual things such as business processes and system
functions as well as concrete things such as programming
language statements, database schemas, and reusable software
components. “
Wikipedia

Provides a graphical way of viewing a system, so should make it
easier to see the program flow and interaction.

There are commercial tools available, so can possibly just load
the code in and view the result (wishful thinking….)

Could design the code in tool, annotate, and use UML database
to feed back the effects of changes. UML can write skeleton code
for the first design, which can later be filled in.

Issues

UML was written to handle object oriented systems, but e is
aspect oriented. How do we handle this?

Use Theme/UML.
Developed by Trinity College Dublin to handle AspectJ.
AspectJ supports method and class extensions.
However, not yet supported by a commercial tool.

Can we use Theme/UML to model e?


Problem 1 – Units and Structs

AspectJ, like Java, is based on classes. e is based on units and
structs.

Units and structs are very similar, contain similar constructs and
have similar built in methods (pre-generate(), run(), etc…)

Handle this by having a top level class which has two child
classes – a unit and a struct. Common methods are placed into
the base class, any specific methods are added by extension into
the child unit and struct “classes”.


Problem 2 – extending methods

In Theme/UML, a thread of functionality is known as a theme. An
aspect theme adds crosscutting behaviour which modifies the
base execution (in otherwords, “is also”, “is first” or “is only”
extension.

Wish to bind new aspect theme
to the base theme, extending
method() with extsnA() via “is
also” extension.
The resulting composed object is
shown on the right.
Have to manually draw these at
the moment – laborious for
complex testbenches needing to
capture multiple extensions.


How to handle type extension?

Can simply extend types in e, but cannot in Aspect J.

Example:
type dog_type : [pug,poodle];
extend type dog_type : [bulldog];

Can create a new base dog class, with child classes for each
dog_type.
¬ In e, the child class does not exist until generated.
¬ Constraints can be added so that a sub-type might never be
generated.
¬ Difficult to graphically show this in UML.

Root problem is that AspectJ just isn’t as extensible as e….


Handling constraints

Variables in e have constraints to restrict what is generated. For
example:
type bark_type : [yelp, growl, howl];
type dog_kind : [poodle, pug, bulldog];
struct dog {
bark : bark_type;
dog_kind : dog_kind;
keep soft bark_type in [yelp,growl];
};
extend poodle dog {
keep bark_type=yelp;
};
Constraints can be added to UML via Object Constraint
Language. Allows ranges and implications to be added to
variables.
OCL cannot have aspects added to it – Theme/UML has not
considered this. Hence the extension cannot be modelled. What
about soft and hard constraints?


Timed Behaviour

TCM’s, TE’s and Coverage objects – model them all as methods.
¬ All instantiated within a unit/struct.
¬ Event is a method that raises a flag when emitted or when a
sequence of other events is observed.
¬ A TE is a piece of boolean logic that evaluates to true or false and
raises a flag.
¬ Cover objects are methods that increment counters for coverage
purposes.

But how to distinguish between method() and method()@clk?

In addition, different extension rules apply for the different
“methods”. E.g. “is only” not allowed for cover objects.

Other timed behaviour: run-time generation, destruction of
structs, Load order.


So, in summary

UML doesn’t work…..
– Full Aspect-orientation does not map well, so cannot support full feature
set of e.
– Aspect-orientation is not commercially supported, so need to manually
draw AOP diagrams. Too much work….

So don’t bother with it?
– Diagramming small parts of the system can be useful. UML does support
polymorphism, so can use the diagrams to describe sub-sections of the
code.
– A good diagram is worth a thousand words.
– Diagrams are language neutral…….

For further info see “Modelling Hardware Verification Concerns Specified in the e-Language: An Experience
Report”, by Darren Galpin, Cormac Driver and Siobhán Clarke, submitted to AOSD 2009.


Applying Aspect-Extended UML Modelling to 'e'

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