Temporal Proof Methodologies for Real-time Systems

Abstract

. We extend the specification language of temporal logic, the corresponding verification framework, and the underlying computational model to deal with real-time properties of concurrent and reactive systems. A global, discrete, and asynchronous clock is incorporated into the model by defining the abstract notion of a real-time transition system as a conservative extension of traditional transition systems: qualitative fairness requirements are replaced (and superseded) by quantitative lower-bound and upperbound real-time requirements for transitions. We show how to model real-time systems that communicate either through shared variables or by message passing, and how to represent the important real-time constructs of priorities (interrupts), scheduling, and timeouts in this framework. Two styles for the specification of real-time properties are presented. The first style uses bounded versions of the temporal operators; the real-time requirements expressed in this style are classified ...