ABSTRACT
This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book presents a cross-domain architecture and design tools for networked complex systems, in which application subsystems of different criticality coexist and interact on networked multi-core chips. It presents an in-depth explanation of the virtualization technologies at the three integration levels including hypervisors, networks-on-a-chip, off-chip networks and memories. The book describes a flexible platform and associated design tools for embedded applications where subsystems of different criticality, executing on networked multi-core chips, can be integrated seamlessly. It provides an overview of the state-of-the-art in the area of mixed-criticality systems and discusses research challenges with respect to system architectures, platform technologies and development methods. DREAMS resulted in an architectural style that guides the development of a mixed-criticality system by providing rules how to structure the application into components and how to specify the interfaces between the components.
