Reliability-driven task mapping for lifetime extension of networks-on-chip based multiprocessor systems

Shrinking transistor geometries, aggressive voltage scaling and higher operating frequencies have negatively impacted the lifetime reliability of embedded multi-core systems. In this paper, a convex optimization-based task-mapping technique is proposed to extend the lifetime of a multiprocessor systems-on-chip (MPSoCs). The proposed technique generates mappings for every application enabled on the platform with variable number of cores. Based on these results, a novel 3D-optimization technique is developed to distribute the cores of an MPSoC among multiple applications enabled simultaneously. Additionally, reliability of the underlying network-on-chip links is also addressed by incorporating aging of links in the objective function. Our formulations are developed for directed acyclic graphs (DAGs) and synchronous dataflow graphs (SDFGs), making our approach applicable for streaming as well as non-streaming applications. Experiments conducted with synthetic and real-life application graphs demonstrate that the proposed approach extends the lifetime of an MPSoC by more than 30% when applications are enabled individually as well as in tandem.