System design using an integrated specification and performance modeling methodology

A system-design methodology based on the synergistic integration of the specification modeling and the performance modeling design stages is presented. This synergy is supported by: 1) a novel technique that dynamically and automatically incorporates delay information into an executable specification from the corresponding performance model, and 2) a novel simulation-based algorithm that automatically checks conformance between the two models. VHDL is the primary means for integrating these two disparate design stages