BDD-Based Boolean Synthesis

Date
2018-04-18
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Abstract

Synthesizing a Boolean function satisfying a given relation between inputs and outputs is a problem with many applications in the verification and design of hardware and software systems. In digital logic, Boolean synthesis can be used to automatically design circuits that produce the desired behavior. In program synthesis, Boolean functions can represent programs manipulating bit vectors and other data over finite domains. Additionally, Boolean synthesis is an essential component of reactive synthesis from temporal specifications, a problem that can be applied to automate the design of safety-critical systems. Binary Decision Diagrams (BDDs) have historically been popular data structures for representing Boolean functions, and BDDs are especially useful for the application of reactive synthesis, where they are particularly well-suited for fixpoint computations over sets of states. However, recent works in Boolean synthesis have raised concerns about the scalability of BDDs and chosen to use alternative approaches, such as SAT solvers.

In this thesis, we show that BDDs remain viable structures for Boolean synthesis, by developing a BDD-based synthesis framework that can in many cases outperform alternative approaches. For cases where efficient BDD representations are hard to construct, we demonstrate that techniques for decomposing a Boolean relation into multiple smaller BDDs can be used to make BDD-based approaches competitive.

Description
Degree
Master of Science
Type
Thesis
Keywords
Boolean synthesis, Binary Decision Diagrams, Factored representation
Citation

Martinelli Tabajara, Lucas. "BDD-Based Boolean Synthesis." (2018) Master’s Thesis, Rice University. https://hdl.handle.net/1911/105515.

Has part(s)
Forms part of
Published Version
Rights
Copyright is held by the author, unless otherwise indicated. Permission to reuse, publish, or reproduce the work beyond the bounds of fair use or other exemptions to copyright law must be obtained from the copyright holder.
Link to license
Citable link to this page