Compiling UML State Diagrams into WHDL: An Experiment in using Model Driven Development

Embedded systems are becoming more and more complex. This complexity means that developers require increasing support and new techniques to aid them in developing complex systems. The use of high level graphical languages can significantly aid in managing the complex design of a system. However, it is still necessary to convert the high level design into low level code for the purpose of implementation. In this paper, we discuss the results of experimenting with the use of Model Driven Development (MDD) Techniques as a means of compiling UML State Diagrams into synthesisable VHDL code. These results show that although MDD provides a potentially useful technique, there are aspects where we still need significant improvement in the MDD tools and techniques in order to make this an easily useable approach to the task.