Evolvable hardware

Abstract

This chapter surveys the field of evolvable hardware. After a brief overview of the reconfigurable devices used in evolvable hardware, elementary principles of evolvable hardware, corresponding terminology, and open problems in the field are introduced. Then, the chapter is divided into three main parts: extrinsic evolution, intrinsic evolution, and adaptive hardware. Extrinsic evolution (i.e., evolution using simulators) covers evolutionary design of digital circuits, analog circuits, antennas, optical systems, and microelectromechanical systems (MEMS). Intrinsic evolution conducted in field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), field programmable transistor arrays (FPTAs), field programmable analog arrays (FPAAs), and some unconventional devices is discussed together with a description of the most successful applications. Examples of real-world adaptive hardware systems are also presented. Finally, an overview of major achievements and problems is given.