Assume-guarantee verification for interface automata

Abstract

Interface automata provide a formalism capturing the high level interactions between software components. Checking compatibility, and other safety properties, in an automata-based system suffers from the scalability issues inherent in exhaustive techniques such as model checking. This work develops a theoretical framework and automated algorithms for modular verification of interface automata. We propose sound and complete assume-guarantee rules for interface automata, and learning-based algorithms to automate assumption generation. Our algorithms have been implemented in a practical model-checking tool and have been applied to a realistic NASA case study. © 2008 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg.