Autocoding control software with proofs I: Annotation translation

In an effort to meet the reliability standards that control systems operating in safety-critical roles require, we have started laying the foundation for a tool-set that migrates control theory properties and proofs into the software implementation of those control systems designs. By using this tool the engineer can provide a more rigorous guarantee of the quality of the software and initiate the formal verification process. The tool focuses on control software in order to leverage the domain knowledge from existing mathematical techniques for the analysis and synthesis of control systems. As a first step in the development of the tool-set, we have created a prototype of a Scilab to C translator with proof annotation support. Though limited in its current functionalities, the development of this prototype allowed us to identify the key issues which will be used to further refine the translator. This paper describes the prototype and the further improvements planned for the translator.