Energy-aware fault tolerance in fixed-priority real-time embedded systems

We investigate an integrated approach to fault tolerance and dynamic power management in real-time embedded systems. Fault tolerance is achieved via checkpointing and power management is carried out using dynamic voltage scaling (DVS). We present feasibility-of-scheduling tests for checkpointing schemes for a constant processor speed as well as for variable processor speeds. DVS is then carried out on the basis of these feasibility analyses. Experimental results show that compared to fault-oblivious methods, the proposed approach significantly reduces power consumption and guarantees timely task completion in the presence of faults.