Thursday 20 March 2025
The quest for a comprehensive tool that can specify and synthesize infinite-state reactive systems has been ongoing for years. Such systems are crucial in modern computing, as they enable communication protocols, embedded system controllers, and more to operate seamlessly. However, the lack of a standardized specification language and efficient synthesis methods has hindered progress.
Enter Issy, an open-source tool that promises to revolutionize reactive system development by providing a comprehensive solution for specification and synthesis. Developed by Philippe Heim and Rayna Dimitrova, Issy addresses the shortcomings of existing approaches by introducing a novel specification language, acceleration techniques, and modular primal-dual logic solving.
At its core, Issy is designed to streamline the process of specifying infinite-state reactive systems using temporal logic and games. This involves combining infinite-state games with temporal formulas, allowing users to describe complex system behaviors and objectives. The tool also supports a wide range of data types, including integers, booleans, and real numbers.
One of Issy’s most significant contributions is its acceleration technique for solving infinite-state games. This approach leverages recent advances in logic solving and algorithmic techniques to reduce the computational complexity of reactive system synthesis. By exploiting the structure of temporal formulas and game objectives, Issy can generate correct-by-construction solutions more efficiently.
In addition to its specification language and acceleration technique, Issy features a modular primal-dual logic solving method for synthesizing infinite-state reactive systems. This approach decomposes complex problems into smaller, more manageable sub-problems, allowing users to tackle larger system designs with greater ease.
The tool’s architecture is designed with usability and extensibility in mind. Users can define custom specification languages using Issy’s macro system, which enables the creation of domain-specific languages for specific application areas. This flexibility makes it easier for developers to adapt Issy to their particular needs and integrate it seamlessly into existing workflows.
Issy has been extensively tested on a variety of benchmarks, demonstrating its competitiveness with state-of-the-art tools in terms of synthesis performance and accuracy. The tool’s authors have also made significant contributions to the reactive system synthesis community through publications and competitions, further solidifying Issy’s position as a leading solution in this domain.
Cite this article: “Introducing Issy: A Comprehensive Tool for Specifying and Synthesizing Infinite-State Reactive Systems”, The Science Archive, 2025.
Infinite-State Reactive Systems, Specification Language, Synthesis Tool, Open-Source, Temporal Logic, Games, Acceleration Technique, Primal-Dual Logic Solving, Modular Decomposition, Usability, Extensibility, Domain-Specific Languages, Benchmarking, Synthesis Performance, Accuracy
