Efficient scheduling algorithms for real-time multiprocessorsystems

Efficient scheduling algorithms based on heuristic functions are developed for scheduling a set of tasks on a multiprocessor system. The tasks are characterized by worst-case computation times, deadlines, and resources requirements. Starting with an empty partial schedule, each step of the search extends the current partial schedule by including one of the tasks yet to be scheduled. The heuristic functions used in the algorithm actively direct the search for a feasible schedule, i.e. they help choose the task that extends the current partial schedule. Two scheduling algorithms are evaluated by simulation. To extend the current partial schedule, one of the algorithms considers, at each step of the search, all the tasks that are yet to be scheduled as candidates. The second focuses its attention on a small subset of tasks with the shortest deadlines. The second algorithm is shown to be very effective when the maximum allowable scheduling overhead is fixed. This algorithm is hence appropriate for dynamic scheduling in real-time systems     

A robust two-phase heuristic algorithm for the truck scheduling problem in a resource-constrained crossdock

This paper studies truck scheduling in a resource-constrained crossdock. The problem decides on the sequence of incoming and outgoing trucks at the dock doors of the crossdocking terminal, subject to the availability of crossdock resources including dock doors and material handling systems. The resources are assumed non-preemptive making it necessary to address the feasibility of the problem before its optimality as it might be entrapped in deadlock and no feasible solution is produced. The paper thus aims at developing an algorithmic approach capable of establishing solution feasibility for truck scheduling problem instances of various types and difficulty levels which at the same time can be readily implemented in an industrial setting. The proposed approach is a two-phase heuristic algorithm where in the first phase, a heuristic search is deployed to construct a feasible sequence of trucks for the assignment to dock doors and in the second, a rule-based heuristic is used to assign each sequenced truck to a proper dock door, subject to a limited number of forklifts, such that significant savings in the truck schedule length are achieved. Extensive experiments are conducted to evaluate the efficiency of the algorithm in terms of deadlock avoidance and solution quality. The evaluation is carried out against the solutions generated by the exact mathematical model of the problem and a constructive heuristic developed for a similar truck scheduling problem. Experimental results demonstrate that the proposed algorithm is robust in avoiding deadlock and generates feasible solutions for the instances where the other two approaches cannot. Furthermore, significant improvement in the solution quality is achieved by augmenting the algorithm to a re-starting heuristic.     

Energy efficient scheduling of parallel tasks on multiprocessor computers

In this paper, scheduling parallel tasks on multiprocessor computers with dynamically variable voltage and speed are addressed as combinatorial optimization problems. Two problems are defined, namely, minimizing schedule length with energy consumption constraint and minimizing energy consumption with schedule length constraint. The first problem has applications in general multiprocessor and multicore processor computing systems where energy consumption is an important concern and in mobile computers where energy conservation is a main concern. The second problem has applications in real-time multiprocessing systems and environments where timing constraint is a major requirement. Our scheduling problems are defined such that the energy-delay product is optimized by fixing one factor and minimizing the other. It is noticed that power-aware scheduling of parallel tasks has rarely been discussed before. Our investigation in this paper makes some initial attempt to energy-efficient scheduling of parallel tasks on multiprocessor computers with dynamic voltage and speed. Our scheduling problems contain three nontrivial subproblems, namely, system partitioning, task scheduling, and power supplying. Each subproblem should be solved efficiently, so that heuristic algorithms with overall good performance can be developed. The above decomposition of our optimization problems into three subproblems makes design and analysis of heuristic algorithms tractable. A unique feature of our work is to compare the performance of our algorithms with optimal solutions analytically and validate our results experimentally, not to compare the performance of heuristic algorithms among themselves only experimentally. The harmonic system partitioning and processor allocation scheme is used, which divides a multiprocessor computer into clusters of equal sizes and schedules tasks of similar sizes together to increase processor utilization. A three-level energy/time/power allocation scheme is adopted for a given schedule, such that the schedule length is minimized by consuming given amount of energy or the energy consumed is minimized without missing a given deadline. The performance of our heuristic algorithms is analyzed, and accurate performance bounds are derived. Simulation data which validate our analytical results are also presented. It is found that our analytical results provide very accurate estimation of the expected normalized schedule length and the expected normalized energy consumption and that our heuristic algorithms are able to produce solutions very close to optimum.     

Power and performance management for parallel computations in clouds and data centers

We address scheduling independent and precedence constrained parallel tasks on multiple homogeneous processors in a data center with dynamically variable voltage and speed as combinatorial optimization problems. We consider the problem of minimizing schedule length with energy consumption constraint and the problem of minimizing energy consumption with schedule length constraint on multiple processors. Our approach is to use level-by-level scheduling algorithms to deal with precedence constraints. We use a simple system partitioning and processor allocation scheme, which always schedules as many parallel tasks as possible for simultaneous execution. We use two heuristic algorithms for scheduling independent parallel tasks in the same level, i.e., SIMPLE and GREEDY. We adopt a two-level energy/time/power allocation scheme, namely, optimal energy/time allocation among levels of tasks and equal power supply to tasks in the same level. Our approach results in significant performance improvement compared with previous algorithms in scheduling independent and precedence constrained parallel tasks.     

A scheduling algorithm based on the singular value decomposition heuristic method in a distributed manufacturing system

Because distributed manufacturing technology is the foundation of modernized production and traditional heuristic methods exhibit problems of high complexity and low efficiency, this paper designs a scheduling algorithm based on the singular value decomposition heuristic (SVDH) method. The algorithm uses the device distribution and the transportation relationship between devices in a distributed manufacturing system. The algorithm takes the sequence relationship between tasks and the distance between devices as the implicit relationship between the task and the device. The algorithm makes use of the implicit relationship to amend the processing time matrix of the task and corrects the processing time matrix that contains the transportation relationship. Singular value decomposition principal component analysis is performed on the corrected processing time to find the most suitable processing device for each process, and an initial solution matrix is established. The heuristic solution is used to optimize the initial solution to find the optimal scheduling result based on the initial solution matrix. The establishment of the initial solution can effectively reduce the computational complexity of the heuristic solution, realize a parallelizing solution, and improve the efficiency of the heuristic solutions. In addition, the SVDH scheduling result has a lower transfer time between devices due to the consideration of the topology of tasks and devices, that is, the transit time. In this paper, the experiments are conducted on the heuristic performance, scheduling results, and transportation time. The experimental results show the advantages of SVDH over general heuristic algorithms in terms of efficiency and transit time.     

A pre-run-time scheduling algorithm for object-based distributed real-time systems

The most important goal in hard real-time systems is to guarantee that all timing constraints are satisfied. Even though object-based techniques (which contain reusable software components) are used to manage the complexity in the software development process of such systems, execution efficiency may have to be sacrificed, due to the large number of procedure calls and contention for accessing software components. These issues are addressed by the following parallelizing techniques: (a) converting potentially inefficient procedure calls to a source of concurrency via asynchronous remote procedure calls (ARPC) (b) replicating (or cloning) software components to reduce the contention. The existing object-based scheduling algorithms construct an initial schedule and apply incremental parallelization techniques to modify the initial schedule till a feasible schedule is generated. But these algorithms are applicable for scheduling only multiple independent tasks. This paper describes a pre-run-time scheduling algorithm for a set of periodic object-based tasks having precedence constraints among them. The algorithm allocates the components of object-based periodic real-time tasks to the sites of a distributed system based on a clustering heuristic which takes into account the ARPC parallelism and load balancing, and schedules them on respective sites. The algorithm also finds a schedule for communication channel(s). Further, it clones the components of object-based periodic tasks, if contention occurs in accessing them. In addition to the above (periodicity and precedence) constraints, the tasks handled by our algorithm can have resource constraints among them. The experimental evaluation of the algorithm shows that the combination of the proposed clustering heuristic and cloning enhances schedulability.     

基于多环面向对象着色Petri网的装配调度研究

采用多环面向对象着色Ｐｅｔｒｉ网（ＴＯＯＣＰＮＭ）同启发式算法相结合的方法，研究装配系统的调度问题。先用ＴＯＯＣＰＮＭ来表述系统的调度问题，然后生成并搜索网的部分可达图，以变迁发生顺序的方式给出一个最优或次优的可行调度。由于给出的是一个可行的调度，系统潜在的死锁可以自然得到避免，因此对模型或系统的活性分析可以省略。     

Performance Analysis of Power-Aware Task Scheduling Algorithms on Multiprocessor Computers with Dynamic Voltage and Speed

Task scheduling on multiprocessor computers with dynamically variable voltage and speed is investigated as combinatorial optimization problems, namely, the problem of minimizing schedule length with energy consumption constraint and the problem of minimizing energy consumption with schedule length constraint. The first problem has applications in general multiprocessor computing systems where energy consumption is an important concern and in mobile computers where energy conservation is a main concern. The second problem has applications in real-time multiprocessing systems where timing constraint is a major requirement. These problems emphasize the tradeoff between power and performance and are defined such that the power-performance product is optimized by fixing one factor and minimizing the other. It is found that both problems are equivalent to the sum of powers problem and can be decomposed into two subproblems, namely, scheduling tasks and determining power supplies. Such decomposition makes design and analysis of heuristic algorithms tractable. We analyze the performance of list scheduling algorithms and equal-speed algorithms and prove that these algorithms are asymptotically optimal. Our extensive simulation data validate our analytical results and provide deeper insight into the performance of our heuristic algorithms.     

Minimizing accumulative memory load cost on multi-core DSPs with multi-level memory

In multi-core Digital Signal Processing (DSP) Systems, the processor-memory gap remains the primary obstacle in improving system performance. This paper addresses this bottleneck by combining task scheduling and memory accesses so that the system architecture and memory modules of a multi-core DSP can be utilized as efficiently as possible. To improve the system and memory utilization, the key is to take advantage of locality as much as possible and integrate it into task scheduling. Two algorithms are proposed to optimize memory accesses while scheduling tasks with timing and resource constraints. The first one uses Integer Linear Programming (ILP) to produce a schedule with the most efficient memory access sequence while satisfying the constraints. The second one is a heuristic algorithm which can produce a near optimal schedule with polynomial running time. The experimental results show that the memory access cost can be reduced up to 60% while the schedule length is also shortened.     

Performance of local search heuristics on scheduling a class of pipelined multiprocessor tasks

This paper presents the evaluation of the solution quality of heuristic algorithms developed for scheduling multiprocessor tasks for a class of multiprocessor architectures designed to exploit temporal and spatial parallelism simultaneously. More specifically, we deal with multi-level or partitionable architectures where MIMD parallelism and multiprogramming support are the two main characteristics of the system. We investigate scheduling a number of pipelined multiprocessor tasks with arbitrary processing times and arbitrary processor requirements in this system. The scheduling problem consists of two interrelated sub-problems, which are finding a sequence of pipelined multiprocessor tasks on a processor and finding a proper mapping of tasks to the processors that are already being sequenced. For the solution of the second problem, various techniques are available. However, the problem remains of generating a feasible sequence for the pipelined operations. We employed three well-known local search heuristic algorithms that are known to be robust methods applicable to various optimization problems. These are Simulated Annealing, Tabu Search, and Genetic Algorithms. We then conduct computational experiments and evaluate the reduction achieved in completion time by each heuristic. We have also compared the results with well-known simple list-based heuristics.     

A genetic algorithm for multiprocessor scheduling

The problem of multiprocessor scheduling can be stated as finding a schedule for a general task graph to be executed on a multiprocessor system so that the schedule length can be minimized. This scheduling problem is known to be NP-hard, and methods based on heuristic search have been proposed to obtain optimal and suboptimal solutions. Genetic algorithms have recently received much attention as a class of robust stochastic search algorithms for various optimization problems. In this paper, an efficient method based on genetic algorithms is developed to solve the multiprocessor scheduling problem. The representation of the search node is based on the order of the tasks being executed in each individual processor. The genetic operator proposed is based on the precedence relations between the tasks in the task graph. Simulation results comparing the proposed genetic algorithm, the list scheduling algorithm, and the optimal schedule using random task graphs, and a robot inverse dynamics computational task graph are presented     

软件容错模型中的容错实时调度算法

在软件容错模型的容错实时调度算法中,主部分可执行性的预测精度是影响调度算法性能的关键.针对此问题提出了DPA(deep-prediction based algorithm)和EDPA(EDF-based DPA)算法.算法考虑当前时间至替代部分通知时间之间的任务执行情况,通过构建预测表对待执行主部分的可执行性进行精确预测.当主部分不发生错误时算法根据预测表调度任务. DPA依照预测表中通知时间的先后顺序调度主部分,而EDPA则按照EDF算法调度预测表中的主部分.模拟结果表明,DPA和EDPA较目前同类算法可获得更多的主部分执行时间,降低CPU的消耗.当软件错误率较低、任务周期较短时,算法能够以较小的调度开销获得较高的调度性能.     

一种面向同构集群系统的并行任务节能调度优化方法

节能调度算法设计是高性能计算领域中的一个研究热点.复制调度算法能够减少后继任务等待延时,缩短任务总体调度时间,但是耗费了更多的能量.为此,作者提出一种启发式处理器合并优化方法 PRO.该方法按照任务最早开始时间和最早结束时间查找处理器时间空隙,将轻负载处理器上的任务重新分配到其它处理器上,从而减少使用的处理器数目,降低系统总体能耗.实验结果表明,和已有的复制任务调度算法TDS、EAD和PEBD相比,优化后的调度算法在不增加调度时间的条件下,能够明显减少使用的处理器数和系统总体能耗,从而更好地实现性能和能耗之间的平衡.     

Optimizing layer‐based scheduling algorithms for parallel tasks with dependencies

Programming with parallel tasks leads to task graphs with dependencies representing a parallel program. Scheduling algorithms are employed to find an efficient execution order of the parallel tasks. A large variety of scheduling algorithms exist, including layer‐based scheduling algorithms for homogeneous target platforms that build consecutive layers of independent parallel tasks and schedule each layer separately. Although these scheduling algorithms provide good results in terms of scheduling algorithm runtime and schedule execution time, the resulting schedules leave room for optimization. This article proposes an optimization for arbitrary layer‐based scheduling algorithms, which is called Move‐blocks algorithm. Given a layer‐based schedule of the parallel tasks, this algorithm moves blocks of parallel tasks into preceding layers in order to reduce the overall execution time of a task‐based application. Suitable blocks of parallel tasks are identified by the algorithm Find‐blocks, which is employed together with the Move‐blocks algorithm. The algorithm Move‐blocks is applied to four well‐known scheduling algorithms. A detailed evaluation for a wide range of test cases is given. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Scheduling image processing tasks in a multilayer system

Multilayer multiprocessor systems are generally employed in real-time applications such as robotics and computer vision. This paper introduces three heuristic algorithms for multiprocessor task scheduling in such systems. In our model, tasks with arbitrary processing times and arbitrary processor requirements are considered. The scheduling aims at minimising completion time of processes in a two-layer system. We employed an effective lower bound (LB) for the problem. Then, we analysed the average performance of the heuristic algorithms by computing the average percentage deviation of each heuristic solution from the LB on a set of randomly generated problems. We have also applied these algorithms for scheduling computer vision tasks running on prototype multilayer architecture. Our computational and empirical results showed that the proposed heuristic algorithms perform well.     

An Effective Cloud Workflow Scheduling Approach Combining PSO and Idle Time Slot-Aware Rules

Workflow scheduling is a key issue and remains a challenging problem in cloud computing.Faced with the large number of virtual machine(VM)types offered by cloud providers,cloud users need to choose the most appropriate VM type for each task.Multiple task scheduling sequences exist in a workflow application.Different task scheduling sequences have a significant impact on the scheduling performance.It is not easy to determine the most appropriate set of VM types for tasks and the best task scheduling sequence.Besides,the idle time slots on VM instances should be used fully to increase resources'utilization and save the execution cost of a workflow.This paper considers these three aspects simultaneously and proposes a cloud workflow scheduling approach which combines particle swarm optimization(PSO)and idle time slot-aware rules,to minimize the execution cost of a workflow application under a deadline constraint.A new particle encoding is devised to represent the VM type required by each task and the scheduling sequence of tasks.An idle time slot-aware decoding procedure is proposed to decode a particle into a scheduling solution.To handle tasks'invalid priorities caused by the randomness of PSO,a repair method is used to repair those priorities to produce valid task scheduling sequences.The proposed approach is compared with state-of-the-art cloud workflow scheduling algorithms.Experiments show that the proposed approach outperforms the comparative algorithms in terms of both of the execution cost and the success rate in meeting the deadline.     

云计算环境下带安全约束的工作流调度问题的研究

资源调度问题一直是云计算环境下的热点研究问题,然而当前的大部分研究都集中在满足用户的时间或成本需求上,很少考虑用户在调度过程中对安全的需求。针对这一问题,在对常见的云环境下工作流任务的资源调度问题进行建模的基础上,提出了一个安全约束模型,并使用变近邻粒子群算法对该问题进行了求解。最后在CloudSim仿真平台上,用最大 最小蚁群算法和遗传算法与该算法进行了对比,实验结果表明,该算法具有很好的可用性和寻优能力。关键词：     

基于异构分布式系统的实时容错调度算法

目前文献中研究的实时容错调度算法都是基于同构分布式系统，系统中的所有处理机完全相同。该文首先建立了一个基于异构分布式系统实时容错调度模型，异构分布式系统中的各个处理机均不相同。基于该异构分布式系统模型，该文引入了可靠性代价（reliability cost）概念，并提出两种静态实时容错调度算法（RTFTNO和RTFTRC）用于调度周期性实时容错任务。算法RTFTRC在调度任务时，尽量使系统的可靠性代价最小；而算法RTFTNO在调度实时任务时，没有考虑系统的可靠性代价。该文详细讨论了两种调度算法的性能。性能模拟实验分别比较了两个算法的可靠性代价，超时比率和可调度性；并研究了任务的计算时间与可靠性代价的关系以及调度长度阈值与最小处理机个数的关系。实验结果表明，算法RTFTRC的性能优于算法RTFTNO。     

A constraint satisfaction neural network and heuristic combined approach for concurrent activities scheduling

Scheduling activities in concurrent product development process is of great sig-nificance to shorten developements lead time and minimize the cost.Moreover,it can eliminate the unnecessary redesign periods and guarantee that serial activities can be executed as concurrently as possible,This paper presents a constraint satisfaction neural network and heuristic combined approach for concurrent activities scheduling.In the combined approack,the neural network is used to obtain a feasible starting time of all the activities based on sequence constraints ,the heuristic algorithm is used to obtain a feasible solution of the scheduling problem based on resource constrainsts.The feasible scheduling solution is obtained by a gradient optimization function .Sim-ulations have shown that the proposed combined approach is efficient and fasible with respect to concurrent activities scheduling.     

A Constraint Satisfaction Neural Network and Heuristic Combined Approach for Concurrent Activities Scheduling

Scheduling activities in concurrent product development process is of great significance to shorten development lead time and minimize the cost. Moreover, it can eliminate the unnecessary redesign periods and guarantee that serial activities can be executed as concurrently as possible. This paper presents a constraint satisfaction neural network and heuristic combined approach for concurrent activities scheduling. In the combined approach, the neural network is used to obtain a feasible starting time of all the activities based on sequence constraints, the heuristic algorithm is used to obtain a feasible solution of the scheduling problem based on resource constraints. The feasible scheduling solution is obtained by a gradient optimization function. Simulations have shown that the proposed combined approach is efficient and feasible with respect to concurrent activities scheduling.