Abstract
In this paper, we advocate the use of formal specification and verification in software development for high-integrity and safety-critical systems, where mechanical proof plays a central role. In particular, we emphasise the crucial importance of applying verification in the development of formal verification tools themselves. We believe this approach is very useful to increase the levels of confidence and integrity of tools that are built to find bugs based on formally specified models. This follows the trend set out by a UK grand challenge in computer research for verified software repository.
In this direction, we present our experiences on a case study on the development process of a refinement model checking tool for Circus, a concurrent refinement language that combines Z, CSP, guarded commands, and the refinement calculus, with the Unifying Theories of Programming of Hoare and He as the theoretical background.
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Freitas, L., Cavalcanti, A., Woodcock, J. (2006). Taking Our Own Medicine: Applying the Refinement Calculus to State-Rich Refinement Model Checking. In: Liu, Z., He, J. (eds) Formal Methods and Software Engineering. ICFEM 2006. Lecture Notes in Computer Science, vol 4260. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/11901433_38
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/11901433_38
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