Overview

Coverage-Observer is a component in the cross-level processor verification approach described in Cross-Level Processor Verification via Endless Randomized Instruction Stream Generation with Coverage-guided Aging. The approach generates endless unrestricted instruction streams, co-simulates an RTL core with an Instruction Set Simulator (ISS), and continuously updates coverage information based on the ISS execution state.

Within this setup, the Coverage-Observer monitors executed instructions at runtime. It samples the executed instructions and looks up the matching coverage points. The paper describes it as the "heart" of the coverage-aging extension because it connects runtime coverage observation to the generation guidance mechanism.