Partitioning bin-packing algorithms for distributed real-time systems

In this paper, we study extensions to bin packing algorithms to pack software modules into processors in real-time systems. We refer to this approach as Partitioning Bin-Packing. In this study, we analytically show that with partitioning bin-packing techniques the number of bins required by traditional bin packing can be reduced. We also evaluate heuristics to minimise both the number of processors (bins) needed and the network bandwidth required by communicating software modules that are partitioned across different processors. We find that a significant reduction in the number of bins is possible. Finally, different heuristics lead to different tradeoffs in processing vs. network needs.