The design and use of a Prolog trace generator for CSP

The role of traces in the context of formal description techniques is discussed, as well as issues arising in the generation of these traces by means of software. A trace generator (written in Prolog) for systems described in terms of CSP is outlined, with emphasis on the translation from CSP to Prolog, the central implementation issues in a Prolog context, and techniques for generating all traces up to termination or recursion. Some experiences with the use of the generator are mentioned, and potential extensions for generating traces of LOTOS descriptions are mentioned