Semantics Club 08 06 2001
Hybrid Systems (HS) incorporate both discrete and continuous dynamics; different models of HS, including clocked automata, are extensively investigated in the literature. The continuous aspects of these models may require incursions into Calculus (say into differential equations) which have little (if anything) in common with existing, well understood tools of Automata Theory and Logic. We consider two orthogonal extensions of the basic finite automaton paradigm and clarify to what degree and in what form do they preserve fundamental facts from the theory of finite automata. Hopefully, this approach facilitates a lucid adaptation of Automata Theory to Hybrid Systems.