A Software Framework for Component-Based Embedded Applications

The widespread use of embedded systems mandates the development of industrial software design methods, i.e. computer-aided design and engineering of embedded applications using formal models (frameworks) and repositories of prefabricated components, much in the same way as in other mature areas of engineering such as mechanical engineering and electronics. These guidelines have been used to develop the COMDES framework and the associated software design method, which are presented in the paper. The framework has been used to systematically define a hierarchy of generic executable components, which can be used as standard building blocks for a broad variety of embedded applications. 1

Generative Programming for a Component-based Framework of Distributed Embedded Systems

Abstract. COMDES-II is a component-based software framework which formally specifies the modeling concepts and constraints for distributed embedded systems in different aspects, such as component structures, interaction, hierarchy, etc. The paper presents an overview of the design philosophies of COMDES-II in the related aspects and a generative programming approach developed to enable the engineering applicability of the framework. The dedicated generative programming approach involves the formal definition of COMDES-II modeling language by means of meta-models which are instrumented by a meta-modeling tool – Generic Modeling Environment (GME), and the development of a specific code generation technique using CodeWorker tool to implement the automatic synthesis of system codes from system models.

COMDES-II: A Component-Based Framework for Generative Development of Distributed Real-Time Control Systems

The paper presents a generative development methodology and component models of COMDES-II, a component-based software framework for distributed embedded control systems with real-time constraints. The adopted methodology allows for rapid modeling and validation of control software at a higher level of abstraction, from which a system implementation in C can be automatically synthesized. To achieve this objective, COMDES-II defines formally various kinds of components to address the critical requirements of the targeted domain, taking into consideration both the architectural and behavioral aspects of the system. Accordingly, a system can be hierarchically composed from reusable components with heterogeneous models of computation, whereas behavioral aspects of interest are specified independently, following the principle of separation-of-concerns. The paper introduces the established generative methodology for COMDES-II from a general perspective, describes the component models in details and demonstrates their application through a DC-Motor control system case study. 1

A Component-Based Framework for Distributed Control Systems

The paper presents a two-level software framework for distributed embedded applications. At the top level, an application is conceived as a composition of embedded actors that communicate transparently by exchanging labeled messages (signals), independent of their allocation onto network nodes. Signals are exchanged at precisely specified time instants, in accordance with the concept of Distributed Timed Multitasking (DTM). The combination of actors, signal-based communication and DTM provides a framework for the development of open yet predictable embedded systems. At the lower level of specification, actors are modeled as software objects that are configured from executable components- basic, composite and modal function blocks, as well as supervisory state machines. Actor behaviour is specified with a hybrid executable model- a clocked event-driven state machine operating in conjunction with modal function blocks, which can be used to implement a broad range of applications such as sequential, continuous and hybrid control systems. 1

ComponentBased Design of Embedded Software: an Analysis of Design Issues

Abstract. Widespread use of embedded systems mandates the use of industrial production methods featuring model-based design and repositories of prefabricated software components. The main problem that has to be addressed in this context is to systematically develop a software architecture (framework) for embedded applications, taking into account the true nature of embedded systems, which are predominantly real-time control and monitoring systems. There are a great number of design issues and unresolved problems with existing architectures, which have to be carefully analyzed in order to develop a viable component-based design method for embedded applications. Such an analysis is presented in this paper, which focuses on a number of key issues: specification of system structure; specification of system behaviour; component scheduling and execution; program generation vs. system configuration. The analysis has been used to formulate the guidelines used to develop COMDES – a software framework for distributed embedded applications.