Real-time embedded communications solution for aerospace market

Citation

(2006), "Real-time embedded communications solution for aerospace market", Aircraft Engineering and Aerospace Technology, Vol. 78 No. 6. https://doi.org/10.1108/aeat.2006.12778fab.008

Real-time embedded communications solution for aerospace market

Real-time embedded communications solution for aerospace market

Keywords: Aerospace industry, Aircraft components

LynuxWork Inc. announces that its LynxOS-178 real-time operating system (RTOS) product now claims complete integration with Objective Interface Systems' ORBexpress RT, the commercial-off-the-shelf tools (COTS) Object Request Broker (ORB) for safety-critical military and aerospace systems. ORBexpress RT is a real-time Common Object Request Broker Architecture (CORBA) ORB that enables software developers to simplify the development of distributed software applications, build scalable, efficient and robust applications, and reduce overall development time, meeting time-to-market requirements. The combination of the LynxOS-178 RTOS with ORBexpress RT communications middleware is said to deliver a well-engineered foundation, enabling developers to deliver hard real- time performance in a small-footprint application with full code reusability across diverse systems.

ORBexpress RT from Objective Interface is believed to be the first off- the-shelf CORBA implementation to be ported to a DO-178B Level A RTOS. DO-178B Level A is the highest level of safety-critical certification for commercial avionics. Software certified to DO-178B Level A is used in systems where any failure of the software would result in a catastrophic failure condition of the aircraft. LynxOS-178 meets and exceeds this highest level of certification.

“Part of our continued strategy is to partner with innovative and forward- thinking companies such as Objective Interface who, like LynuxWorks, are committed to open standards,” said Joe Wlad, Director of Product Management and FAA DER for LynuxWorks. “With Objective Interface, we are deepening our reach into growth aerospace and defence submarkets such as Software Defined Radios, Network Centric applications and Multiple Independent Levels of Security (MILS). ORBexpress is fast, lean and predictable, making it ideal for use with LynxOS-178. Our companies' strong reputations for having well- engineered solutions combined with a product that provides reusability and flexibility makes this partnership a great victory for our collective customers.”

“The combination of our products will deliver a solid foundation for developers to build upon,” said Joseph Jacob, senior Vice President, sales and marketing at Objective Interface. “The safety-critical market is growing due to increased awareness that software should not just be small and fast, but should also perform exactly to its specifications. Our customers have been asking for an easy-to-deploy DO- 178B solution for a variety of safety critical designs. Through our collaboration with LynuxWorks, we can now meet that demand.”

ORBexpress RT conforms to the Real-time CORBA standard that enables real-time and embedded devices in heterogeneous environments to communicate seamlessly. Available in Cþþ Ada and Java, ORBexpress has been recognised as the fastest ORB in the industry in a variety of independent studies.

Based upon open standards, LynuxWorks' LynxOS-178 RTOS is the first hard real-time operating system certifiable to DO-178B Level A with support for both POSIX and ARINC 653. The LynxOS-178 solution also delivers a full set of standards-based tools, full customer service support, including DO-178B consulting services and an artefacts package. In March 2006, LynxOS-178 became the first and only embedded operating system vendor to receive an Advisory Circular AC 20-148 acceptance letter from the FAA. This makes LynxOS-178 the first RTOS to be certified as a “Reusable Software Component” (RSC) for flight safety- critical systems. With RSC approval, embedded systems integrators and developers can reuse the operating system portion of the safety-critical software code in future system designs without the need for full recertification which saves developers a huge amount of time and millions of dollars.

Details available from: LynuxWorks, Inc., Tel: +1 408 979 4404, E-mail: klong@lnxw.com, web site: www.lynuxworks.com