‘1st complete model-driven solution’ aids safety-critical embedded software development

By Control Engineering Staff March 9, 2006

A strategic partnership recently announced by Green Hills Software Inc . (GHS) and Esterel Technologies of France has resulted in what the companies call the “first complete Model-Driven Solution” for safety-critical embedded software code generation and product development. The integrated solution—or model-driven development (MDD)—reportedly addresses critical phases of development, unifying several elements: DO-178B Level A and IEC 61508 SIL3 compliant modeling, code generation, verified compilers, and real-time operating system (RTOS).

Under the agreement, Esterel Technologies’ Scade Qualified Code Generator (KCG) will produce code that’s automatically integrated with Green Hills Software’s Integrity RTOS, which has DO-178B Level A and IEC 61508 certification. (DO-178B is a Civil Avionics standard.) Moreover, GHS compilers will be pre-qualified through Scade’s Compiler Verification Kit (CVK)—said to ensure that code makes its way quickly and cost-effectively to certification. Integrating Scade KCG and CVK with Green Hills Software’s Integrity RTOS and C/C++/Ada compilers will enable seamless workflow between modeling and implementation, explains GHS. The two companies also intend to collaborate on future integrated features and capabilities; for example, integration of Scade’s built-in simulator with Multi IDE (integrated development environment).

Combining Esterel Technologies’ Scade code-generation tool with Green Hills’ Integrity RTOS and compilers results in an integrated solution that handles all phases of safety-critical embedded system development.

The integrated solution developed by the two companies promises a better approach than traditional methods of software designers/developers that use separate environments for application software modeling (often paper-based) and for implementation to target, explains GHS. “Scade provides the most comprehensive Model-Driven Development solution available for the safety-critical embedded markets today,” says Dan O’Dowd, founder and CEO of Green Hills Software. “The combination of Scade with our Multi IDE development solution, royalty-free operating systems, and target middleware gives our customers a comprehensive and safe solution for optimizing time-to-market, time-to-certification, and total reliability of safety-critical embedded systems.”

Eric Bantegnie, president and CEO of Esterel Technologies, adds, ”Green Hills Software offers the industry’s most complete and best technology RTOS and IDE solutions. Combined with our market-leading Scade safety-critical application development environment, our two companies provide a truly synergistic solution. This not only benefits our mutual customers, but also reduces overall cost of development and certifications of DO-178B up to Level A and IEC 61508 SIL3 embedded systems.”

Scade KCG and CVK integration with Integrity and Green Hills Software compilers will be available in July 2006.

—Frank J. Bartos, executive editor, Control Engineering fbartos@reedbusiness.com