Application of distributed, fault-tolerant Ada to multiprocessor, real-time, integrated avionics systems

Traditional avionics system approaches implement separate specialized hardware/software solutions to realize functionality of major sub-system components. Recent advances in Ada language system software provide additional distribution and fault tolerance capabilities supporting integrated, multiprocessor, real-time avionics system applications. These capabilities increase system functional availability and mission effectiveness in the presence of hardware faults and enhance software architecture control throughout the system´s life cycle. Distribution and fault tolerance characteristics are specified transparently to the application, thus allowing these characteristics to be easily reconfigured without change to the application source code and enhancing portability, scaleability, and reuse. Fault tolerance is achieved through replicated Ada language components and is specified parametrically, so only critical application functions require replication. Fault detection is performed only at application specified points, with fault diagnosis and recovery performed only when faults are detected