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Flight Simulation: A Case Study in An Architecture For "Integrability"

This document summarizes an architectural solution for flight simulation software. The architecture achieves real-time performance through an executive that handles time management with periodic scheduling and event handling. It achieves integrability by restricting inputs and outputs between partitions and having all data pass through subsystem controllers. The architecture also supports modifiability by using a small number of base module configurations.

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52 views

Flight Simulation: A Case Study in An Architecture For "Integrability"

This document summarizes an architectural solution for flight simulation software. The architecture achieves real-time performance through an executive that handles time management with periodic scheduling and event handling. It achieves integrability by restricting inputs and outputs between partitions and having all data pass through subsystem controllers. The architecture also supports modifiability by using a small number of base module configurations.

Uploaded by

IT SOLUTION PROVIDER
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
Available Formats
Download as PPT, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
You are on page 1/ 16

Flight Simulation

A Case Study in an
Architecture for
“Integrability”

Slide 1
Coming Up
• Today…
– Term paper - Intro
“How to clean the Gherkin”
– Ch 08 – Flight Simulation – this 
• Intro – see for example YouTube vids:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JGyJ
qXJWkuY
.
• Thursday
– Present outcomes for Project 2
– Turn in Thurs night (and HW 3 -
Yikes!)

Slide 2
Overview
• Structural Model
– Minimize modules
• N-Square charts
• Requirements and
Qualities
– Three roles
– Lots of constraints
• Architectural Solution
– Treatment of time (real-
time)

Slide 3
Pattern - Structural Model
• Simplicity and similarity of the system’s
substructures
• Decoupling of data- and control-passing
strategies from computation
• Minimizing module types
• A small number of system-wide
coordination strategies
• Transparency of design
Slide 4
Structural Model

Slide 5
Roles
• The Crew
– The people being trained “Maybe that one’s
not one of ours?
• The Simulator Instructor
– Monitors crew performance
– Initiates training situations
• The Environment
– Atmosphere, threats, Modern simulator
weapons, other aircraft from the outside.

Slide 6
Requirements and Qualities
• Real-time performance
constraints
• Continuous development
and modification
– Maintains “verisimilitude” =
realism, as the airplanes
changed specs
• Large size and high
complexity
• Developed in
geographically distributed
areas

Slide 7
Problems
• Expensive to debug, test, and modify
– Increased cost of integration
• Unclear mapping between software
structure and aircraft structure
– Many coupling effects to be considered
• E.g., pilot moves the rudder and aileron controls,
which move the control surfaces, which affects the
aerodynamics and causes the aircraft to turn.
– Performance “fidelity” is # 1 goal

Slide 8
Architectural Solution
Treatment of Time
• Periodic time management
– A fixed time quantum based on frame rate
– Non-preemptive cycle scheduling –
invokes each process for a
fixed time quantum
• Event-based time management
– “Interrupt” based
– Adds new events into event queue
– Does in order of soonest needed
• But all messages from a single source must be done in order!
• Mixed-time systems
– The two above systems must interact

Slide 9
Architectural Solution, cntd
Structural Model Architectural Pattern
• Executive
– Handles the coordination issues
• Application
– Handles computation of the simulation
– Functions are implemented by subsystems

Slide 10
Modules
• Executive
– Timeline Synchronizer
– Periodic Sequencer
– Event handler
– Surrogate
• Connects air vehicle model to environment model
• Application
– Subsystem controller
– Controller children
Slide 11
Allocation of Functionality
to controller children
Based on OO modeling of the “objects” of
the real airplane:
• Kinetics – the physics
• Aircraft systems – distribution of energy
within the airframe
• Avionics – ancillary support
• Environment

Slide 12
Decomposition
• n-Square Charts
– What “Partition 2” communicates with…

Partition 1 Inputs

Outputs Partition 2 Outputs

Partition 3
Inputs

Slide 13
Air Vehicle Model Domain
• An example…

Vehicle State Vehicle


Kinetics Group Loads
Vector Position

Aircraft
Power Power
Systems Group

Ownship
Inertial State Loads Avionics Group
Emissions

Atmosphere,
Environment Environment
Terrain, and
Emitter Data Group
Weather

Slide 14
Summary
How the architecture achieves…
• Performance
– Executive with time budgets, and
– Periodic scheduling strategy
• Integrability
– All data and control pass through a subsystem controller as
an intermediary
– Each partition was restricted in inputs and outputs
• Modifiability
– Few base module configurations for the designer and
maintainer to understand

Slide 15
Questions?

Slide 16

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