Domain specific middleware for Distributed Real-time and Embedded Systems

Domain-specific middleware services are tailored to the requirements of particular
DRE system domains, such as avionics mission computing, radar processing, online
financial trading, or distributed process control. Unlike the previous three middleware
layers—which provide broadly reusable “horizontal” mechanisms and services domain
specific middleware services are targeted at vertical markets. From both a COTS and
R&D perspective, domain-specific services are the least mature of the middleware
layers, due in part to the historical lack of distribution middleware and common
middleware service standards needed to provide a stable base upon which to create
domain-specific middleware services. Since they embody knowledge of a domain
however, domain-specific middleware services have the most potential to increase the
quality and decrease the cycle time and effort that integrators require to develop
particular classes of DRE systems.

An example of domain-specific middleware services R&D that is relevant for DRE
systems is the Boeing Bold Stroke architecture, which has been used as the open
experimentation platform on many DARPA ITO programs. Bold Stroke is an open
architecture for mission computing avionics capabilities, such as navigation, heads-up
display management, weapons targeting and release, and air frame sensor processing.
The domain specific middleware services in Bold Stroke are layered upon COTS
processors (PowerPC), network interconnects (VME), operating systems
(VxWorks), infrastructure middleware (ACE), distribution middleware (TAO), and
common middleware services (QuO and the CORBA Event Service).