A component-based process with separation of concerns for the development of embedded real-time software systems

Numerous component models have been proposed in the literature, a testimony of a subject domain rich with technical and scientific challenges, and considerable potential. Unfortunately however, the reported level of adoption has been comparatively low. Where successes were had, they were largely facilitated by the manifest endorsement, where not the mandate, by relevant stakeholders, either internal to the industrial adopter or with authority over the application domain. The work presented in this paper stems from a comprehensive initiative taken by the European Space Agency (ESA) and its industrial suppliers. This initiative also enjoyed significant synergy with interests shown for similar goals by the telecommunications and railways domain, thanks to the interaction between two parallel project frameworks. The ESA effort aimed at favouring the adoption of a software reference architecture across its software supply chain. The center of that strategy revolves around a component model and the software development process that builds on it. This paper presents the rationale, the design and implementation choices made in their conception, as well as the feedback obtained from a number of industrial case studies that assessed them.