Real-Time Ada Demonstration Project
Abstract
The Ada programming language has been available to software developers for several years, yet its acceptance into the real-time embedded applications for which it was developed has been less than universal. Although many software engineers were quick to embrace the language, they soon realized that the ability to assert control over the hardware was greatly restricted with the available Ada compiler implementations. The result was a disappointment, and often project delays were due specifically to the use of Ada on the project. Performance of initial compilers (and even many contemporary compilers) was far below that achievable from alternative languages. In the heat of battle associated with hardware/software integration, sufficient time was not available to work out the problems with the compilers, and often cumbersome work-arounds were implemented. The impact of these initial costly experiences has served to retard the adoption of Ada for real-time embedded applications, although its use in other applications has exceeded most expectations. The purpose of this project was to address the difficulties in real-time Ada programming from Ada technology perspective, and to provide accurate details on some of the perceived problems with Ada. The project involves the development of a typical weapon system application with severe performance requirements.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- May 31, 1989
- Accession Number
- ADA223155