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The project

TOPCASED consists of several sub-projects hosted on the servers of the elite French university ENSEEIHT (Ecole Nationale Supérieure d'Electrotechnique, d'Electronique, d'Informatique, d'Hydraulique et des Télécommunications). The project page provides an overview. Version 1.2.0 was released in December 2007.

TOPCASED: model driven system development
TOPCASED: model driven system development

The project currently focusses on modeling tools - this is quite in agreement with the concept of Model Driven Engineering, (MDE), where a model of the system to be developed controls the entire development process. Among the tools in progress are graphical editors for several modeling languages: for the Object Management Group's Unified Modeling Language (UML), the Ecore meta modeling language for Eclipse, the SysML Systems Modeling Language and for AADL (Architecture Analysis and Design Language), a language for describing system and software architectures for real-time systems. Further modeling approaches can easily be added. "However, we also intend to add simulators, model testing tools, tools for configuration, change and requirement management as well as code, test and documentation generators in the near future", adds Ladier.

Although the development of TOPCASED may still be in its early days (the project was officially only launched in August 2006), there has already been considerable activity. The TOPCASED-MM sub-project, which is currently the most active and is developing a meta modeling tool, presently lists almost 50 developers on its project page. It already offers a busy mailing list full of user discussions, active bug tracking and feature request systems as well as documentation.

TOPCASED is designed to cover the entire system development process
TOPCASED is designed to cover the entire system development process

TOPCASED uses the infrastructure of the Eclipse development platform. A co-operation with the Eclipse Modeling Project (EMP) – which publishes the Eclipse Modeling Framework (EMF) – has just been started, and Ladier is convinced this will give TOPCASED a boost: "These co-operations lower development cost and improve component life span", says the Airbus manager.

Individual sub-projects are mainly published under the Eclipse Public License 1.0 (EPL), a license with strict copyleft: Software developed on TOPCASED basis must also be published under EPL. "The license guarantees that the developed components and improvements remain Open Source, but it also allows the development of proprietary products which use these components", Ladier explains. Other licenses may also be used in the future, such as the GPL for improvements to GCC.

The "consortium model" of Open Source development, used by the TOPCASED project, offers several advantages to member enterprises and institutions. Members can contribute from an early stage to ensure that the developed tools comply with their requirements. Compared with in-house development this approach saves money, since development costs are spread across many members. Using the Open Source licensing model ensures that all contributors can use the code fairly. And what's especially important for a branch of industry which thinks in decades of product development: The businesses have complete control over their tools and don't depend on manufacturers' product politics.

These advantages should guarantee a steady supply of potential future consortium members - after all, the project's approach is quite comprehensive: "TOPCASED tools can be used for developing not just software, but also hardware and entire systems ... initially for aircraft, satellites and cars. We are, however, convinced that TOPCASED is useful for a much larger developer community, for example for the medical sector or in power plant control", explains Monsieur Ladier. (odi)

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