Tempus: A Real - Time Measurement Project

Throughput has been an issue for embedded and stand-alone real-time systems for many years. Systems rarely exhibit the performance necessary for successful operation in the field without significant rework to reduce time requirements after the initial software development. SPS proposes Project Tempus to develop a software measure that predicts the performance of a real-time system early in its development via direct and indirect means. Tempus will examine the source code itself (and the software design or architecture, given an appropriate model) and make scientifically-based measurements that will correlate with the software's real-time performance. Key innovations of our approach include: (1) uniquely defined prime flowgraph and decomposition trees which represent real-time software unit or system structure; (2) a hierarchical software measure that captures the essence of real-time software performance; (3) extension of the measure using information about the operational profile of the software system; and (4) performing a double blind experiment to validate the measure. Project Tempus has the best prospects for advancing the state-of-the- art in real-time software performance measurement because it is based on fundamental measurement principles and takes a scientific approach to building on existing technology.