Innovative Operating Software

Proposed herein is a collaborative engineering environment based on an object-oriented, web-enabled, multidisciplinary, distributed computing framework supporting application development for integrated product and process engineering. It supportsspecification of software elements through UML diagrams and detailed graphical composition of object hierarchies and process schematics for comprehensive application development. It provides a visual environment supporting object-oriented applicationdevelopment, user interface customization, legacy tool integration, and knowledgebase population. Legacy software tools can be updated into object structures and associated with newly defined objects for composing and developing large scale applications.It facilitates distributed object computing enabling the interoperability among distributed applications on a network of heterogeneous computers. It supports concurrent engineering through a web-enabled environment linking multiple users collaborating inreal-time in the engineering process. Classes, models, and process structures can be organized within knowledgebases providing support for application development. Model patterns can be organized in knowledgebases providing the foundation for knowledgemanagement and information processing for design exploration and trade studies. It provides a comprehensive visual environment for software engineering and development, and incorporates utilities for packaging and deployment of multidisciplinaryapplications. Ultimately, it reduces the time and cost of custom application development and maintenance from concept to deployment. The development of the proposed architecture will result in an open, visual and modular collaborative engineeringframework with an underlying object-oriented architecture. The framework employs a unique and innovative approach to product and process application engineering, development, deployment, and maintenance. It will provide maximum interoperability amongapplication programs.The proposed framework's web-enabled modeling environment will facilitate real-time collaboration among participants, from various disciplines, both within and outside of an organization and including various suppliers and consultants, all of whom willhave the opportunity to engage and draw on each other's expertise.The successful development of this framework will reduce application software development time and cost, enabling quick response to the fast-paced development of new engineering systems. The defense industry will benefit from the framework in thedevelopment of custom applications from concept to the validation stages, capitalizing on investment in legacy tools while adopting new methods for updating and development of new applications. The framework will also have a great impact on the variousapplications in the design-to-production automation of complex systems in the automotive and aerospace industries, as well as major equipment manufacturing. After a successful Phase II project TechnoSoft will productize the proposed framework and marketit as a part of its product offering. The payoff for the US industry will be substantial resulting from rapid-to-market software deployment and reduced life-cycle cost. Together with its current customers TechnoSoft will deploy the framework in theengineering of the DoD applications.