PhD position funded: Contribution to the design of domain specific languages for robotic applications

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LIP6, the Computer Science laboratory of the University of Paris 6, is
offering a PhD studenship in software engineering for robotics. The
student will take part in the PROTEUS (Platform for RObotic models
Transformations and Exchange between Users and Scientific communities)
project funded by ANR (french research agency) that will start on
December 2009 with various partners in France.

Candidates need to have a Master degree in computer science.
Candidates for this position should have a strong software engineering
background and be interested in robotics. Proficiency in written and
spoken English is required. Knowledge of French is useful but not
required.

We will find a description of the PROTEUS project here:
http://www.gdr-robotique.fr/archives_update/GT4/01_11_09/1256147659_PROTEUS=
ProposalARPEGE2009.pdf

You should send your application (CV+ motivation letter) and any
inquiry by email to Serge Stinckwich ([email protected]) and
Mikal Ziane ([email protected]).

Please find below a description of the Ph.D. subject in English and French.

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Ph. D. Thesis title: "Contribution to the design of domain specific
languages for robotic applications"

Domain-specific languages (DSLs) are emerging as a key component of
software engineering. A DSL is a modeling or programming language,
dedicated to a particular problem domain, through appropriate
notations and abstractions. They are often designed to express the
requirements and solutions of a particular domain and has many
benefits for developing software. The main purpose of Domain-Specific
Modeling languages (DSMLs) is to allow for domain users (that are not
programmers usually) to think in terms closer to the problem domain
when specifying their systems, by providing a way to model them at the
right abstraction level. DSL are already used in the context of
embedded systems and the interests for the robotic community is also
huge. Robotics system blends software/hardware in a very intrinsic way
with a lot of cross-cutting concerns (concurrency, uncertainty, time
constraints, ...). Adapting general purpose languages for such a
domain often leads to a poor =EF=AC=81t between the language features and t=
he
implementation requirements.

The main aim of PROTEUS project is the design and the implementation
of a software development environment for robotics applications. This
environment should provide several domain specific languages (DSL) in
order to specify the software architecture and the behavior of a
robotic system. This language will allow to specify robotic
applications without having to specify low-level details including the
details regarding the execution platform. This environment through
carefully defined transformations will translate this language into an
intermediate language.

-------
Titre de la th=C3=A8se : "Contribution =C3=A0 la conception de
langages de domaine (Domain Specific Language) pour la robotique"

Les langages de domaines (DSL) sont maintenant consid=C3=A9r=C3=A9s comme u=
ne
approche importante dans les bonnes pratiques de g=C3=A9nie logiciel. Un
langage de domaine est un langage de programmation ou de mod=C3=A9lisation,
d=C3=A9di=C3=A9 =C3=A0 un domaine sp=C3=A9cifique et qui utilisent pour cel=
a des notations
ou d'abstractions adapt=C3=A9es. Ils sont souvent con=C3=A7us pour exprimer=
 les
besoins et les solutions d'un domaine sp=C3=A9cifique et offrent de
nombreux b=C3=A9n=C3=A9fices pour le d=C3=A9veloppement de logiciel. Le pri=
ncipal
int=C3=A9r=C3=AAt des DSLs est qu'ils permettent =C3=A0 des utilisateurs d'=
un domaine
(qui ne sont g=C3=A9n=C3=A9ralement pas des d=C3=A9veloppeurs) de pouvoir p=
enser en
terme proche de leur domaine lorsqu'ils sp=C3=A9cifient leurs syst=C3=A8mes=
. Les
DSLs sont d=C3=A9j=C3=A0 utilis=C3=A9s dans le contexte des syst=C3=A8mes e=
mbarqu=C3=A9s et
leurs apports dans la communaut=C3=A9 robotique semblent =C3=A9galement
prometteurs. Les syst=C3=A8mes robotiques m=C3=A8lent =C3=A0 la fois des as=
pects
mat=C3=A9riels et logiciels avec de nombreuses pr=C3=A9occupations sp=C3=A9=
cifiques
(concurrence, incertitude, contraintes temporelles, ...). Adapter des
langages classiques =C3=A0 un tel domaine ne suffit pas et conduit
g=C3=A9n=C3=A9ralement =C3=A0 une mauvaise ad=C3=A9quation entre les caract=
=C3=A9ristiques du
langage et les besoins du domaine.

Le principal objectif du projet PROTEUS (Plate forme pour la Robotique
Organisant les Transferts Entre Utilisateurs et Scientifiques) est la
conception et l'impl=C3=A9mentation d'un environnement de d=C3=A9veloppemen=
t
pour la r=C3=A9alisation d'applications robotiques. Cet environnement
comprendra un ou plusieurs langage de domaine (domain-specific
language, DSL) permettant de sp=C3=A9cifier l=E2=80=99aspect architectural =
d=E2=80=99une
application robotique mais aussi son aspect comportemental d=C3=A9crivant
la partie contr=C3=B4le et communication. Ce langage devra permettre de
sp=C3=A9cifier une application robotique sans avoir =C3=A0 pr=C3=A9ciser le=
s d=C3=A9tails
de bas niveau et notamment les d=C3=A9tails qui d=C3=A9pendent de la platef=
orme
d=E2=80=99ex=C3=A9cution. L=E2=80=99environnement, gr=C3=A2ce =C3=A0 des tr=
ansformations
soigneusement d=C3=A9finies, traduira les programmes de ce langage vers un
langage interm=C3=A9diaire ind=C3=A9pendant de la plateforme.

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Best regards,

--
Serge Stinckwich
UMI UMMISCO 209 (IRD/UPMC), Hanoi, Vietnam
Smalltalkers do: [:it | All with: Class, (And love: it)]
http://doesnotunderstand.org/

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