Re: First draft of "OROCOS II" proposal...

[email protected] writes:
| As promised on several occasions in the past, here is the first draft
| of what could possibly become a EU funded free software project in
| "control". Comments are very welcome, but please don't send private
| emails: use the mailinglists :-)

With  a bit of delay, and   after having read all   comments, we feel the
draft   proposal  should   tackle  a    sufficiently    large field    of
application. We think that the proposal should address the integration of
complete systems with a   wide range of   functionalities.  I think  that
Henrik's comments go in  that direction too.  I   know that the  call for
proposal doesn't mention robotics at all, so I understand that you're not
emphasizing this aspect,  but I think  it  should be present  at least as
a potential application.

Nevertheless, the work in  orocos-I was interesting  from many points  of
view. The results are still far from what we had in mind in the beginning
of the  project,  and thus we are   very much in  favor   of pursuing and
extending this work.

Also, we would be more interrested in a project in the 'embedded systems'
call,  since it  looks   like it's  more   easy to   show robotic  as  an
application than for 'open platforms'.  We would best see this project as
a NoE or a STREP.  We don't want to propose an IP as it seems too hard to
define right now.

Our domain of interest would be more or less the same as in Orocos-I, but
hopefully more precisely  defined -- and  more general  -- thanks to  the
work already done. Here is a list of raw items:


1. Component Architecture Design

 - decoupling between algorithms, execution and interface (data and
   operations), independant of the programming language and the operating
   system. Architecture definition.

 - specification of a formal description language.


2. Integration tools / frameworks

Develop tools and frameworks for implementation of the previously
specified components.

 - execution engine implementation
    (there should be at least two: real-time and not real-time)

 - communication patterns (between components)
    (CORBA, XML-RPC) × ( {a,}synchronous, RT, ...)


3. Task specification, execution control 

 - application definition
     (control flow, data flow, synchronization, ...)
 - logical and/or temporal validation


4. Instantiated components

 - generic functions like feedback control, (with links to 2.)
 - intelligent sensors
 - ...


5. User interfaces

 - Data transfer (keywords: XML and CORBA again, HTTP, TCP vs. UDP, ...)
 - Toolkits
 - connections with other items: notion of 'abstraction level'
(e.g. from individual components inspection (data, state, ...) to high
level mission definition, task specification, ...).