RTI's NDDS® Publish-Subscribe Middleware Powers Navy Open Architecture Test Facility

Navy OA Technical Architecture recommends new Data Distribution Service for Real-Time Systems standard (DDS) from the Object Management Group (OMG)

Sunnyvale, CA - 24 February 2004 - The US Navy has developed its new Navy Open Architecture (OA) Test Facility with NDDS as its data distribution middleware. NDDS publish-subscribe communications simplify the extensive data distribution between more than 200 computers used in the system simulator and test-bed located at the Naval Surface Warfare Center (NSWC) in Dahlgren, VA. System integrators and Navy program developers use the test facility to validate systems using the Navy's Open Architecture Computing Environment (OACE). The OACE recommends the DDS publish-subscribe standard and middleware, like NDDS, that will conform to the standard. Standard middleware is the key enabler for the OACE.

"Application functions change, paced by threats and missions," stated Mike Masters, chief scientist for OA Technical Architecture definition at NSWC Dahlgren. "Computing technology will change, driven by technological innovation and market pressures. Managing this change and isolating its effects is the key to successfully implementing the Navy OA. The way to attain this isolation is to use standards and to use middleware. For data distribution middleware, we recommend the use of the emerging OMG DDS standard and products that will conform to the DDS standard, like NDDS."

In addition to being approved for use in OACE-based systems, NDDS provides a key middleware capability for the new Navy OA Test Facility. The OA Test Facility is the first Commercial Off The Shelf (COTS) computing environment to support the Navy's OA initiative. The OA Test Facility is currently running on more than 200 computers, with multiple operating systems, exchanging and processing more than 200 billion bits of information per second. For details, please see our application note: Open Architecture Computing Environment Specifies NDDS.

The Navy OA
The Navy Open Architecture (OA) is a systems design approach supported by verifiable governmental testing platforms such as the Open Architecture Computing Environment (OACE), that seeks to implement open specifications for interfaces, services and supporting formats. The OA enables engineered components to be utilized across a wide range of systems with minimal change requirements necessary to interoperate with components on local and remote systems.

Navy OA promotes interaction between designers, suppliers and end users that facilitates portability. Through OA, the Government selects common standards and products in the areas of frameworks, middleware, resource management and operating systems, utilizing established and evolving industry standards.

NDDS Middleware and Tools
NDDS was specifically designed to meet the needs of distributed real-time applications like the OA Test Facility. It provides an easy-to-use, efficient, publish-subscribe interface to the underlying operating system, network and back-plane transports. Using NDDS, developers can focus on the application logic rather than the networking code. This greatly simplifies the development of robust, multi-platform, distributed applications. In addition to the NDDS middleware, RTI provides tools to help analyze and debug NDDS distributed applications.

About RTI
RTI (Real-Time Innovations, www.rti.com) provides software tools, middleware, and professional services for distributed real-time systems and embedded applications. For over 10 years, with more than 10,000 seats in use, the ScopeTools product line has been helping embedded system developers produce higher quality, more reliable solutions. The NDDS middleware and tools provide seamless communications and comprehensive tools for distributed, real-time system builders. Our customers span the embedded software industry from aerospace and defense, through networking and communications, to industrial automation and consumer electronics.

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