Thales will use the GNAT Pro High-Integrity Edition for DO-178B and the Ada 2005 language to build the Air Data Inertial Reference Unit (ADIRU) for the A350 XWB (Xtra Wide-Body). The ADIRU provides precise in-flight positioning information, and the new system will therefore need to be certified to the highest safety levels. It will meet Level A of the DO-178B standard and use ARINC 653 multi-partition operating system MACS2.
The project promises to advance the state of the art in safety-critical development through a number of innovations including the application of Agile Programming techniques and the safe use of Object-Oriented Programming (OOP) features. Thales will be using the Ada 2005 version of the Ada language, which has introduced additional support for real-time and safety-critical systems and for safe/reliable OOP.
“When it comes to safety-critical systems, the Ada language has an impressive pedigree and track record,” said Francois Brun, Software Design Authority at Thales Aerospace Division - Navigation Unit. “The combination of GNAT Pro and Ada 2005 provides the technology we need to develop the ADIRU software for the new Airbus A350 XWB (Xtra Wide-Body).”
AdaCore is also providing a Qualified Code Standard Checker and a Coverage tool for this program. These tools will be key to the development process of the ADIRU and the generation of safety evidence. AdaCore’s Coverage solution adopts an innovative approach by providing MC/DC coverage information on uninstrumented source code, through the use of a PowerPC simulator. Tool qualification material gives credit to the output of the tools, which speeds up the certification process.
“Thales is leading the way when it comes to safety-critical and avionics system development,” said Michaël Friess, Technical Sales Manager of AdaCore. “It is a pleasure to partner with such a technically advanced team. Our long collaboration with Thales and our regular exchanges with their technical staff have led to strategic advances in AdaCore’s offering. ADIRU is another example of a project that helps our technology progress, and that shows customers that they can count on AdaCore as a reliable partner in their development process.”
The A350 XWB (Xtra Wide-Body) Family is Airbus' response to widespread market demand for a series of highly efficient, medium-capacity, long-range, wide-body aircraft. With a range of up to 8,300 nm / 15,400 km, it is available in three basic passenger versions: the A350-800, the A350-900 and the A350-1000.
About AdaCore
Founded in 1994, AdaCore is the leading provider of commercial software solutions for Ada, a state-of-the-art programming language designed for large, long-lived applications where safety, security, and reliability are critical. AdaCore's flagship product is the GNAT Pro development environment, which comes with expert on-line support and is available on more platforms than any other Ada technology. AdaCore has an extensive world-wide customer base; see http://www.adacore.com/home/company/customers/ for further information.
Ada and GNAT Pro see a growing usage in high-integrity and safety-certified applications, including commercial aircraft avionics, military systems, air traffic management/control, railroad systems and medical devices, and in security-sensitive domains such as financial services.
AdaCore has North American headquarters in New York and European headquarters in Paris. www.adacore.com
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