Formalizing Accommodation of Transitory Path Intrinsic Characteristics Navy SBIR FY2010.1 Sol No.: Navy SBIR FY2010.1 Topic No.: N101-027 Topic Title: Formalizing Accommodation of Transitory Path Intrinsic Characteristics Proposal No.: N101-027-0337 Firm: Analysis, Integration and Design 1600 Sarno Rd. Suite #208 Melbourne, Florida 32935-4994 Contact: Tim Winquist Phone: (321) 253-9919 Web Site: www.aidinc-usa.com Abstract: Today's resource connection technologies, mechanisms, and provisioning implemented in test station architectures are deficient in commonality that offers transparency in application functionality aspects. The breadth of path determination hardware and controlling software available for incorporation in test stations is often unique, proprietary, and available only through sole suppliers. Although the architectural flexibility obtained using these various manifestations can provide robust functionality, it also creates barriers when inevitable obsolescence is confronted. Exacerbating the hardware commonality problems is a distinct lack of software models, technologies, or abstractions enabled to alleviate incompatibilities encountered when approaching obsolescence mitigation. Another observation concerning path connection software found in the majority, if not all, automatic test equipment is that it generalizes connections as simply committing connection or releasing connection commitment. Current path connection software technologies do not demand any technical specification of the connection characteristics. Dealing with connection facilities in this oversimplified manner essentially demands applications adhering to it imply knowledge of how to use facilities needed without stating what is needed. Predictably when obsolescence occurs the applications must be altered to accommodate the replacement facility's interaction methodologies. This proposal addresses feasibility of alleviating these and other connection issues incurred in existing test station implementations. Benefits: The results of the fully executed effort will be automatic test systems enabled with commercial available specification(s) and shrink wrapped product(s) or product component(s) that alleviate obsolescence issues related to non-commonality in switch implementation and oversimplification in switch specification. The specifications will be in the form of one or more standards defined in the public forums such as the IEEE, ANSI or ISO. The products will facilitate ease in test station application transportability between stations and reuse on stations where components are replaced due to obsolescence. The products and specifications should provide well understood means of obtaining connections and paths using software facilities that demand technical specification advancing the state of the art for employing path loss prediction and determination in test application development and runtimes. Beyond test stations the facility could be employed and technology could be expanded to address numerous systems that employ connection mechanisms including network facilities, surveillance systems, UAVs, satellites and others In addition other expected benefits are: * Improved software maintenance * Improved productivity * Enabling more accurate information to all design levels * Enabling better service life management Return