An Overview of the SAE Architecture Analysis & Design Language (AADL) Standard: A Basis for Model-Based Architecture-Driven Embedded Systems Engineering

Abstract

Architecture Description Languages provide significant opportunity for the incorporation of formal methods and engineering models into the analysis of software and system architectures. A standard is being developed for embedded real-time safety critical systems which will support the use of various formal approaches to analyze the impact of the composition of systems from hardware and software and which will allow the generation of system glue code with the performance qualities predicted. The SAE AADL standard (International Society for Automotive Engineers (SAE) Architecture Analysis & Design Language) is based on the MetaH language developed under DARPA and US Army funding and on the model driven architectural based approach demonstrated with this technology over the last 12 years. The SAE AADL standard is aimed at supporting avionics, space, automotive, robotics and other real-time concurrent processing domains including safety critical applications.