Towards highly configurable real-time object request brokers

This paper discusses the software architecture of a real-time CORBA object request broker (ORB), called ZEN, written in real-time Java, which is designed to eliminate common sources of overhead and non-determinism in ORB implementations. We illustrate how ZEN can be configured to select the minimal set of components used by an application. Our experience with ZEN indicates that combining real-time Java with real-time CORBA is a major step forward towards simplifying the development and maintenance of distributed middleware and applications with stringent quality of service requirements.