Test and evaluation techniques using rapid prototyping tools for avionics requirements development

The avionics software changes approved for aircraft development are often turned into a list of requirements, the software designed, coded, tested, integrated with the hardware, ground tested, and finally flight tested. Different computer languages and hardware are often used during different phases of the development/test process. The objective of this paper is to show that by using several development tools that employ the same baseline software, the capability is provided to generate high quality code faster; provide software developers with a better understanding of the requirements; allow the customer/user/developer to gain a better insight into the avionics and displays being developed; and provide a significant impact to the development time and testing costs. The tools used are the Desktop Test Environment (DTE); a graphical display generation tool, VAPS from Virtual Prototypes; and a real time manned simulator, the Reconfigurable Manned Interactive Crew Station (RMICS). The tools were developed for separate purposes, but in combination, provide a synergy that can have a significant impact on the development cycle and support costs. This paper describes the tools, the interfaces, and combining the tools.