New C2 System for Battle Tanks Relies on eXtremeDB High Availability Embedded Database
October 1, 2009 — Leading Turkish defense contractor STM Defense Technologies Engineering and Trade is developing its new Tank Command and Control Information System (TCCIS) to provide combat vehicles with a comprehensive battle management system (BMS). For real-time, fault-tolerant embedded software, this C2 system relies on the eXtremeDB™ High Availability (HA) embedded database from McObject® running on Wind River Systems VxWorks real-time operating system.
Early in development, STM product designers faced a classic “build or buy” decision: should engineers code the software to manage information in this data-intensive system in-house, or integrate a commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) embedded database in their application?
The company went the COTS route, choosing eXtremeDB-HA, and this decision reduced coding and QA cycles by approximately 4 developer-months, STM reports. The company expects further savings by relying on McObject for support and software updates.
Within the TCCIS, eXtremeDB-HA is deployed in the Vehicle Command Control Computer (VCCC). In this core system component, the high availability database coordinates input from on-board systems such as navigation, friend-or-foe identification, fire control, odometer and radio, and provides VCCC applications with real-time access to stored information ranging from tactical data to orders, maps, vehicle electronics (vetronics) output, warnings and failure reports.
eXtremeDB-HA met two early stage requirements: it is available on the VxWorks real-time operating system, and runs in both VxWorks’ kernel module (DKM) and as a real-time process (RTP). It also met the application’s stringent real-time performance requirements.
To provide the reliability critical in battle-ready systems, STM chose the High Availability edition from McObject’s diverse eXtremeDB embedded database product family. This choice provides unmatched reliability by enabling deployment of a master database and multiple synchronized copies, with automatic failover. eXtremeDB-HA offers a strong track record in military/aerospace, telecom, networking and other fault-tolerant applications.
STM also chose McObject’s hybrid database technology, eXtremeDB Fusion. With this product, the developer specifies, with a simple database schema notation, which record types are to be stored on permanent media and which will be managed in memory. This lets STM tailor the storage to achieve desired persistence and performance for each task.
“During our lengthy evaluation, McObject responded quickly to every technical question. The support has been excellent. In addition, we were able to arrange for a McObject engineer to come to our premises for training, and the instruction was both professional and very clear,” said Mrs. Özlem Dengizek, STM project manager.
According to Jane’s International Defence Review, a prototype of the TCCIS is expected to be completed in October 2009, with delivery of a platform-ready prototype in June 2010. The TCCIS aims to provide all units, from single vehicles to the battalion force level, “with improved situational awareness and a tactical picture of the battlefield,” Jane’s reported.
McObject’s eXtremeDB provides a highly portable database management system that meets the unique performance requirements and resource constraints of embedded systems and intelligent, connected devices. eXtremeDB provides critical data management features—-including transactions, concurrent access, and a high-level data definition language—-while maintaining a code footprint as small as 50K. It is available as a standard in-memory database system and in editions offering high availability, hybrid in-memory/on-disk data storage, kernel mode data management, 64-bit support and more. McObject’s Perst™ is an open source, object-oriented embedded database, available for Java and .NET, including Java ME and .NET Compact Framework.
About STM
STM (Savunma Teknolojileri Mühendislik ve Ticaret A.S.) was established in 1991 by the decree of Turkey’s Defense Executive Committee to provide systems engineering, technical support, project management, technology transfer, and logistics support services; develop necessary software technologies for defense systems; and establish and operate national centers for software development, maintenance and support. Drawing on its advanced knowledge and extensive experience to date, STM has been continuing its works to offer these services to public and private organizations in the national and international arenas.
About McObject
Founded by embedded database and real-time systems experts, McObject offers proven data management technology that makes applications and devices smarter, more reliable and more cost-effective to develop and maintain. McObject counts among its customers industry leaders such as EADS, SAIC, Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, IAI, Sandel Avionics, BAE Systems and Boeing. McObject, based in Issaquah, WA, is committed to providing innovative technology and first-rate services to customers and partners. The company can be reached at +1-425-888-8505, or visit www.mcobject.com.
McObject and eXtremeDB are trademarks or registered trademarks of McObject LLC. All other company or product names mentioned herein are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners.