SAN JOSE, Calif., 19 Jan. 2009. AeroMechanical Services Ltd., selected the LynxOS-178 real-time operating system (RTOS) from LynuxWorks for the company's second-generation Automated Flight Information Reporting System (AFIRS)) program.
In a joint collaboration with engineering design-services organization Au-Zone Technologies Inc., the LynxOS-178 RTOS provides full DO-178B certification for use with AMA's AFIRS program.
"LynxOS-178 is the best multi-level DO-178B certifiable RTOS solution available for theavionics software in our AFIRS program," says Stephen Harke, director of product development for AMA. "Together with LynuxWorks we can provide our customers with a cost-effective solution designed to meet the regulatory requirements with a reduced time to market, yet provide the flexibility we need to meet the wide range of requirements that our customers have."
AFIRS UpTime is an onboard satellite-based system that allows aircraft operators to manage and monitor aircraft operations anywhere, anytime, in real-time. The use of LynxOS-178 in the new generation of AFIRS hardware will allow AMA to meet the emerging requirements for satellite-based voice and data safety services. AFIRS automatically reports critical flight data to ground-based airline operations in near real time, provides satellite-phone capabilities, and provides connectivity between the aircraft, and the ground using a laptop computer or electronic flight bag (EFB) in the cockpit. The AFIRS system enables the crew, from anywhere on the planet, to make phone calls, request weather reports, and receive or send messages to or from the ground or other aircraft.
"For AFIRS to be ready for the next generation of satellite communications in the aviation world, AeroMechanical Services Ltd. needed an operating system that was safe, reliable, secure and certified," says Gurjot Singh, chief executive officer of LynuxWorks.
In addition to enhancing safety, AFIRS UpTime allows commercial airlines to increase profits by: reducing fuel costs and carbon footprint through weight savings and operational fuel management initiatives; decreasing delays by using real-time data to enhance logistics planning capabilities; reducing fleet under-utilization by having better control of assets and their state of readiness; and eliminating discrepancies between manual and automatic systems by providing a central single source of critical information.
The LynxOS-178 RTOS offers the interoperability benefits of POSIX with support for the ARINC 653 APplication EXecutive (APEX), and is the only RTOS to be awarded a Reusable Software Component (RSC) by the FAA, LynusWorks officials say. At the core of the LynxOS-178 real-time operating system is LynxOS, a UNIX-style operating system.
