PTOLEMY: APPLICATION TO SIGNAL PROCESSING SYSTEMS

concurrent, real-time, embedded systems. The focus is on assembly of concurrent components. The key underlying principle in the project is the use of well-defined models of computation that govern the interaction between components. A major problem area being addressed is the use of heterogeneous mixtures of models of computation. A software system called Ptolemy II is being constructed in Java. The class of systems addressed by the project is sometimes called reactive systems. Reactive systems are those that interact with their environment at the speed of the environment. They are often embedded systems, and have been contrasted with interactive systems, which react with the environment at their own speed, and transformational systems, which process a body of input data to produce a body of output data. Reactive systems typically include elements of signal processing, communications, and real-time control. They are typically implemented with mixed technologies, possibly including embedded software, custom digital hardware, configurabl