An object-oriented SECS programming environment

An object-oriented programming (OOP) environment for developing SEMI Equipment Communication Standard (SECS) applications with the C++ and C programming languages in a Unix workstation environment is described. The system defines a set of programming objects corresponding to the standard SECS-II item types, messages and headers as well as a number of support classes and operations. Conversion between standard program datatypes and SECS-II items is transparent or explicitly managed by the developer. Within a standard framework using standard C++ input/output methods, SECS-II messages may be created, analyzed, transmitted and received between internal buffers, external files and communication channels. Classes corresponding to specific SECS stream and function codes are also available and can be incorporated easily into application code with little or no modification