The cyclic executive model and Ada

Periodic processes are major parts of many real-time embedded computer applications. The programming language Ada permits programming simple periodic processes, but it has some serious limitations; producing Ada programs with real-time performance comparable to those produced to date using traditional cyclic executives requires resorting to techniques that are specific to one machine or compiler. We present and evaluate the cyclic executive model for controlling periodic processes. The features and limitations of Ada for programming cyclic executive software are discussed and demonstrated, and some practical techniques for circumventing Ada limitations are described.