Data Exchange Mechanism Research Articles

AN XML-BASED DATA EXCHANGE ARCHITECTURE FOR CACE

Control systems design tools that have not been specifically constructed to work together may not easily exchange data. The purpose of a data exchange mechanism is to standardise and automate this process for all tools supporting the underlying technology. This paper proposes a control systems design data exchange architecture based on the recently developed XML standard, which allows tools to improve their data exchange capabilities and at the same time benefit from a wide range of data services and data communication possibilities offered by XML.

Towards integration of clinical decision support in commercial hospital information systems using distributed, reusable software and knowledge components

Problem: Clinicians' acceptance of clinical decision support depends on its workflow-oriented, context-sensitive accessibility and availability at the point of care, integrated into the Electronic Patient Record (EPR). Commercially available Hospital Information Systems (HIS) often focus on administrative tasks and mostly do not provide additional knowledge based functionality. Their traditionally monolithic and closed software architecture encumbers integration of and interaction with external software modules. Our aim was to develop methods and interfaces to integrate knowledge sources into two different commercial hospital information systems to provide the best decision support possible within the context of available patient data. Methods: An existing, proven standalone scoring system for acute abdominal pain was supplemented by a communication interface. In both HIS we defined data entry forms and developed individual and reusable mechanisms for data exchange with external software modules. We designed an additional knowledge support frontend which controls data exchange between HIS and the knowledge modules. Finally, we added guidelines and algorithms to the knowledge library. Results: Despite some major drawbacks which resulted mainly from the HIS' closed software architectures we showed exemplary, how external knowledge support can be integrated almost seamlessly into different commercial HIS. This paper describes the prototypical design and current implementation and discusses our experiences.

Supporting human communication in network‐based systems engineering

AbstractThe increased globalization of systems engineering is spawning a range of activities in the support of systems engineering teams who are geographically dispersed. The primary focus is on ways in which these team members can exchange information easily, quickly, and accurately. This paper takes the view that a network agent in a systems engineering design team comprises a computer plus a person, the two combining to form the intelligent network agent. A great deal of current activity is being put into the communication of data between computers. Relatively little is being put into supporting the communication between the people who are the most significant component of the “intelligent agent.” This article investigates the fundamental reasons why the communication is taking place and concludes that its purpose is to transfer from one agent to another sufficient information for the receiving agent to, eventually, supply a satisfactory deliverable to the sending agent. This implies the transfer, in some form, of a set of requirements. In such a transfer, these requirements will always be interface requirements. The paper goes on to discuss the transfer of computer‐based data between dissimilar tools and the issues involved in this transfer. It then compares the domains of “expertise” of the tool and of the human user, and discusses the mutually supportive operation of these together. From this discussion, the paper proposes a first‐cut set of requirements for the data exchange mechanism and its supporting environment. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Syst Eng 4: 213–221, 2001

Next generation discharge control system for ASDEX upgrade

Based on present achievements in tokamak control and considering requirements for reactor-oriented research, a next generation discharge control system is presented. Decomposition of control functions mapped onto dedicated controllers and diagnostics gives a distributed system integrated with a common real-time network to publish process and reference values. Basic mechanisms for cycle administration, data exchange and process management of the prototype system currently being implemented are shown.

Computer Aided Control Engineering - Current Approaches to Design Methodologies

Current developments in the field of Computer Aided Control Engineering (CACE) have a visible impact on the design methodologies and the structure of the software tools supporting them. In this paper we try to define requirements on design methodologies used in CACE enhancing efficient flow of information between the tools supporting the following phases of the design process. The major conclusions of the paper are related to identification of the factors affecting the software tool integration in a way needed to facilitate design "interphase" communication. These are: standard application interfaces, dynamic data exchange mechanisms, code generation techniques and general software architecture requirements.

European built core data management system for the Russian service module

In frame of the European-Russian cooperation within the International Space Station Program a Fault Tolerant Computer assembly with associated crew-control station is under development in European industry. The on-board equipment, which is supposed to be accommodated within the data management and guidance navigation control system of the Russian Service Module, is complemented with a complete set of ground hard- and software required for the application software development and verification process as well as Service Module System integration and check-out. For the on-board fault tolerant computer state of the art technology will be implemented. The mechanism, that provides the required two failure tolerant feature, is based on the so-called Byzantine Failure algorithm. The fault detection and recovery algorithm, the data input/output and the application software are implemented on separate layers each containing its own processing capability, such that the application program runs independent of any failure calculations and data input/output. Hardware realization is based on state of the art microcircuits, in particular transputer processors to provide compact equipment size and fast data exchange mechanism.

Database applications supporting Community Research Projects in NERC marine sciences

Abstract Traditionally, oceanographic data management has been strongly cruise oriented. However, the organization of research into Community Research Projects, such as the North Sea Project and Biogeochemical Ocean Flux Study (BOFS), has produced a requirement for handling multidisciplinary data from a large number of research cruises as an integrated dataset. The code of practice for the project dictated that data were to be exchanged freely between project participants throughout the duration of the project, after which the data were to be brought into the public academic domain. The data management strategy therefore had to provide both a vehicle for data exchange within the project and a mechanism for subsequently making the data available to a wider community. These problems were solved by BODC through the adoption of two technologies. Relational database technology was used to integrate the data and, through access over the UK academic wide area network (JANET), provide the data exchange mechanism. Electronic publication of the datasets on CD-ROM provided the mechanism for expanding the dataset user base.

Fundamental concepts that form the basis of the proposed American cartographic data exchange standard

Earlier in 1988 the American Standard for Digital Cartographic Data was published in the American Cartographer. This paper examines the fundamental concepts that form the basis of the effort to develop these standards. The six areas to be examined here are basic concepts, general characteristics, those used for the definition of cartographic objects, those involved with the development of cartographic feature definitions, and finally those utilized to specify the data exchange mechanism itself.