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I-Logix' Code Synthesis Supports All Auto Application Executions

7 March 2000

I-Logix' Code Synthesis Solution Now Supports All Automotive Application Execution Environments; Rhapsody in MicroC 2.0 Reduces Product Development Time by at Least 30%

    DETROIT--March 7, 2000--I-Logix Inc., a leading provider of enterprise solutions for embedded applications development, today announced Rhapsody in MicroC 2.0, the latest version of its award-winning family of Rhapsody(R) application development platforms, which streamlines the development process and reduces overall development time by at least 30%. The product's unique software synthesis capability reduces the number of design iterations and errors while generating re-usable production level C code. Rhapsody in MicroC(tm) now targets any end-user environment, enabling users to customize the tool for their own target environment - including OSEK (Open Systems and the Corresponding Interfaces for Automotive Electronics), the automotive industry standard supporting an open architecture for electronic control units (ECUs) in vehicles.
    Recognizing that automotive ECUs do not typically leverage any commercial RTOS (Real-Time Operating Systems) but run on in-house schedulers, Rhapsody in MicroC 2.0 now allows end-users to describe their specific execution environment and then automatically generate the corresponding code. This customization allows the automotive engineer to visually model and test the code before anything is actually built, ensuring design flexibility, lower design costs and improved product quality. Together with I-Logix' Statemate(R) MAGNUM(tm), Rhapsody in MicroC 2.0 provides a seamless development process from specification through design and implementation.
    "The automotive industry is facing tremendous pressure to differentiate where the customer actually touches the car and is looking to take advantage of advances in the software technology to do this," said Gene Robinson, president and CEO of I-Logix Inc. "I-Logix now offers a complete tool chain from the system design down through software design, implementation and test. No one offers this level of integration for discrete modeling that allows OEMs to communicate with their suppliers through a model-based development process, while retaining control over their product designs and competitive differentiation."
    Rhapsody in MicroC 2.0 enables designers to define the application programming interface (API) to the execution environment that is being used in the target ECU. Once this is defined, designers can generate code that will compile and run without modifications, regardless of the underlying scheduler or OS. This allows designers to concentrate on the required application, rather than its interaction with the execution environment, resulting in significant time savings and a reduction in errors.
    In addition, using this approach, designers can switch from one execution environment to another, as happens when companies upgrade designs from proprietary schedulers to commercial operating systems, including OSEK. Traditionally, while such upgrades have been common, they have also been expensive and risky, but now Rhapsody in MicroC 2.0 simplifies this process by defining the particular execution environment, using a menu-driven targeting tool that guides users as they define the specific criteria and descriptions. To further enhance the users' analysis capabilities, MicroC 2.0 adds the ability to execute and animate the model on the host using NT, as well as the OSEK implementation on NT.
    Rhapsody in MicroC 2.0 graphically captures the software architecture and its behavior, generates fully readable, deployable code, and validates the code up front before anything is built, thus eliminating costly product iterations that are typical of current processes. Moreover, the automatically generated C code fits on 8-bit microprocessors that are widely used in automotive applications. I-Logix has coined the term "MicroC" to highlight the compactness of this code.

    Pricing and Availability

    Rhapsody in MicroC 2.0 is available immediately for Windows NT host operating systems. Prices start at $6,500.

    About I-Logix Inc.

    Founded in 1987, I-Logix is a venture-backed software company that provides enterprise solutions for real-time embedded application development. I-Logix' solutions significantly compress software development cycles while improving product quality. These products allow engineers to graphically model the behavior and functionality of their embedded systems, analyze and validate the system and automatically generate production quality code in a variety of languages. I-Logix uniquely integrates and associates the entire design flow from concept to code across an enterprise using both conventional and collaborative Web-enabled technology.
    I-Logix is a member of the Object Management Group (OMG) and a founder of the Unified Modeling Language (UML). The company is headquartered in Andover, Mass., and has sales offices and distributors throughout the USA, Europe and the Far East. I-Logix can be found on the Internet at http://www.ilogix.com.

    Editors Note: Rhapsody and Statemate are registered trademarks of I-Logix Inc. Rhapsody in MicroC and Statemate MAGNUM are trademarks of I-Logix Inc.