A Federation Object Model (FOM) Flexible Federate Framework

The concept of a framework as a reusable software component has become a state-of-the-practice technique in software companies. A number of frameworks based on High Level Architecture (HLA) are available commercially, and many companies have developed their own frameworks for internal applications. Using a framework reduces development time and allows software architects and programmers to focus on the unique aspects of the simulation. However, the challenge of developing a reusable component to support dynamic reconfigurability remains. Indeed, existing frameworks use a static object-model representation that requires full knowledge of object model components when a federate is built (at compile-time). This report describes an approach to designing a domain framework that encapsulates expertise in developing an HLA federate by hiding runtime infrastructure (RTI) internal operations from the developer. This approach uses a JavaTM virtual machine and a parser to map object representations of federation object model (FOM) elements dynamically.