Automated validation of operational flight programs (OFPs) and flight training simulators

Abstract

Operational flight programs (OFPs) that run in the embedded computer systems (ECSs) in modern aircraft must undergo extensive and rigorous validation testing before they are released for flight. Similar validation testing is required for the highest fidelity flight training simulators to assure that they accurately represent the behavior of the actual aircraft. This validation process, today, is largely manual. Test engineers develop and execute the test procedures by hand an the avionics test station or flight simulator. Manual testing is very time intensive, prone to errors, difficult to repeat precisely, and requires highly qualified experts. The automated validation (AutoVal) tool suite, developed by the Avionics Logistics Branch at Wright Laboratory (WL/AAAF), offers an alternative approach to testing that addresses these problems. AutoVal performs real-time testing of OFP and flight simulator software by completely automating the actions of the test engineers. It utilizes a testing-oriented command language that features user-definable macros for tailoring commands to specific applications. AutoVal reads and interprets commands stored in files or entered interactively through a command-line interface. Test engineers can generate reusable command files that configure and initialize the simulation, control the simulation flight dynamics and avionics modes, verify test results, and automatically create test logs. The most recent AutoVal research has focused on two areas: citation of an AutoVal translator that will produce MIL-STD-1815A Ada source code; and development of a learning capability that will record a test engineers actions and generate AutoVal command files.<>