The RTAI project has accomplished its third major release, with the 3.0 version of the Real-Time Application Interface (RTAI), codenamed “Kilauea.” The release offers significant new features and supports x86, PPC, ARM, MIPS, and CRIS processor architectures.

RTAI is a Free Software project aimed at developing a framework for programming real-time applications on GNU/Linux systems.

According to a project spokesperson, RTAI 3.0 has been under development for over a year, and brings the following new features:

• A streamlined and polished installation, leveraging a new modular infrastructure, which brings an increased adaptability to various software and hardware configurations.
• NETRPC middleware for distributed real-time computing has gained full symmetry between kernel and user-space APIs.
• Emulators for VRTX32/VRTXsa, pSOS+, VxWorks, and uITRON facilitate migrating applications to RTAI from traditional RTOSes.
• Simulator aimed at running RTAI applications in a virtual environment added to RTAILab development tools.
• Improved LXRT support means that most real-time applications can now be run under MMU protection — in user space — with the required level of determinism.

Additionally, a preview of the new “fusion” technology is being made available as part of this release. RTAI/fusion is described as “the point of convergence of several technologies including LXRT, Adeos, the preemptible Linux kernel, and the low latency enhancements.” It aims at reinstating the RTAI applications into the regular GNU/Linux programming model, allowing them to call Linux kernel services synchronously from hard real-time tasks, while retaining a high degree of determinism, according to RTAI.

RTAI 3.0 can be downloaded from the RTAI homepage.

 
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