PrismTech’s Vortex Suite Selected by NASA for SMART National Airspace System

PrismTech™, a global leader in software platforms for distributed systems, today announced that its award-winning intelligent data sharing platforms Vortex™ OpenSplice™, Vortex Cloud and Vortex Fog have been selected by NASA for use in the SMART-NAS (Shadow Mode Assessment Using Realistic Technologies for the National Airspace System) Project.

SMART-NAS is an air traffic management simulation project designed to accelerate the transformation of the National Airspace System, which is one of the most complex systems for controlling commercial, military and general aviation aircraft in the world. In this effort, SMART-NAS aims to explore and enable plug-and-play alternative concepts, technologies and architectures for deployment in the NAS.

“We’re pleased that our Vortex data sharing platforms have been selected by NASA for such a crucial National Airspace System project,” said Mike Roberts, Senior DDS Engineer at PrismTech. “Over the past seven years, NASA has trusted PrismTech’s superior software, service and expertise to meet a variety of program goals. We are proud of our joint contribution.”

Vortex platforms were selected by NASA for SMART-NAS after an in-depth evaluation of the various data sharing platform options that are based on the Object Management Group®'s (OMG®) Data-Distribution Service™ (DDS™) standard. DDS is a proven technology that can meet the stringent performance, availability, safety and robustness criteria imposed by mission-critical, highly distributed and real time systems, such as those found in air traffic control and air traffic management systems. Key to Vortex, however, is its functionality to extend DDS beyond embedded and LAN-based networks out to an intelligent real-time data exchange for Tactical Clouds to enable highly scalable system of systems solutions.

“Vortex platforms provide the SMART-NAS project with excellent easy-to-use API, cross platform and shared memory compatibilities, high performance, and a rich suite of functionality and Qualities of Service,” said John Robinson, SMART-NAS Test Bed Technical Lead, NASA. “They have been selected as the DDS middleware. The SMART-NAS Test Bed (Shadow Mode Analysis using Realistic Technologies for the National Airspace System) is a sophisticated distributed simulation environment for research and development of future air traffic concepts.”

To accelerate the transformation of the entire NAS, proposed functions must be integrated, tested and fully validated before being deployed into NAS. SMART-NAS aims to examine, in real-time, the robustness, stability and reliability of new approaches to the entire system or any of its parts by taking operational data such as weather conditions, flight plans, airports arrival rates and system constraints – to ensure safe and seamless operations from ground level to outer space.

Vortex optimally addresses the real-time information distribution and management challenges posed by high performance real-time data-processing systems. Vortex OpenSplice is being used in numerous air traffic control and management systems throughout the world.

Further information about Vortex platforms is available from PrismTech’s website at: http://www.prismtech.com/vortex.

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About PrismTech

PrismTech’s customers deliver systems for the Internet of Things, the Industrial Internet and advanced wireless communications. PrismTech supplies the data connectivity solutions, tools and professional services they need to build systems with the required: platform coverage, performance, scalability, efficiency, flexibility and robustness. PrismTech’s customers service many market sectors, including: industrial automation, energy, healthcare, transportation, smart cities, financial services, aerospace and defense. For additional information about PrismTech, visit the web site at http://www.prismtech.com.

Vortex is a trademark of PrismTech. DDS and Data-Distribution Service are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Object Management Group, Inc. in the United States and/or other countries. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

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