Technical contact

Mr. Dr. Zain Alabedin Haj Hammadeh
Institute for Software Technology
Phone: +49 531 295-3663
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Vacancy 92907
HR department Braunschweig
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DLR site Braunschweig
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DLR Institute for Software Technology
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Rust is a systems programming language designed with a focus on safety and performance. Its memory safety features make it a promising language for developing safety-critical applications, such as those found in aerospace, automotive, and medical devices. Rust achieves this by using a combination of compile-time checks and runtime checks to prevent common programming errors, such as null pointer dereferences and buffer overflows. Unlike traditional object-oriented programming (OOP) languages like Java and C++, Rust is not purely an OOP language. It instead takes a more C-like approach to programming, with a focus on low-level control over memory management and system resources. This approach allows Rust to provide better control over memory usage and prevent common errors that can lead to memory-related bugs.

The Tasking Framework is an open source execution platform that is event-driven and written in C++. The purpose of this framework is to modularize the implementation of space missions and improve reusability. It accomplishes this by providing an execution platform and API for creating applications in the form of a graph of tasks that are connected via channels. The Tasking Framework includes abstract classes with a few virtual methods that are located in the Tasking namespace. The Tasking Framework provides a programming model for creating tasks, which are units of work that can be executed concurrently. Tasks can be created with different priorities and dependencies, allowing for fine-grained control over the execution order and resource utilization of the application. The Tasking Framework also provides a runtime system for scheduling and executing tasks on different hardware architectures, including multicore CPUs.

In this project, you will carry out the following tasks:

• develop an event-driven execution platform for real-time on-board software systems in RUST that aims to enhance reusability and facilitate the implementation of space missions.
• develop a RUST API for implementing applications as a graph of tasks connected via channels, with each task having one or more inputs.
• utilize Rust's memory safety features to prevent common programming errors, such as null pointer dereferences and buffer overflows.
• maintain the functionality of the Tasking Framework in the new implementation.
• prepare a Master Thesis

Challenges that you may face when reimplementing the Tasking Framework in Rust include adapting to Rust's non-OOP approach to programming, restrictions on the sharing of references, finding alternatives to C++'s virtual methods and inheritance, and addressing potential performance issues due to Rust's focus on safety and runtime checks.