AdaCore is excited to announce its participation in the SCHEME research project. Rolls-Royce has assembled a world-class consortium of UK industry and academia to deliver the next generation of high-integrity processing platforms for use in aerospace and other harsh environments.

Microprocessor design and manufacture is complex, and typically, commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) automotive and general-purpose microprocessors are repurposed for aerospace. That approach has issues of obsolescence, complexity, and design trade-offs with long-term cost implications. Furthermore, a new generation of more complex, autonomous, and connected aerospace systems is needed to meet net-zero targets. Such systems are also increasingly required to be cyber secure. Repurposing COTS processors to meet such requirements is complex and non-cost-effective due to the increased burden when certifying products.

SCHEME will develop a new generation of safety-critical and cyber-secure microprocessors. The microprocessor and support infrastructure will be engineered from the bottom-up to provide a long-term, cost-effective, high-integrity processing solution. The bespoke processor will reduce design and through-life costs, ensure the security of supply, and provide protection from the global issues that face the semiconductor industry.

SCHEME will provide the UK with a highly capable micro-processing platform that can be deployed in both aerospace and adjacent sectors where safety criticality and cyber security are of utmost importance. This includes emerging sectors that are key to the future of the UK economy, such as autonomous vehicles and small modular nuclear reactors. Furthermore, the consortium has the potential to provide a complete packaged solution for high-integrity systems development to many potential customers, both within and outside the UK.

Jan Góralczyk, Programme Manager (Rolls-Royce), said, “AdaCore brings a comprehensive portfolio of skills in delivering high-integrity software. Their consistent professionalism and expertise in compilation tooling, processor simulation, and dynamic analysis will be key enablers in achieving the objectives of the SCHEME project. Furthermore, AdaCore’s understanding of the industry, both in terms of software technology and prospective customers, will help ensure the activities undertaken and the expected outcomes from SCHEME will stay relevant to the industry’s evolving needs.”

A vital component of the SCHEME's processing solution is the supporting software tool infrastructure.

Kyriakos Georgiou, SCHEME's Project Manager at AdaCore, said: "The SCHEME project is well aligned with AdaCore's commitment and proven track record of being a trustworthy software tool vendor for developing high-integrity applications. Therefore, the AdaCore UK R&D Centre of Excellence is uniquely positioned to produce software development and verification tooling that enables reduced cost and delivery time for safety-critical and cyber-secure applications.” Such solutions will cover validation and verification processes, generating certification evidence, and software cyber-security hardening. These SCHEME-developed technologies will be integrated within a modern development environment supporting state-of-the-art practices, such as cutting-edge DevOps. To this extent, the UK AdaCore team will significantly contribute to establishing a trustworthy software ecosystem required for the commercial success of the processor.

The £37.5m investment program is co-funded by the ATI Programme, which funds civil aerospace research in the UK and which is delivered in partnership by the Aerospace Technology Institute, the Department for Business & Trade and Innovate UK. Rolls-Royce is joined by AdaCore, TT Electronics, Volant Autonomy, Rapita Systems, The Manufacturing Technology Centre, Queen's University Belfast, University of Bristol, University of Sheffield, and University of York.