Building, modifying and using component generators

The tools used to generate implementations from component descriptions are called component generators. The protocol considered supports call processing by controlling the set-up and take-down of connections carrying telephone calls. The exercises discussed investigate the use of component generators in the construction of the protocol handler and related components. The component descriptions and generic architectures developed in these exercises are built by composing reusable components and applying generative tools. The component generators use information obtained from the component descriptions to instantiate the generic architecture. In addition to providing a perspective on the approach to component generation, related work in knowledge-based software engineering is presented. These exercises are generalized, outlining a process for developing software which takes advantage of component generator technology and supports several forms of component composition.< >