| Software Engineering
Software Engineering in the
Web Era
AGUSA Kiyoshi
Approach for Strengthening
Embedded Software Development Capability
EGUCHI Kazutoshi
Embedded software has recently shown drastic increases in complexity
and scale with the progress of embedded systems. Embedded software
development has become a critical element of embedded system development.
In these circumstances, Toshiba is promoting the strengthening
of embedded software development capability through a strategy
of "software development process innovation." This strategy
is composed of "software platform innovation," "software
production innovation," and "software people innovation."
Software Process
Improvement Activities
KUSANAGI Takumi / INO Masashi / ISHIKAWA Takashi
In order to develop a software product effectively and efficiently,
an organizational-level development process with a mechanism for
continuous maintenance and improvement must be established. For
continuous organizational improvement, it is important to have
an
organization-wide framework for strategic process improvement that
includes appropriate assessment and improvement methods, as well
as human resource development for these activities.
The Toshiba Group is promoting software process improvement (SPI)
activities based on such a framework, while solving problems
corresponding to the circumstances of the relevant Development
Divisions.
Adaptation and Deployment
Scheme for CMM and CMMI Assessments
FUJIMAKI Noboru / YAMADA Atsushi / IIDA Takuro / FUJIMOTO Akihisa
More than 100 Capability Maturity Model (CMM) or CMM Integration
(CMMI)-based assessments have been introduced and implemented in
approximately 40 departments of the Toshiba Group to comprehend
opportunities for improvements and to drive software process improvement
(SPI) activities since 2000. These have been realized by a corporation-wide
scheme of CMM/CMMI-based assessments that supports SPI and optimizes
the process of making internal assessments as well as Carnegie
Mellon University/Software Engineering Institute
(CMU/SEI)-authorized assessments. This scheme, provided and maintained
by the Corporate Software Engineering Process Group
(Corporate SEPG), encompasses the Software Engineering Center and
affiliate SEPGs. Recently, not only assessments applying CMMI staged
representation but also those applying CMMI continuous representation
have been carried out in order to further enhance efficiency.
Development and Deployment
of Software Design Methodology
KAYASHIMA Shimon / TAMAKI Yuji
In recent years, not only has there been a dramatic increase in
the complexity and size of software but also a shortening of the
product development cycle. The lack of a proportional increase
in the size of software teams has resulted in the necessity to
increase productivity. However, this has resulted in a huge increase
in development and maintenance costs. Based on our experience,
we have come to the
conclusion that the essential cause of this problem is the lack
of coherent software design policies.
Toshiba has been working in the following areas to solve this issue:
(1) procedures to formalize techniques for deciding the design
policy and the construction of software architecture based on it,
and (2) accumulation of know-how on how to sustain architecture
without destroying it.
Development and Deployment
of Software Quality Assurance Techniques
MORI Toshiki / SAKURABA Noriko / NAKANO Takashi
With the exponential growth in the scale of development of embedded
software, an increasing number of software defects are being detected
inside products after shipment. Software engineers therefore often
spend considerable time on debugging and testing.
In response to these circumstances, Toshiba has proposed "W
model" as a framework for consistent quality management through
the product development process. This includes quality visualization
for upstream activities and a software testing body of knowledge
for downstream activities.
Application of Linux
as Embedded Operating System for Digital Consumer Products
NOZUE Hiroshi / KUMAGAI Hiroki / SAKUMA Takeshi
Many digital consumer products require rich functionality and a short development
cycle. As a result, Linux is increasingly being applied as an embedded operating
system.
Toshiba has resolved some of the technical problems of standard Linux, by such
measures as enhancing its real-time functions and reducing its memory footprint.
Moreover, through the activities of the CE Linux Forum, which has been established
by electronics manufacturers and semiconductor companies from around the world,
we are making efforts to resolve further issues related to this field.
Global Framework
for Development of System LSI Software
SHINOHARA Junichi / MIYATA Takashi / TOMINAGA Yoshiaki
System large-scale integrated circuits (system LSIs) are utilized in many electronic
devices such as cellular phones, digital consumer products, and automobile components,
where they serve as the functional core.
Toshiba supplies operating systems, firmware, and middleware to LSI users and
has engineering teams to support global LSI users. We operate a software development
process including software requirement specification and design techniques,
as well as an engineer skill evaluation system, to maintain these global engineering
teams.
Skill Enhancement
Education for Software Engineers
HARASHIMA Shuji / OIKAWA Daizo / NIHIRA Hiroyuki
Software development for embedded systems such as cellular phone and digital
TV systems has become larger in scale while development times have become shorter.
Moreover, the necessary technologies are required to respond more rapidly in
line with movements in the sales climate for these products. In such a business
environment, skill enhancement for software engineers is highly important.
The Toshiba Group is now promoting a tailor-made education system for this purpose
based on skill standards. |
