We demonstrate that, for periodic systems with offsets (tasks or flows of messages within a time-triggered network), the simulation cycle can be confined to the range of [0, hyperperiod) only under the condition that an idle point exists at the hyper-period. Furthermore, we establish that ensuring both (1) contention-freedom and (2) that no offset exceeds the value of the period minus duration, is a sufficient condition to guarantee the presence of an idle point at the hyper-period. Most contemporary methods aiming to eliminate latency are implicitly based on these properties and fail to propose a schedule if the input system does not allow a contention-free solution. Consequently, we propose a heuristic approach to scheduling periodic flows of frames within time-triggered networks. Our method focuses on minimizing latency, without necessitating a solution where every frame at every output port is contention-free, and it effectively manages the cyclicity problem.

Autonomous vehicles, such as drones, are gaining great popularity due to their usability and versatility. Nowadays, a significant number of them operate using open source software, such as Robot Operating System (ROS) and the de facto standard MAVLink communication protocol, as they are free and many of them are reusable enough that they can be deployed in various different vehicles. Although these technologies offer a wide variety of resources, using them requires a reasonable background of programming and system engineering. Often, this is not achievable by common drone end-users in the short-term, as they would need to acquire a considerably large amount of know-how before working on specific domains. However, a graphical Domain Specific Modelling Language (DSML) might provide a shortcut to design drone missions using already known concepts to the end-users (or, at least, ones easier to learn). Pursuing this shortcut, RoBMEX is presented as a top-down methodology based on a set of domain specific languages able to enhance the autonomy of ROS-based systems, by allowing the creation of missions graphically, and then generating automatically executable source codes conforming to the designed missions.

In the domain of autonomous unmanned vehicles, some design patterns emerge from various distinct software designs. These patterns are the result of the search for modularity and, in consequence, customisation. They point to the possibility of a more general architecture and design process that are able to comply to at least most of design requirements made for unmanned vehicles, including regulatory ones. This paper explores the possibility of proposing this modular and customisable architecture as a simpler approach to responding to design requirements.