 HLA – High Level Architecture
The HLA (High Level Architecture) is a more recent standard for interoperability among simulations. Rather than a networking protocol (wire standard) like DIS, HLA defines an architecture with a set of API (Application Programmer's Interface) Standards. Simulation applications (known as federates in HLA) communicate by making calls to the HLA APIs. A piece of software known as the RTI (Run-time Infrastructure) implements the HLA API, and is responsible for transporting data from one federate to another. Like DIS, the HLA Standards are owned by IEEE. There are three documents that comprise the HLA Standard, all available from IEEE.
IEEE 1516-2000 - IEEE Standard for Modeling and Simulation (M&S) High Level Architecture (HLA) - Framework and Rules provides the rules and definitions for implementing and using HLA. Its IEEE product code is SH94882.
IEEE 1516.1-2000 - IEEE Standard for Modeling and Simulation (M&S) High Level Architecture (HLA) - Federate Interface Specification defines the various services provided by an HLA RTI, and contains the APIs. Its IEEE product code is SH94883.
IEEE 1516.2-2000 - IEEE Standard for Modeling and Simulation (M&S) High Level Architecture (HLA) - Object Model Template (OMT) Specification defines the format used for describing object models in HLA. An object model dictates what kinds of data a particular set of HLA federates will be exchanging. The IEEE product code for this document is SH94884.
There is a fourth document that is not technically part of the definition of HLA, but that defines some of the recommended practices for using HLA. It is called IEEE 1516.3-2003 - IEEE Recommended Practice for High Level Architecture (HLA) Federation Development and Execution Process (FEDEP), and its IEEE product code is SH95088.
While the IEEE 1516 series of standards represents the "current" version of HLA, many HLA simulations are still using an earlier version of HLA known as HLA 1.3. This version was maintained by DMSO and the US DoD prior to IEEE Standardization.
The documents that make up the HLA 1.3 specifications are as follows:
- HLA Interface Specification Annex D: Java API
- HLA Interface Specification Annex C: Ada 95 API
- HLA Interface Specification Annex B: C++ API
- HLA Interface Specification Annex A: IDL API
- HLA Interface Specification Version 1.3
- HLA Object Model Template Specification (Version 1.3)
- HLA Rules (Version 1.3)
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