DYNAMICALLY GENERATING STATICALLY-TYPED PROXIES FOR DYNAMICALLY-TYPED FUNCTIONS

• US 20120180025A1
• Filed: 07/05/2011
• Published: 07/12/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 01/06/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: The MathWorks, Inc.
• Original Assignee: The MathWorks, Inc.
• Inventors: WEBB, Peter Hartwell
• Granted Patent: US 8,769,486 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 717/114
• CPC Class Codes: B33Y 50/00 Data acquisition or data processing for additive manufacturing
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/30 Creation or generation of source code
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/4486 Formation of subprogram jump address

Abstract

Embodiments of the present application may simplify an integration of statically typed and dynamically typed languages by automatically generating an implementation of a statically typed native interface for a given set of dynamically typed functions. In an embodiment, functions in a dynamically typed language are automatically interconnected with functions in a statically typed language. Code that bridges and/or connects a statically typed interface and a dynamically typed interface embodied in the dynamically typed source code may be automatically generated. The statically typed interface may be provided by a user. Further, an extensible set of runtime rules that determine how to convert between statically typed and dynamically typed data may be provided.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method comprising:

receiving a specification of a statically typed first interface to a first function, the first interface including a specification of a data type of a parameter of the first function;

identifying a second function corresponding to the specification of the statically typed first interface to the first function, the second function written using a dynamically typed language; and

generating an implementation of the first function that invokes the second function.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the implementation of the first function includes converting the data type of a parameter of the first function to a data type suitable for passing the parameter to the second function.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the first function or the second function has one or more input parameters or output parameters.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the first function outputs a first return value and the second function outputs a second return value.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the implementation of the first function converts the second return value of the second function to the data type specified by the first return value of the first function, the first return value specified by the first interface.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the implementation of the first function converts one or more parameters of an output of the second function to the data type specified by one or more parameters of an output of the first function, the output of the first function specified by the first interface.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the implementation of the first function includes passing by reference a parameter of the first function to the second function.

8. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

receiving an extensible set of runtime rules that determine how to generate the implementation of the first function that invokes the second function.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the first function executes in a first computing device and the second function executes in a second computing device different than the first computing device.

10. One or more tangible computer-readable storage media storing instructions for:

receiving a specification of a statically typed first interface to a first function, the first interface including a specification of a data type of a parameter of the first function;

identifying a second function corresponding to the specification of the statically typed first interface to the first function, the second function written using a dynamically typed language; and

generating an implementation of the first function that invokes the second function.

11. The media of claim 10, wherein the implementation of the first function includes converting the data type of a parameter of the first function to a data type suitable for passing the parameter to the second function.

12. The media of claim 10, wherein the first function or the second function has one or more input parameters or output parameters.

13. The media of claim 10, wherein the first function outputs a first return value and the second function outputs a second return value.

14. The media of claim 13, wherein the implementation of the first function converts the second return value of the second function to the data type specified by the first return value of the first function, the first return value specified by the first interface.

15. The media of claim 10, wherein the implementation of the first function converts one or more parameters of an output of the second function to the data type specified by one or more parameters of an output of the first function, the output of the first function specified by the first interface.

16. The media of claim 10, wherein the implementation of the first function includes passing by reference a parameter of the first function to the second function.

17. The media of claim 10 further storing instructions for:

receiving an extensible set of runtime rules that determine how to generate the implementation of the first function that invokes the second function.

18. The media of claim 10, wherein the first function executes in a first computing device and the second function executes in a second computing device different than the first computing device.

19. A system comprising:

a first processor for;

receiving a specification of a statically typed first interface to a first function, the first interface including a specification of a data type of a parameter of the first function;

identifying a second function corresponding to the specification of the statically typed first interface to the first function, the second function written using a dynamically typed language; and

generating an implementation of the first function that invokes the second function.

20. The system of claim 19, further comprising:

a second processor for executing the second function, the first processor executing the first function.