Research

Pine Tree Soft is based on three interconnected and interrelated areas of research which were started years ago but still ongoing:

Optimal discrete search algorithms

Extensive research in the field of deterministic search strategies has been conducted, in particular to effectively solve problems in the technical diagnostics of digital devices. But, when the complexity and size of devices under tests became too large, the exhaustive modeling of the fault set used in these models became intractable. However, the models and algorithms developed during this period, including results obtained in questionnaire theory, are finding application in other fields:

  • Combinatorial optimization (genetic algorithms and local search).
  • Structural analysis of machine learning problems with tabular data.
  • Object and scene recognition problems.
  TechTransfer

Currently, the application of discrete search methods to structuring the attention of neural networks and solving problems within explainable AI is being actively explored. Algorithms and models of the Questionnaire Theory employed to the analysis of fundamental data processing algorithms are actively used to optimize the instruction set architecture of adaptive customized computers based on FPGAs and on the modular extensible RISC-V architectures.

However, in the SM.EXEC/CPDK project, we are interested in applying of these methods to optimization of traffic discrimination and filtering tasks. In SDN-based solutions, especially for the executable logic of P4 models and for customized network accelerators, the development of optimal traffic analysis strategies, considered, for example, in terms of header space analysis models, is highly relevant.

Control plane software architectures

TechTransfer  

One of the key areas of ​​research in recent years, which serves as the foundation for the company's developments, is the advanced architecture of software systems for handling Control Plane traffic. As a result of this research, the experimental SM.EXEC library was developed for creating and executing programs in the form of finite state machines.

The control plane software system architecture developed at PineTree Soft includes two modeling layers:

  • The SM.EXEC (State Machine Executor) layer — a thin layer of data structures and functions that wraps system resources into an API optimized for processing signaling traffic.
  • The CPDK (Control Plane Development Kit) layer — a component-level layer that defines a functional decomposition model typical of the control plane and includes three domains: the network logic execution environment, network protocol adapters, and, specifically, protocol event processing.
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Network software design and development process

The design process is directly related to architecture, which is nothing more than the decomposition of a system into subsystems, together with the methods for interfacing these subsystems. Development organization and architecture must be compatible at all stages of the system’s life cycle. Our design and development methods are based on a systematic analysis of the relevant tasks and processes, conducted by in various projects and during the development of various types of network systems.

TechTransfer  

Requirements management is a separate process that actively interacts with the design and development processes, yet remains distinct from them. The completeness, consistency, validatability, and feasibility of requirements are key local characteristics. However, an end-to-end formalized requirements model ensures global traceability and, consequently, an effective process for correcting and modifying requirements, which is inextricably linked to the development process.

The active use of coding agents greatly accelerates development processes, but — in our experience — rather than diminishing the role of systematic design based on documentation and formal models, it actually enhances it. In this sense, all the accumulated knowledge and experience regarding the organization of software production prove to be even more essential than in the case of “manual” coding.

Pine Tree Software (C) 2026