Viewpoints |
| What are the current trends in embedded systems development? Tool experts from IAR Systems and our partners share their opinions with you. |
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Integrating the LDRA tool suite and IAR Embedded Workbench for Safe, Cost-Effective and Efficient Software Development |
LDRA has a comprehensive set of embedded software development tools that facilitate and enhance the capabilities provided by IAR Embedded Workbench and allow you to create devices that can be used in safety- and mission-critical applications as well as increase quality and reliability by enforcing software development practices and processes.
This article explores the strengths of combining the LDRA tool suite with IAR Embedded Workbench from the point of view of three specific engineers—the safety certification engineer, the hardware engineer and the project manager.
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The SH2A core, a superscalar architecture |
The SH2A core is one of the fastest embedded MCU cores available on the market today. It is used in many different markets today, from Automotive, to Industrial applications and also a great many consumer applications too. It is available on many different devices from integrated low cost flash-based MCU solutions right the way up to ROMless dual core devices reaching up to nearly 1000DMIPS.
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EFM®32, the world's most energy-friendly microcontrollers |
The explosion in use of battery operated electronics is followed by the need for the battery to last longer for convenience, environmental and cost reasons. At the same time, applications become more and more complex and demand higher performance of the microcontroller, making the challenge of designing systems for low power even more difficult.
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An Overview of Smart Cards |
There are many different kinds of smart cards in use in the marketplace today as the need for security increases in our global marketplace. Given the nature of how information is collected about individual users and transmitted across electronic networks, people are greatly concerned about the security of the information that they exchange with electronic devices such as Automated Teller Machines (ATMs) and credit card readers via the traditional possessed-object cards they carry on their person.
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RTOS for Safety-Related Systems |
There are two main technologies of real-time operating systems. Shared Memory RTOS where the user is responsible for protecting memory from mutual access by using specific RTOS tools (e.g. semaphores) and Direct-Message Passing RTOS where data is encapsulated in messages used also for inter-process communication and synchronization.
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Using IAR Solution Selector to pick the right SW package for an MCU-based application |
There is a significant chance that your next MCU-based project is going to make you look at what kind of IP stack, USB stack, file system, CAN driver, and RTOS you are going to need. There are two ways of satisfying these requirements; develop the software yourself (or reuse something from a previous project) or go shopping for a commercial or open source solution. Over the years, IAR Systems has developed a huge ecosystem, incorporating both hardware and software vendors. How can you as a user benefit from this?
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Have you unplugged yet? |
A few years ago, the future of the 8- and 16-bit MCU was being questioned. As embedded applications grew more and more complex, the hardware scene was likely to be dominated by FPGAs, ASICS, CPLDs and SOCs. Would the traditional general purpose MCU survive?
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µC/OS-II—the heart of good power management |
Test examples have shown that some microprocessors may be in idle mode (not doing anything useful) for 60 - 80% of their operating time. Using µC/OS-II in combination with its idle task may significantly reduce power consumption and the CPU overhead by ensuring that the CPU is in its lowest possible power mode whenever it is idle.
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Meeting the embedded requirements of high-integrity systems |
Embedded systems are often found in complex safety-related products that place high demands on system integrity; in such cases, any malfunction could cause serious injury to people, equipment or the environment or even a person’s death. Some obvious examples can be found in the automotive industry, in aviation and in medical devices, but safety-critical applications also exist in nuclear power plants, public transportation and infrastructure and less obvious areas such as the chemical processing industry and even surveillance systems.
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Making ZigBee® buzz using the right development tools |
Although the ZigBee® wireless protocol has already been around for a few years, it is only just beginning to make a real impact on the market. So it is timely to review what the ZigBee technology is and what it can do for us, and importantly how ZigBee devices can be programmed to operate effectively and efficiently with the right choice of hardware and development tools.
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RTOS—the heart of good power management |
Low power consumption is an essential factor in many embedded applications. The growing importance of battery powered applications for portable electronics, home automation and wireless communications—for example, in medical devices, personal navigation devices, sports watches and portable games consoles—means that the demand for improved battery life-time is growing dramatically. The number of low-power versions of microprocessors and other silicon devices that have power management capabilities is increasing steadily.
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Debugging dynamic systems: See inside the box! |
There are many embedded systems that cannot be stopped and single-stepped. Food processing plants, printing presses, chemical plants, aircrafts, appliances, anti-lock brakes, hay balers, combines, routers and switches, medical instruments, etc.
Micrium has developed an extremely versatile and invaluable tool to help the embedded community to monitor and control such embedded systems live. This tool is called µC/Probe and is a Windows-based application that works with literally 'any' processor (8-, 16-, 32-, 64-bit CPU or DSP) to see (and change) at run-time 'any' variable without stopping the target.
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Automatic code generation for NEC Electronics Flash MCUs |
For many years now, IAR Systems has developed language tools and debuggers for NEC Electronics. The strong partnership between the two companies ensures up-to-date tools, support for new cores and debugger functionality.
In response to the need for an integrated chain of development tools for the Flash MCU product line, complete build integration between IAR visualSTATE and IAR Embedded Workbench is now available for both 78k and V850, allowing automatic code generation.
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How to evaluate an embedded flash-based file system |
Given today's faster and larger processor architectures, developers and customers expect more from their embedded systems. In the past, one element in particular that was often relegated to wish list status was the flash file system (FFS). Now, it's front and center. Based on the number of devices that offer flash storage, the ease of management provided by the FFS is mandatory.
Several design choices need to be made in order to effectively evaluate a flash-based file system in an embedded design. Decisions made at this time will have an impact on the end hardware/software design.
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Getting started with RTOS |
For a variety of reasons, a high proportion of embedded systems still do not incorporate any kind of operating system. But developers beginning a new system development should seriously ask themselves whether it would be beneficial to include a real-time operating system (RTOS).
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The benefits of trace—can a modern trace debug tool replace an emulator? |
High-end debugging capability is now available for a relatively low cost. This article asks whether modern trace debugging can provide a real alternative to expensive emulators, and whether the functionality of trace tools as well as their cost advantage can provide a convincing case for users to adopt them.
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Optimizing banked code layout for 8051 |
As more and more complex applications are being developed for the current crop of "evolved" 8051-based microcontrollers, sporting the latest array of advanced peripherals, it has become increasingly important to make sure that the development tools you choose are capable of making the most out of the hardware you are using.
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What's your state of mind? |
Have you found yourself in the all too familiar situation lately, where you have had to dig up some old code from the archives, just to find out that you do not understand a thing? There is no design documentation, no useful code comments and the code has a completely undecipherable structure. Perhaps it is even your own two year old code! If the program flow of the application resembles a state machine design, we could have helped you to avoid this situation.
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8-bit developers deserve first-class tools too |
With the industry focusing more and more on today's powerful 32-bit devices, will you still be able to find modern tools for legacy 8/16 bit MCU platforms in the future?
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Choosing an ARM processor—ARM7 vs Cortex-M3 |
A developer who wants a low cost 32-bit device can choose either a Cortex-M3 base or an ARM7TDMI. What are the criteria to consider when making the choice?
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A Giant Leap or a Small Step? Making the Move from 8-bit to 32-bit |
It's a tight project. You need to keep costs down and the timescale is demanding. So, do you reach for the familiar development tools and the 8-bit processor? Or go instead for a 32-bit processor, with powerful software and development tools?
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Real-time operating systems—does your system need one? |
Nowadays real-time operating systems are available even for small embedded systems, and many of them feature useful extensions that are tailored to the needs of code-size or resource-limited systems. Operating systems make programming more efficient and better structured, and their use is often justified in relatively small embedded solutions.
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Differentiators in choosing embedded development tools |
Most C/C++ compilers perform competently on their own, whether they are independent or proprietary to the device manufacturer, and whether they are freeware or relatively expensive. But if it is not optimized to work with the RTOS, or not fully compatible with the debug solution, then the true cost of a "free" compiler—in terms of development time and effort—can work out to be more than that of one that is purchased.
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