Real-Time Software Components
A Scalable Component Model for Embedded C Development
Dave Russo, Texas Instruments
Introducing Real-Time
Component
(RTSC)
© 2008
Texas
made available under the EPL v1.0
© 2008 by Texas Instruments;
made Software
available
under the
EPL| v1.0
| by
Feb
12,Instruments;
2008
1
Outline

what problem does RTSC solve

what distinguishes RTSC from existing solutions

“brief” technical overview of RTSC

existing use of RTSC and what’s next

summary and questions
Introducing Real-Time Software Component (RTSC) | © 2008 by Texas Instruments; made available under the EPL v1.0
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In 25 Words Or Less ....
RTSC is a C-based software component model
for developing, delivering, and deploying
re-usable real-time software targeted
for diverse embedded platforms

QUALITY
without compromising system performance !
Introducing Real-Time Software Component (RTSC) | © 2008 by Texas Instruments; made available under the EPL v1.0
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RTSC Components
Key Characteristics
 dual-existence
Benefits
 increased design-time optimizations
• target-code: runs on resource limited HW
• meta-code: runs on rich client platforms
 meta-code manages component lifecycle
• build of component (including target-side)
• integration during application assembly
• monitoring during test and after deployment
• transparently bind alternate implementations
• objects can be created at design-time
• no embedded runtime requirements
 enables new tooling opportunities
• meta-code can proxy for target-code
• components differentiate in meta-domain
Application
Application
RTSC Component C
RTSC Component B
target-code
meta-code
RTSC
A
A Component
target-code
meta-code
(C)
(JavaScript)
target-code
meta-code
(C)
(JavaScript)
target-code
C
B
target-code
A
target-code
(C)
(C)
target-code
(C)
(JavaScript)
Rich Client Platform
Embedded Platform
Introducing Real-Time Software Component (RTSC) | © 2008 by Texas Instruments; made available under the EPL v1.0
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Component-Based Systems
Essential Characteristics
S
R
S
R
S′

INTERCHANGABILITY
R
T
C
REUSABILTY
Basic Requirements
FORMAL SPECIFICATIONS
UNIFORM PACKAGING
CONFIGURABLE ASSEMBLY
Introducing Real-Time Software Component (RTSC) | © 2008 by Texas Instruments; made available under the EPL v1.0
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Programming-In-The-Large





logical & physical software container
headers, libraries, progs, scripts, docs, ...
managed,
versioned, delivered as a whole
7
multiple targets, platforms, configurations
explicit dependencies on other packages
106 – 10 lines of source code
concrete & closed
abstract & open
 encapsulates cohesive { types, fxns }
 external client contract — “spec”
 internal implementation — “body”
 abstract module — spec but no body
 extended & implemented by others
 enables generic client applications
PACKAGE
MODULE
INTERFACE
standard C
functions & structs
10s
100s
1000s
Introducing Real-Time Software Component (RTSC) | © 2008 by Texas Instruments; made available under the EPL v1.0
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RTSC Specification
 separates specification from implementation
INTERFACE SPECIFICATION
 C-like declarations, assertions, commentary
 bridges SW design • development phases
package ti_std;
interface IA
{
enum E {E1, E2};
Int fxn1();
}
RTSC
.h
 eliminates tedious maintenance of headers
 leverages advanced programming patterns
 readily integrates with other SW tooling
.xdc
#include
MODULE IMPLEMENTATION
MODULE SPECIFICATION
package my_pkg;
module ModA
inherits ti_std.IA
{
config Int max;
Int32 fxn2(E e);
}
RTSC
.h
#include
generated headers
.xdc
// natural map to ANSI C
// formalize best practices
// implement specified fxns
// access specified configs
// call legacy C or ASM fxns
// fun-to-write, easy-to-read
.c
Introducing Real-Time Software Component (RTSC) | © 2008 by Texas Instruments; made available under the EPL v1.0
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RTSC Packaging
 physical organization reflects logical design
PACKAGE SPECIFICATION
 contents remain intact during deployment
requires your_pkg [1,3];
 version dependencies to ensure integrity
package my_pkg [2,4,5] {
interface … ;
module … ;
}
 portable makefiles for build • test • release
 manage diverse set of targets & platforms
.xdc
PACKAGE MANIFESTATION
 universal  OS-independent + CM-agnostic
PACKAGE DEPLOYMENT
package-repository path
c:/work; h:/share; …
my_pkg/
source files
generated files
my_pkg/
special files
your_pkg/
ti_std/
Introducing Real-Time Software Component (RTSC) | © 2008 by Texas Instruments; made available under the EPL v1.0
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RTSC Configuration
CONFIGURATION META-PROGRAM
 model program structure prior to link / load
 expressed in powerful C-like meta-language
// include modules
ModA = xdc.useModule("my_pkg.ModA");
ModB = xdc.useModule("your_pkg.ModB");
 per-package participation during validation
 per-package contribution during generation
// initialize module-wide configs
ModA.max = 64;
 automate error-prone integration processes
// create static instances
inst = ModB.create({x:10, y:20});
 enable new levels of program optimization
// assign program-level properties
Program.global.inst = inst;
Program.stack = 256;
.cfg
XDCscript
package
agents
TARGET APPLICATION PROGRAM
#include <my_pkg/ModA.h>
#include <your_pkg/ModB.h>
main() {
ModA_fxn1();
ModB_fxn2(inst);
…
}
 JavaScript
Program
information model
program
validation
program
generation
target libraries
data
tables
misc
code
linker
cmds
.c
.obj
COMPONENT ASSEMBLY
Introducing Real-Time Software Component (RTSC) | © 2008 by Texas Instruments; made available under the EPL v1.0
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Multiple Implementations
Application Configuration
platform: 'ti.platforms.evm6446'
'ti.platforms.omap3430'
target:
'ti.targets.C64'
Benefits
platform
binding
Task = xdc.useModule('ti.bios.Task');
MP4 = xdc.useModule('ti.omapsw.mpeg4.ENC');
app
G723 = xdc.useModule('3p.codecs.g723.ENC'); config
MP4.profile = "base";
script
:
Platform Package
ti.platforms.omap3430
ti.platforms.evm6446
C64
rev 3
2
HWA21
timer21
Targets Package
ti.targets
C64
C28
C55
…
DSP/BIOS Package
ti.bios
platform
independent
timer3
timer
2
timer
1
DMA3
DMA
DMA1 2
 extensible to any platform and target
 app-specific implementation selection
 package-specific platform adaptation
 config, package, and platform validation
 one configuration tool for all content
Package
MEG4MEG4
Package
ti.omapsw.mpeg4
ti.omapsw.mpeg4
G723 Package
3p.codecs.g723
platform
independent
platform
platform
independent
independent
G726 Package
3p.codecs.g726
timerBC timer C
timer
timer
HWA
B
C
timer
BC B
HWA
Btimer
timer
HWA
timer
B
DMA
HWA
B
HWA
HWA
1
HWA
DMA1
1 1B
HWA
B
platform
independent
RTSC enables rapid tuned (re)assembly of binary components
Introducing Real-Time Software Component (RTSC) | © 2008 by Texas Instruments; made available under the EPL v1.0
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Extended Object Lifecycle
 1needs

implementation,
runtime memory
2 usage
manager
models
 no memory allocation required
 uniform

“run-once”
instance
instance
lifecycle
creation
APIs
code
 no runtime initialization errors
 built-in

dead error
lifecycle
handling
monitoring
code
 only “core” module methods used
// include modules
ModB = xdc.useModule("your_pkg.ModB");
#include <stdlib.h>
<your_pkg/ModB.h>
#include
<your_pkg/ModB.h>
ModB_Handle
mybee;
ModB_Handle mybee;
main() {
main(int
argc, char
*argv[])
{
/* initialize
system
*/
/*
initialize
system */
ModB_Params
params;
ModB_Params
params;
ModB_Params_init(&params);
ModB_Params_init(&params);
params.x = 10; params.y = 20;
params.x
= atoi(argv[1]);
mybee = ModB_create(&params);
mybee
= ModB_create(&params);
if (mybee
== NULL) …
if start
(mybeereal-time
== NULL) processing
…
/*
*/
forstart
/*
(;;) real-time
{
processing */
for
ModB_fxn2(mybee);
(;;) {
…
} ModB_fxn2(mybee);
…
} }
}
// create static instances
Program.global.mybee =
ModB.create({x:10, y:20});
RTSC
#include <your_pkg/ModB.h>
#include <xdc/cfg/global.h>
main() {
for (;;) {
ModB_fxn2(mybee);
…
}
}
A single RTSC module supports both static and runtime use
Introducing Real-Time Software Component (RTSC) | © 2008 by Texas Instruments; made available under the EPL v1.0
11
Real-Time Monitoring
/* create a decoder for the app */
var dec = Packages.my_pkg.Decoder("app.out");
/* open stream of of events */
var file = java.io.FileReader("output.dat");
/* read next event from the file into buf */
while (readEvent(file, buf) != -1) {
/* decode the event and print it */
var e = dec.apply(buf);
print(e.eventMsg);
}
package my_pkg;
public class Decoder {
public Decoder(File file) {
}
:
}
public class Server {
public Server
(Decoder decoder,InputStream in){…}
public Event getNextEvent() {…}
public bool enable() {…}
public bool disable() {…}
}
 fast deterministic “printf” trace
 minimal footprint (100’s of bytes vs. 35K bytes)
 host-side control, interpretation, analysis
 rich package-specific interpretation
#include <my_pkg/Log.h>
void Log_printf(char
Log_value(int value)
*fmt,{…) {
`copy args
valueto
tocircular
circularbuf`
buf`
}
H
Introducing Real-Time Software Component (RTSC) | © 2008 by Texas Instruments; made available under the EPL v1.0
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Real-Time Monitoring
Introducing Real-Time Software Component (RTSC) | © 2008 by Texas Instruments; made available under the EPL v1.0
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Case Study: DSP/BIOS
 4th most popular* embedded RTOS
 single binary bundle of RTSC packages
 supports 19 targets and over 120 devices
1. VxWorks
2, 3. WinCE, XP
4. DSP/BIOS
5. RH Linux
 used in cell phones, barcode scan, heart defib
 scales from 2KB MSP430 to 60KB C64x
 Sources are 94% platform independent
* 2006 Embedded System Design
DSP/BIOS
Lines of Code
Targets
20
6%
15
31%
C64-specific
IDL
10
42%
XDCscript
Portable C
5
21%
0
2000 2001 2002 2003 2004
…
2008
Introducing Real-Time Software Component (RTSC) | © 2008 by Texas Instruments; made available under the EPL v1.0
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XDCtools
Accelerate Adoption
 focus on “ease-of-use”
 emphasize compatibility
 better docs — RTSCpedia
 Eclipse integration (CDT, …)
 open-source XDCtools (EPL)
basic tools & utilities
package
life-cycle support
program
life-cycle support
program
run-time support
meta-language — XDCscript
ANSI C
specification language — XDCspec
XDCtools
1.x
1999
2004
xDAIS
2.x
2006
DSP/BIOS 5.x
CodecEngine
3.x
2007
2009
SYS/BIOS 6.x
% target software
managed content
specified content
Introducing Real-Time Software Component (RTSC) | © 2008 by Texas Instruments; made available under the EPL v1.0
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What’s Next?
Tooling
Content
 CDT Integration (new targets …)
 Inter-Component-Comm Framework(s)
 Unit-Test Framework (TPTP)
 Application-Specific Frameworks (SDR)
 UML & Modeling Integration (EMF)
 Advanced Diagnostics & Trace (SODA)
 Refactoring & Design Tools (???)
 OS Integration (Linux, VxWorks, …)
Infrastructure
 Enhanced RT Monitoring
 Design-By-Contract
 Portable RPC Support
 C++ Binding
basic tools & utilities
package
life-cycle support
program
life-cycle support
meta-language — XDCscript
program
run-time support
ANSI C
specification language — XDCspec
Community suggestions (and contributions) are welcome
Introducing Real-Time Software Component (RTSC) | © 2008 by Texas Instruments; made available under the EPL v1.0
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Summary

RTSC enables “write once, deploy widely” for deeply embedded SW

Dual-domain breaks the “generality vs. application-optimized” standoff

XDCtools is successfully being used by thousands of TI customers

RTSC bridges the gap between embedded-C and component-centric tools
http://wiki.eclipse.org/DSDP/RTSC
 RTSC Project Proposal: currently in the proposal stage
 RTSC White Paper: high-level overview of the XDCtools technology
 RTSC Component Primer: how to create & use RTSC components
 XDCtools: the starting point for the RTSC project’s code base
Introducing Real-Time Software Component (RTSC) | © 2008 by Texas Instruments; made available under the EPL v1.0
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