Common software architecture for embedded systems

I am trying to come up with an overview of a common software
architecture, which I would like to keep reasonably generic. That
being said, it is intended for embedded systems, specifically mobile
(cell) 'phones.

Irrespective of the actual software project, there are certain common
functionalities which should be present in most systems. The operating
system (currently VxWorks, but that could change) should take care of
things like message passing, process scheduling, timers, etc. However,
before beginning a project, it might be nice to have a skeleton which
sits above that, as a sort of scaffolding upon which to build
development.

I am thinking, for instance, of a decent memory management system,
with defragmentation, checking for leaks, double-free and the like,
some debug trace logging and so on.

Can anyone suggest anything else, of a good web site or book
discussing this topic? If anyone knows of any freely reusable
software, that would be a great bonus.

If not, I was thinking of going C++ (not meaning to re-ignite the
perennial C vs. C++ debate), so that anything that I missed could be
easily added into base classes later. I rather thought hat I might
base upon "Design Patterns"  by Gamma, et al
http://www.amazon.com/Design-Patterns-Object-Oriented-Addison-Wesley-Professional/dp/0201633612/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/103-0876593-6712646?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1174973276&sr=1-1

Does anyone have any suggestions for finding or designing a decent
framework which could be used to hang each new embedded project off
of?

Thanks very much in advance

Op Tue, 27 Mar 2007 07:32:44 +0200 schreef Baron Samedi  =

<Papa.Legba.666@gmail.com>:
> I am trying to come up with an overview of a common software
> architecture, which I would like to keep reasonably generic. That
> being said, it is intended for embedded systems, specifically mobile
> (cell) 'phones.

Specifically which part(s) of a mobile phone?

> Irrespective of the actual software project, there are certain common
> functionalities which should be present in most systems. The operating=

> system (currently VxWorks, but that could change) should take care of
> things like message passing, process scheduling, timers, etc. However,=

> before beginning a project, it might be nice to have a skeleton which
> sits above that, as a sort of scaffolding upon which to build
> development.

If your mobile phone is successful enough, the cost of 'scaffolding'  =

overhead is probably more than the cost of porting to a different OS.

> I am thinking, for instance, of a decent memory management system,
> with defragmentation, checking for leaks, double-free and the like,
> some debug trace logging and so on.

Here you are assuming a heap-based memory allocation algorithm.  I  =

wouldn't call this "reasonably generic".

> Can anyone suggest anything else, of a good web site or book
> discussing this topic? If anyone knows of any freely reusable
> software, that would be a great bonus.
>
> If not, I was thinking of going C++ (not meaning to re-ignite the
> perennial C vs. C++ debate), so that anything that I missed could be
> easily added into base classes later. I rather thought hat I might
> base upon "Design Patterns"  by Gamma, et al
> http://www.amazon.com/Design-Patterns-Object-Oriented-Addison-Wesley-P=
rofessional/dp/0201633612/ref=3Dpd_bbs_sr_1/103-0876593-6712646?ie=3DUTF=
8&s=3Dbooks&qid=3D1174973276&sr=3D1-1
>
> Does anyone have any suggestions for finding or designing a decent
> framework which could be used to hang each new embedded project off
> of?
>
> Thanks very much in advance
>



-- =

Gemaakt met Opera's revolutionaire e-mailprogramma:  =

http://www.opera.com/mail/

Baron Samedi wrote:

> I am trying to come up with an overview of a common software
> architecture, which I would like to keep reasonably generic.

I am trying to do it too. The main problem: keeping everything generic 
and universal requires a big amount of effort. Most of the developers do 
not change the board/platform very often, and they think that it is much 
easier to do the quick fixes and hacks rather then keep everything 
consistent and universal. That may be true or not true depending on the 
project.

> Irrespective of the actual software project, there are certain common
> functionalities which should be present in most systems. The operating
> system (currently VxWorks, but that could change) should take care of
> things like message passing, process scheduling, timers, etc. However,
> before beginning a project, it might be nice to have a skeleton which
> sits above that, as a sort of scaffolding upon which to build
> development.

Agreed. This is what I call the development framework. Again, developing 
a sensible framework requires a great deal of the experience. If it is 
done right, it saves a lot of effort on the subsequent steps. However 
many people see that development as the overhead not related to the 
project itself.

> I am thinking, for instance, of a decent memory management system,
> with defragmentation, checking for leaks, double-free and the like,
> some debug trace logging and so on.

And I am thinking about the generic interface to the hardware and at the 
board level.

> Can anyone suggest anything else, of a good web site or book
> discussing this topic?

I doubt if you will find any understanding in this newsgroup.

> If anyone knows of any freely reusable
> software, that would be a great bonus.

Free cheese is in the mouse trap.

> If not, I was thinking of going C++ (not meaning to re-ignite the
> perennial C vs. C++ debate), so that anything that I missed could be
> easily added into base classes later.

YES! That is what I am talking about.

> Does anyone have any suggestions for finding or designing a decent
> framework which could be used to hang each new embedded project off
> of?

My real email address is at the web site.


Vladimir Vassilevsky

DSP and Mixed Signal Design Consultant

http://www.abvolt.com

Vladimir Vassilevsky wrote:
> 
> 
> Baron Samedi wrote:
> 
>> I am trying to come up with an overview of a common software
>> architecture, which I would like to keep reasonably generic.
> 
> I am trying to do it too. The main problem: keeping everything generic 
> and universal requires a big amount of effort. Most of the developers do 
> not change the board/platform very often, and they think that it is much 
> easier to do the quick fixes and hacks rather then keep everything 
> consistent and universal. That may be true or not true depending on the 
> project.
> 
>> Irrespective of the actual software project, there are certain common
>> functionalities which should be present in most systems. The operating
>> system (currently VxWorks, but that could change) should take care of
>> things like message passing, process scheduling, timers, etc. However,
>> before beginning a project, it might be nice to have a skeleton which
>> sits above that, as a sort of scaffolding upon which to build
>> development.
> 
> Agreed. This is what I call the development framework. Again, developing 
> a sensible framework requires a great deal of the experience. If it is 
> done right, it saves a lot of effort on the subsequent steps. However 
> many people see that development as the overhead not related to the 
> project itself.
> 
>> I am thinking, for instance, of a decent memory management system,
>> with defragmentation, checking for leaks, double-free and the like,
>> some debug trace logging and so on.
> 
> And I am thinking about the generic interface to the hardware and at the 
> board level.
> 
>> Can anyone suggest anything else, of a good web site or book
>> discussing this topic?
> 
> I doubt if you will find any understanding in this newsgroup.
> 
>> If anyone knows of any freely reusable
>> software, that would be a great bonus.
> 
> Free cheese is in the mouse trap.
> 
>> If not, I was thinking of going C++ (not meaning to re-ignite the
>> perennial C vs. C++ debate), so that anything that I missed could be
>> easily added into base classes later.
> 
> YES! That is what I am talking about.
> 
>> Does anyone have any suggestions for finding or designing a decent
>> framework which could be used to hang each new embedded project off
>> of?
> 
One problem is that "real" systems are not built on development boards. 
For example, the firm I work with builds engine management computers. We 
recently went through the process of separating out the 
hardware-specific parts (we called it HAL, Hardware Abstraction Layer). 
But this is highly specific to our application area: for example, HAL 
includes management of whatever hardware observes the engine crank 
position and generates ignition pulses, etc.
Other market segments would, I expect, have similarly specific requirements.

Baron Samedi wrote:

> I am trying to come up with an overview of a common software
> architecture, which I would like to keep reasonably generic. That
> being said, it is intended for embedded systems, specifically mobile
> (cell) 'phones.

When you do you should write a book about it. There has, to date, been very
little agreement on what such a common architecture might be. There are
many models and overviews of a variety of architectures and each seems to
come to prominence with the whim of "the latest fashion".  

A book I am reading at present, "System Safety: HAZOP and Software HAZOP" by
Felix Redmill, Morris Chudleigh and James Catmur, has a nice chapter on
system representation which leads into a natural style for proper system
architectural decomposition.

book-ref:
<http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_ss_w_h_/202-0790886-2346224?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=System+Safety%3A+HAZOP+and+Software+HAZOP&Go.x=9&Go.y=10>

-- 
********************************************************************
Paul E. Bennett ....................<email://peb@amleth.demon.co.uk>
Forth based HIDECS Consultancy .....<http://www.amleth.demon.co.uk/>
Mob: +44 (0)7811-639972
Tel: +44 (0)1235-811095
Going Forth Safely ..... EBA. www.electric-boat-association.org.uk..
********************************************************************

Hi,
I am having  a copy of the book on CODARTS by HASSAN GAMMA.Excellent
book I would say from what I understood.It gives good examples of how
to go about designing a RTOS based frame work.The book also gives
examples on How to design for control systems of ship,some stuff on
communication.

Search in google for CODARTS(concurrent design and real time systems)
or HASSAN GAMMA.The previous company where I worked for mainly in the
consumer electronics industry,have taken the guidelines mentioned in
this book and has got a framework which has churned out several
products and seems to be working well till date(We used C++ with
vxworks).

Regards,
s.subbarayan

Mobile phone stacks -> http://www.trolltech.com/



On Tue, 27 Mar 2007 11:24:56 -0800, David R Brooks
<davebXXX@iinet.net.au> wrote:

>Vladimir Vassilevsky wrote:
>> 
>> 
>> Baron Samedi wrote:
>> 
>>> I am trying to come up with an overview of a common software
>>> architecture, which I would like to keep reasonably generic.
>> 
>> I am trying to do it too. The main problem: keeping everything generic 
>> and universal requires a big amount of effort. Most of the developers do 
>> not change the board/platform very often, and they think that it is much 
>> easier to do the quick fixes and hacks rather then keep everything 
>> consistent and universal. That may be true or not true depending on the 
>> project.
>> 
>>> Irrespective of the actual software project, there are certain common
>>> functionalities which should be present in most systems. The operating
>>> system (currently VxWorks, but that could change) should take care of
>>> things like message passing, process scheduling, timers, etc. However,
>>> before beginning a project, it might be nice to have a skeleton which
>>> sits above that, as a sort of scaffolding upon which to build
>>> development.
>> 
>> Agreed. This is what I call the development framework. Again, developing 
>> a sensible framework requires a great deal of the experience. If it is 
>> done right, it saves a lot of effort on the subsequent steps. However 
>> many people see that development as the overhead not related to the 
>> project itself.
>> 
>>> I am thinking, for instance, of a decent memory management system,
>>> with defragmentation, checking for leaks, double-free and the like,
>>> some debug trace logging and so on.
>> 
>> And I am thinking about the generic interface to the hardware and at the 
>> board level.
>> 
>>> Can anyone suggest anything else, of a good web site or book
>>> discussing this topic?
>> 
>> I doubt if you will find any understanding in this newsgroup.
>> 
>>> If anyone knows of any freely reusable
>>> software, that would be a great bonus.
>> 
>> Free cheese is in the mouse trap.
>> 
>>> If not, I was thinking of going C++ (not meaning to re-ignite the
>>> perennial C vs. C++ debate), so that anything that I missed could be
>>> easily added into base classes later.
>> 
>> YES! That is what I am talking about.
>> 
>>> Does anyone have any suggestions for finding or designing a decent
>>> framework which could be used to hang each new embedded project off
>>> of?
>> 
>One problem is that "real" systems are not built on development boards. 
>For example, the firm I work with builds engine management computers. We 
>recently went through the process of separating out the 
>hardware-specific parts (we called it HAL, Hardware Abstraction Layer). 
>But this is highly specific to our application area: for example, HAL 
>includes management of whatever hardware observes the engine crank 
>position and generates ignition pulses, etc.
>Other market segments would, I expect, have similarly specific requirements.

look up nesC and TinyOS

-- 
	mac the na�f

On 27 Mar, 16:08, "Boudewijn Dijkstra" <boudew...@indes.com> wrote:
> Op Tue, 27 Mar 2007 07:32:44 +0200 schreef Baron Samedi  
> <Papa.Legba....@gmail.com>:
>
> > I am trying to come up with an overview of a common software
> > architecture, which I would like to keep reasonably generic. That
> > being said, it is intended for embedded systems, specifically mobile
> > (cell) 'phones.
>
> Specifically which part(s) of a mobile phone?

Protocol stack, from Layer 1 to Layer 3.  Also teh upper layers -
internally, the MMI sends 27.007 AT commands to tthe protocol stack.
And why not cater for the  devicde drivers too, for BlueTooth, etc?



>
> > Irrespective of the actual software project, there are certain common
> > functionalities which should be present in most systems. The operating
> > system (currently VxWorks, but that could change) should take care of
> > things like message passing, process scheduling, timers, etc. However,
> > before beginning a project, it might be nice to have a skeleton which
> > sits above that, as a sort of scaffolding upon which to build
> > development.
>
> If your mobile phone is successful enough, the cost of 'scaffolding'  
> overhead is probably more than the cost of porting to a different OS.

Well, I am working for a small Asian company who just finished a
disastrous first project, which I do not want to see repeated. I just
want something generic, since we are customer driven and they may ask
for Synmbia, VxWorks, their own o/s ..

What I really trying to do is to herd cats. We have lots of reasonably
good programmers who don't really know how to work on a team. I am
hoping that a framework will save development time and effort, while
constraining them somewhat.  But I am in danger of starting a  new
thread here ... my main goal will be to introduce proper software
development Processes (design/review/test/etc), but let's just stick
with the framework for this discussion...


> > I am thinking, for instance, of a decent memory management system,
> > with defragmentation, checking for leaks, double-free and the like,
> > some debug trace logging and so on.
>
> Here you are assuming a heap-based memory allocation algorithm.  I  
> wouldn't call this "reasonably generic".
>
Then what do you suggest?  I think that we need memory pools which
allocate dynamically at compile time, then manage that at run-time.


Thansk for the feedback

On 28 Mar, 03:24, David R Brooks <daveb...@iinet.net.au> wrote:
> Vladimir Vassilevsky wrote:
>
> > Baron Samedi wrote:
>
> >> I am trying to come up with an overview of a common software
> >> architecture, which I would like to keep reasonably generic.
>
> > I am trying to do it too. The main problem: keeping everything generic
> > and universal requires a big amount of effort. Most of the developers do
> > not change the board/platform very often, and they think that it is much
> > easier to do the quick fixes and hacks rather then keep everything
> > consistent and universal. That may be true or not true depending on the
> > project.
>
> >> Irrespective of the actual software project, there are certain common
> >> functionalities which should be present in most systems. The operating
> >> system (currently VxWorks, but that could change) should take care of
> >> things like message passing, process scheduling, timers, etc. However,
> >> before beginning a project, it might be nice to have a skeleton which
> >> sits above that, as a sort of scaffolding upon which to build
> >> development.
>
> > Agreed. This is what I call the development framework. Again, developing
> > a sensible framework requires a great deal of the experience. If it is
> > done right, it saves a lot of effort on the subsequent steps. However
> > many people see that development as the overhead not related to the
> > project itself.
>
> >> I am thinking, for instance, of a decent memory management system,
> >> with defragmentation, checking for leaks, double-free and the like,
> >> some debug trace logging and so on.
>
> > And I am thinking about the generic interface to the hardware and at the
> > board level.
>
> >> Can anyone suggest anything else, of a good web site or book
> >> discussing this topic?
>
> > I doubt if you will find any understanding in this newsgroup.
>
> >> If anyone knows of any freely reusable
> >> software, that would be a great bonus.
>
> > Free cheese is in the mouse trap.
>
> >> If not, I was thinking of going C++ (not meaning to re-ignite the
> >> perennial C vs. C++ debate), so that anything that I missed could be
> >> easily added into base classes later.
>
> > YES! That is what I am talking about.
>
> >> Does anyone have any suggestions for finding or designing a decent
> >> framework which could be used to hang each new embedded project off
> >> of?
>
> One problem is that "real" systems are not built on development boards.
> For example, the firm I work with builds engine management computers. We
> recently went through the process of separating out the
> hardware-specific parts (we called it HAL, Hardware Abstraction Layer).
> But this is highly specific to our application area: for example, HAL
> includes management of whatever hardware observes the engine crank
> position and generates ignition pulses, etc.
> Other market segments would, I expect, have similarly specific requirements.- Hide quoted text -

Yes, we have a HAL too - I guess that everyone does.

All sofwtare, including HAl - and above - needs memory management,
debug trace log,e tc, and taht is what I woudl liek to discuss...

>
> - Show quoted text -