Advanced C++ for Embedded Systems
5 days

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This course is delivered in co-operation with Doulos' training partner Feabhas , who specialise in training courses for real-time embedded developers.

Course description

Since its standardization in 1998, the support and use of C++ as an embedded programming language has grown significantly. However, until recently most C++ cross compilers were actually “Embedded C++” (EC++) compilers or were typically inefficient in the more advanced areas of the language. To date, a high proportion of programmers using C++ for embedded development have either been unable or have chosen not to use certain features of C++ due to fear of bloated, slow code with poor performance.

This course addresses the “fear, uncertainty and doubt” of using full C++. Specifically the course deals with : performance and memory considerations of polymorphic functions, exceptions and templates. In addition, complete coverage of the Standard Library, including the STL, are covered, again with the specifics of performance and memory models.

Overview

A 5-day course which reviews C++ in the light of real-time systems, addresses the application of C++ in a real-time/embedded environment, and then focuses on the advanced parts of the language. Fifty percent of the course is spent on practical work and the course includes the use of target hardware.

Course Objectives

• To provide an understanding of the advanced aspects of the C++ programming language.
• To give you practical experience of writing efficient C++ code for real-time & embedded systems.
• To understand the impact different compilers have on performance.

Delegates will learn

• About memory and performance issues associated with C++
• How to access hardware, write device drivers, and program interrupt handlers in C++.
• The overheads of exceptions
• How templates work
• Different approaches to integrating Real-Time Operating Systems with C++.

Pre-requisites

• Some experience of programming with C++.

Who should attend?

The course is designed for real-time engineers who either (a) have a working knowledge of C++ but are embarking on a real-time project using C++ for the first time, or (b) have being using EC++ to date and want to extend their knowledge of full C++ for embedded systems programming.

Materials

Delegate Handbook

Related courses

• Real-Time Software Design with UML2.0
• C++ for Embedded Developers
• Fundamentals of Real-Time Operating Systems.

Course workshop

The course makes use of target hardware during the embedded programming practical exercises. The target board is an ARM7-based microcontroller (NXP LPC2129) connected to an application board. Programming the target microcontroller to control the application board gives attendees a real-sense of embedded application development.

Course Outline

Introduction

C++ Performance

• Member functions
• Static functions
• Inheritance and V-Tables
• RTTI and type info.

Embedded C++

• Why Embedded C++ was developed
• Embedded C++ features.
• Migrating from EC++ to full C++

Real-Time Specifics

• Accessing hardware
• Manipulating information at the bit level

Device Interaction

• Device polling

Interrupts

• Different interrupt models
• Function model
• Name encoding
• Class model
• Device “has an” interrupt
• Memory overhead

Functions and Operators

• Class defined conversions
• Overloading and function selection
• Friend functions and classes
• Overloading operators
• Dynamic memory allocation revisited
• Assignment
• Copy constructors

Exception Handling

• What are exceptions
• Throwing an exception
• The try block
• Catching an exception
• Rethrowing exceptions
• Catch all handlers
• Exception specifications
• Exceptions models and overheads

Templates

• Introduce parameterised types and functions:
• function templates
• class templates
• Performance implications

The Standard Library

• Introduction to the Standard Library.
• The STL
• Using the STL efficiently

Software Structuring

• Consider how to structure large scale software systems • Separate implementation from interface header files • Dealing with name conflicts • Linking with other languages

Target Specific Considerations

• Portability Considerations
• Non-standard C++ language features
• Assembly Language Interfacing.
• Designing ROMable objects

Design Patterns

• What patterns are and are not
• Patterns types
• architectural
• design
• idioms
• Pattern examples

Concurrency

• Concurrency
• Scheduling strategies
• Task-Is-Polymorphic
• Task-Runs-Polymorphic
• Sharing resources in multi-tasking systems
• Mutex objects
• Synchronizing tasks
• Transferring data between tasks

Course Summary

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