C++ for Embedded Developers

This course introduces the C++ language for use on real-time and embedded applications. The first part of the course focuses on the language itself, highlighting areas of concern for real time and embedded development. The latter part of the course covers the application of C++ to real time systems including interrupt handling and concurrency issues. If a C++ course fails to cover these fundamental issues you may be left feeling you still have a lot to learn.

Attendees perform hands on embedded programming, on target hardware, during course practicals. Approximately 50% of the course is given over to practical work.

C++-501
5 days
£ 2057
pdf download
13 - 17 Sep 2010

Course Overview

 

A five day course that provides a general overview of C++ on the first three days and then tackles real-time issues on the remaining two days. 50% of the course is spent on practical work.

Course Objectives:

  • To provide a solid understanding of the essentials of the C++ programming language.
  • To give you practical experience of writing C++ for real-time and embedded systems.
  • To give you the confidence to apply these new concepts to your next real-time project.

Delegates Will Learn:

  • The core C++ syntax and semantics
  • How to access hardware in the language
  • How to program interrupt handlers in C++
  • About memory and performance issues associated with C++
  • How real time operating systems (RTOS) affect the use of the language

Pre-requisites:

  • A working knowledge of C

Who Should Attend:
This course is designed for real-time engineers who are embarking on a project using C++ for the first time. It is also targeted at developers currently reluctant to move from C to C++ as they believe it poses too great an overhead. This course will clearly demonstrate both the strengths and weaknesses of C++ versus C.

Duration:

  • Five days.

Course Materials:

  • Delegate handbook

Related Courses:

Course Workshop:
This course makes use of target hardware during real-time practical exercises. The board targeted is an IAR Kickstart development board (NXP LPC2129 ARM7-based microcontroller). An application board is programmed via the LPC2129 to give attendees a real sense of embedded application development.

Course Outline

 

Introduction to Real-Time Systems:

  • What is a real-time and embedded computer system
  • The need for a rigorous development procedure

From C to C++:

  • Non object-oriented C++ enhancements to basic C
  • Conveniences of C++ over and above C

Introduction to Object Oriented (OO) Principles:

  • Key characteristics of OO development
  • OO techniques and the real-time software development process

Introduction to Classes:

  • Classes & class instances
  • Methods
  • Constructors & destructors

More on Classes:

  • Inlining member functions
  • Const member functions
  • Static class members and functions
  • Arrays of classes
  • Implementing object relationships

Inheritance:

  • Building class hierarchies
  • Dynamic binding for class methods, virtual functions
  • Polymorphism

Multiple Inheritance (MI):

  • MI and interfaces

Functions and Operators:

  • Class defined conversions
  • Overloading and function selection
  • Friend functions
  • Overloading operators
  • Dynamic memory allocation revisited

Exception Handling:

  • What are exceptions?
  • Throwing an exception
  • The try block
  • Catching an exception
  • Rethrowing exceptions
  • Catch all handlers
  • Exception specifications

Templates:

  • Introduce parameterised types and functions
  • Function templates
  • Class templates

The Standard Library:

  • Introducing the Standard Template Library

Software Structuring:

  • Structuring large scale software systems
  • Separate implementation from interface header files
  • Dealing with name conflicts
  • Linking with other languages

Embedded C++:

  • A summary of Embedded C++
  • Embedded C++ features

Real-Time Specifics:

  • Low level facilities of C++ including:
  • Accessing hardware
  • Manipulating information at the bit level
  • Synchronising I/O with CPU via
  • Polling
  • Interrupts

Interrupt Programming:

  • Interrupt Service Routines in C++
  • functional approach
  • class approach

Target Specific Considerations:
Data types;

  • Language features affecting portability;
  • Non-standard C++ language features;
  • Assembly language interfacing;
  • Designing ROMable objects.

Concurrency:

  • Scheduling strategies;
  • Sharing resources in multi-tasking systems;
  • Synchronizing tasks;
  • Transferring data between tasks.