Phoenix Ambulatory Blood Pressure Monitor Project
Sub-project: Embedded
Software
Project Description
The purpose of the Embedded Software subproject is to answer
questions about, and eventually implement, embedded software for
the Phoenix ABPM. While doing so, we discover, develop,
and record various bits of knowledge for later use in other Phoenix
Ambulatory Blood Pressure Monitor subprojects. For example,
we expect to help define some of the requirements for the Low
Power Microprocessor subproject.
The way we like to work is to develop multiple prototypes for
everything that we do, learn a bit from each one, and eventually
converge on production-quality solutions. Expect that anything
we do at this early stage is not on the direct path to producing
the final device; rather its purpose is to feed into other embedded
software work that leads to the final device later.
Project Deliverables
An embedded software subproject consists of choosing a microprocessor,
choosing a development environment, writing and testing a program,
and an informal written report linked from this web page.
We want our embedded software projects to provide some experiences
that we can draw from when it becomes time to design and implement
the final code. There are a number of questions that we
would like answers to, and projects can be designed around providing
answers to some or all of these questions:
- How do you design a development environment suitable for
use by a geographically-distributed open-source hardware group
(e.g., must be essentially cost-free and enables programmers
without access to microcontroller hardware to work on the software)
?
- How do you get realistic estimates of the power consumption
of our final microprocessor/microcontroller from the embedded
software development environment?
- How do you design an embedded-software development
or FPGA development process that incorporates Test Driven Development
(from the eXtreme Programming methodology)
- How do you develop software testing procedures for open-source
embedded software to satisfy FDA regulations?
Answering such lofty questions is usually not, all by itself,
a particularly interesting exercise for many software developers
- a tangible "homework assignment" is needed. The
embedded programs listed on page 16 of this Systems_Architecture_and_Engineering
presentation are available for this purpose.
We are putting off the selection of the microprocessor/microcontroller
hardware until other work that generates requirements for the
microprocessor is finished. We have imagined various systems
from a very simple memory array circuit that uses no processor
at all, to microcontroller systems with no OS, a microkernel,
or even a full-blown Linux kernel. To give you a mental
image amidst all the uncertainty, you could assume we'll have
a modest 8-, 12-, or 14-bit processor, some memory, an interface
to 4 sensors, a simple user interface, a USB port, and the need
to implement data acquisition from the sensors, data transfer
to the USB port, a clock, and the display of blood pressure &
heart rate readings on demand. Pick any reasonable microprocessor/microcontroller
to use in early embedded software subprojects.
Embedded Software Subprojects
Volunteers Are Needed
Pick a program from the Systems Architecture and Engineering
presentation, propose a way to implement it, and send your suggestion
to Larry.
About
This Page
This page is maintained by Larry
A. Beaty. It was last updated on 26 June 2007.
The author(s) provide this information as a public service,
and agree to place any novel and useful inventions disclosed herein
into the public domain. They are not aware that this material
infringes on the patent, copyright, trademark or trade secret
rights of others. However, there is a possibility that such infringement
may exist without their knowledge. The user assumes all responsibility
for determining if this information infringes on the intellectual
property rights of others before applying it to products or services.
(C) 2007 Larry A. Beaty. Copying and distribution of this page
is permitted in any medium, provided this notice is preserved.
Back to the Phoenix Home Page