embedded

I need to store items of varying length in a circular queue in a flash chip. Each item will have its encapsulation so I can figure out how big it is and where the next item begins. When there are enough items in the buffer, it will wrap to the beginning. What is a good way to store a circular queue in a flash chip? There is a possibility of tens of thousands of items I would like to store. So starting at the beginning and reading to the end of the buffer is not ideal because it will take time to search to the end. Also, because it is circular, I need to be able to distinguish the first item

I was wondering if there is a way to load an external binary file as a variable in C through an include or a header file or something of the like. For example, in a project I am currently working on I am working with an embedded system that has a graphic display that will do text and minor graphics (boxes, lines, etc.) using ASCII data and commands. But, it will also display monochrome bitmaps. So I have a series of static displays that I use for a user interface, and a couple of bitmaps for splash screens. Now the reason I mention that it is an embedded system is that there is no file system

When I give the Keil compiler the "--callgraph" option, it statically calculates the exact "Maximum Stack Usage" for me. Alas, today it is giving me a "Maximum Stack Usage = 284 bytes + Unknown(Functions without stacksize...)" message, along with a list of "Functions with no stack information". Nigel Jones says that recursion is a really bad idea in embedded systems ( "Computing your stack size" 2009), so I've been careful not to make any mutually recursive functions in this code. Also, I make sure that none of my interrupt handlers ever re-enable interrupts until their final return-from

Currently, I am learning some FPGA design techniques using VHDL, my problem is whether we can use := and <= interchangeably in VHDL or not, though I've seen the use of := in constants declarations and <= in assignments? Thanks in advance! The rules are a little more complex than this, but basically: you use <= to do signal assignment, which takes effect on the next delta cycle. You use := to do variable assignment, which takes place immediately. So if you have a signal, you always use <= . If you have a variable, you always use := . Some places where this is not quite that case that you will